Guberburger - Gastro Obscura

Prepared Foods

Guberburger

A now-shuttered Missouri drive-in brought local acclaim to patties topped in peanut butter.

One small drive-in burger joint in the city of Sedalia, Missouri, introduced fast-food fans to a peanut butter–slathered hamburger known as the guberburger. The Wheel Inn, about an hour-and-a-half drive from Kansas City, attracted customers with their well-loved patties, the most unique of which featured peanut butter, mayonnaise, lettuce, and tomato as its signature toppings. Hungry drivers pulled up for roadside service from the 1940s until 2007, when a highway expansion project compromised the building.

A former employee took the initiative to reopen The Wheel Inn in a new location, extending the guberburger’s life for a few more good years. Unfortunately, the second location shuttered in 2013. Even though the original location and the business behind the guberburger are gone, other local joints have taken it upon themselves to keep the legacy alive. You can still find peanut butter–topped hamburgers at eateries in Sedalia today, a result of The Wheel Inn’s nearly 70 years as a local staple.

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