Al Bernardin (February 17, 1928 – December 22, 2009) was an American

restaurateur A restaurateur is a person who opens and runs restaurants professionally. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who owns a restaurant, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspec ...

and businessman who invented the

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...

Quarter Pounder The Quarter Pounder is a hamburger sold by international fast food chain McDonald's, so named for containing a patty with a precooked weight of 4 oz, a quarter of a pound (113.4 g). It was first introduced in 1971. In 2013, the Qua ...

in 1971 as a

franchise Franchise may refer to: Business and law * Franchising, a business method that involves licensing of trademarks and methods of doing business to franchisees * Franchise, a privilege to operate a type of business such as a cable television p ...

owner in

Fremont, California Fremont is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. Located in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, Bay Area, Fremont has a population of 230,504 as of 2020, making it the fourth List of cities and towns in the San Fra ...

. The creation of the Quarter Pounder earned him the nickname "Fremont's hamburger king." Bernardin, during the 60’s, was McDonald's

vice president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

product development In business and engineering, new product development (NPD) covers the complete process of bringing a new product to market, renewing an existing product or introducing a product in a new market. A central aspect of NPD is product design, along wi ...

. His position allowed him to play a key role in the development of some of the company's signature menu items, including frozen

french fries French fries (North American English), chips (British English), finger chips ( Indian English), french-fried potatoes, or simply fries, are '' batonnet'' or ''allumette''-cut deep-fried potatoes of disputed origin from Belgium and France. Th ...

, which allowed for easier storage and transportation, as well as the McDonald's

fish sandwich A fish sandwich is, most generally, any kind of sandwich made with fish. The term is frequently used to describe food made with breaded, fried fish, which are commonly found in fast food venues. In American English, a ''sandwich'' is any two piec ...

apple pie An apple pie is a fruit pie in which the principal filling ingredient is apples. The earliest printed recipe is from England. Apple pie is often served with whipped cream, ice cream ("apple pie à la mode"), or cheddar cheese. It is generally ...

and cherry pie.

McDonald's

Bernardin was born on February 17, 1928, in

Lawrence, Massachusetts Lawrence is a city located in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, on the Merrimack River. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 89,143. Surrounding communities include Methuen to the north, Andover to the southwest, and Nort ...

. He received his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

from

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

in 1952. He was first hired to work at McDonald's

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

corporate headquarters Corporate headquarters is the part of a corporate structure that deals with important tasks such as strategic planning, corporate communications, taxes, law, books of record, marketing, finance, human resources, and information technology. Corpor ...

in 1960. Bernardin was promoted to

dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

of the company's training center,

Hamburger University Hamburger University is a training facility at the McDonald's Corporation global headquarters in Chicago, Illinois. It instructs high-potential restaurant managers, mid-managers and owner-operators in restaurant management. Hamburger Universit ...

, within just six months of joining McDonald's.

Development of the Quarter Pounder

Bernardin purchased two company-owned McDonald's in

, and relocated to the city in 1970. He successfully expanded his McDonald's franchise business, eventually owning nine of the restaurants throughout southern

Alameda County Alameda County ( ) is a List of counties in California, county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 1,682,353, making it the 7th-most populous county in the state and List ...

. Once in Fremont, Bernardin began experimenting with new menu items for his franchises. In 1971, Bernardin introduced the now famous Quarter Pounder at his McDonald's locations. He explained his idea for the Quarter Pounder in a 1991

interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" ...

marking the 20th anniversary of the burger's development saying, "felt there was a void in our menu vis-à-vis the adult who wanted a higher ratio of

meat Meat is animal flesh that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted, farmed, and scavenged animals for meat since prehistoric times. The establishment of settlements in the Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of animals such as chic ...

bun A bun is a type of bread roll, typically filled with savory fillings (for example hamburger). A bun may also refer to a sweet cake in certain parts of the world. Though they come in many shapes and sizes, buns are most commonly round, and are g ...

." Bernardin unveiled the Quarter Pounder using the

slogan A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a clan, political slogan, political, Advertising slogan, commercial, religious, and other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose, with the goal of persuading members of the publi ...

, "Today Fremont, tomorrow the world." The Quarter Pounder is now one of McDonald's most popular signature items, having been added to the national American menu in 1973.

