The Big Mac was trademarked in 1968 after being created by McDonald’s franchisee Jim Delligatti.
Delligatti operated McDonald’s restaurants in the Pittsburgh area and developed a larger sandwich with two beef patties, a middle bun section, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, and sauce. McDonald’s introduced the sandwich nationwide in 1968 after testing it in selected markets.
The Big Mac’s three-part bun and distinctive ingredient arrangement gave McDonald’s a product that functioned as a brand symbol as well as a menu item. Its name became internationally recognizable and was later used in comparisons such as The Economist’s “Big Mac Index.”
The sandwich is sometimes said to have been invented by McDonald’s corporate headquarters. The more specific history credits Delligatti, while the company approved and scaled the product. The Big Mac’s sauce is commonly called “special sauce,” a phrase strongly associated with its advertising.