:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/49023671/15017552912_ae4e0be3f9_k.0.0.jpg)
In a shocking move, the French have decided to accept an American classic onto their list of "favorite things." Le burger (or the hamburger, for those who aren't bilingual) is now sold in 75 percent of France's many restaurants, and a recent study said the dish is the top seller in 80 percent of those restaurants, according to the Telegraph.
The hamburger evolved into a serious competitor against a classical French favorite, "jambon beurre," which is ham and butter on a baguette. According to the Telegraph, people in France consumed 1.19 billion burgers (an increase from the previous year), while consumption of le jambon beurre dropped to 1.23 billion.
This is not entirely due to the popularity of McDonald's in France, either, though the country has become the chain's largest market. The hamburger has been growing in popularity at dine-in restaurants across France, from fast-casual places to higher-end restaurants, as Bloomberg reported on the rise in burger prevalence back in 2014.
"Burger mania [in France] is unstoppable," Bernard Boutboul, who heads the group that conducted the burger study, told the Telegraph. Hopefully, the French aren't tarnishing their newfound love of burgers by covering their beef in ketchup.