Other McDonald's contributions

Additionally, Bernardin worked as McDonald's vice president of

during his career with the company. Though he was most famous for introducing the Quarter Pounder, Bernardin felt that his most important contribution to McDonald's and the larger

fast food Fast food is a type of mass-produced food designed for commercial resale, with a strong priority placed on speed of service. It is a commercial term, limited to food sold in a restaurant or store with frozen, preheated or precooked ingredien ...

industry was the development of frozen french fries. Until 1967, all McDonald's french fries had to be cut on-site from stored potatoes and fried. Bernardin's frozen fries allowed for easier transport of the product and cleared storage space which was previously used for storing potatoes. He explained the benefits of frozen fries saying, "Before that, the (restaurants) had to store potatoes in the basement. It was a real pain." As vice president, Bernardin also shepherded the development of the McDonald's

Filet-O-Fish The Filet-O-Fish is a fish sandwich (or burger) sold by the international fast food restaurant chain McDonald's. It was created in 1962 by Lou Groen, a McDonald's franchise owner in Cincinnati, Ohio, in response to falling hamburger sales on ...

, as well the company's fried apple and cherry pies. Not all of Bernadin's suggestions were included on McDonald's menus. McDonald's turned down his idea for a ground

turkey meat Turkey meat, commonly referred to as just turkey, is the meat from turkeys, typically domesticated turkeys but also wild turkeys. It is a popular poultry dish, especially in North America, where it is traditionally consumed as part of cultural ...

burger called the McGobbler. The company also dismissed his The Lite Mac sandwich, which would have consisted of a one fifth-pound

burger patty A patty or burger (in British English) is a flattened, usually round, serving of ground meat and/or legumes, grains, vegetables, or meat alternatives. Patties are found in multiple cuisines throughout the world. In British and American Eng ...

containing 15% less

beef fat Tallow is a rendered form of beef or mutton fat, primarily made up of triglycerides. In industry, tallow is not strictly defined as beef or mutton fat. In this context, tallow is animal fat that conforms to certain technical criteria, includin ...

than a normal

Big Mac The Big Mac is a hamburger sold by the international fast food restaurant chain McDonald's. It was introduced in the Greater Pittsburgh Region, Greater Pittsburgh area in 1967 and across the United States in 1968. It is one of the company's fl ...

. Bernardin spent approximately two years developing a

prototype A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and Software prototyping, software programming. A prototyp ...

for buttered

corn-on-the-cob Corn on the cob is a culinary term for a cooked ear of sweet corn (maize) eaten directly off the cob. The ear is picked while the endosperm is in the "milk stage" so that the kernels are still tender. Ears of corn are steamed, boiled, or g ...

, according to his son, Mark Bernardin, who is also a McDonald's franchise owner.

Later life

Bernardin and his wife, Joan Bernardin, became involved in

philanthropy Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

after his uncle received treatment in a

hospice Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care prioritizes comfort and quality of life by ...

. Impressed by his uncle's hospice care, Bernardin founded the Tree of Angels, a

Christmas tree A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, or an artificial tree of similar appearance, associated with the celebration of Christmas. The custom was further developed in early modern ...

lighting festival designed to raise money for the Pathways Hospice, based in

Sunnyvale, California Sunnyvale () is a city located in the Santa Clara Valley in northwest Santa Clara County in the U.S. state of California. Sunnyvale lies along the historic El Camino Real and Highway 101 and is bordered by portions of San Jose to the nort ...

. The couple moved to the

Monterey, California Monterey (; es, Monterrey; Ohlone: ) is a city located in Monterey County on the southern edge of Monterey Bay on the U.S. state of California's Central Coast. Founded on June 3, 1770, it functioned as the capital of Alta California under bo ...

, area in the mid-1990s, eventually settling in

Pebble Beach Pebble Beach is an unincorporated community on the Monterey Peninsula in Monterey County, California. The small coastal residential community of mostly single-family homes is also notable as a resort destination, and the home of the golf course ...

. He spent time as a volunteer at hospices throughout

northern California Northern California (colloquially known as NorCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties, its main population centers incl ...

. Bernardin became a major benefactor for the

Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula (CHOMP) was founded in 1934 and is located at 23625 Holman Highway in Monterey, California. The hospital has 258 acute care beds and 28 skilled-nursing beds. CHOMP has 15 locations, including the main ...

, known as CHOMP. In addition to his home in Pebble Beach, Bernardin also had residences in

Pleasanton, California Pleasanton is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. Located in the Amador Valley, it is a suburb in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 79,871 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. In 200 ...

, Spanish Bay and

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mont ...

. Bernardin suffered from a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

later in his life. He died of complications of that stroke on December 22, 2009, at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula in

, at the age of 81. He was survived by his wife, Joan Bernardin, two children, Kirsten and Mark, three stepchildren, Dan Ryan, Julie Bullas, Kristie Ryan and ten grandchildren.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bernardin, Al 1928 births 2009 deaths McDonald's people Cornell University alumni People from Lawrence, Massachusetts People from Fremont, California People from Monterey County, California