Burger King made mini flame grills for a town with no BK restaurant

The Turkish city of Sinop complained, so BK answered

Published On
May 24, 2019

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In Turkey, Burger King is the leading fast-food brand, and there are (according the the BK Turkey website) about 650 restaurants across the country, in cities like Istanbul, Ankara and even one called Batman. 

But there’s one town that’s totally missing out, the city of Sinop. 

Some citizens of Sinop had taken to expressing their disappointment on social media about being deprived of a Burger King restaurant. But instead of opening up shop there, the fast feeder did the next best thing—it sent Sinop fans their own Burger King mini grills so they could make Whoppers on their own. 

The brand, along with agency VMLY&R Istanbul created tiny working charcoal grills, dubbed the "Mini Flame King." Branded with the BK logo, they look just like a Whopper box but offered up a whole lot more. They came with bits of kindling, miniature tongs and two charcoal nubs. BK sent the grills to any Sinop residents who complained. It also created a series of quirky videos (below) showcasing a mustachioed man firing up the mini grills at the office, on a canoe and in a car, as he read out loud Sinop dwellers' social media gripes. 

The effort caught the attention of the rest of Turkey (the Mini Flame King videos garnered more than 2 million views). Soon enough, the rest of the country started demanding the grills, and BK ended up producing about 500 more to accommodate those fans.