Custom Burger Boxes

How a burger clamshell is cut and folded

A burger box is a clamshell: one sheet that forms a base and a hinged lid that locks at the front.

The base and lid are cut as one piece joined along the back fold. Corners are either glued in advance, so the box pops up, or folded and locked by hand, and a tab on the lid slots into the base front.

Pre-glued boxes are faster on a busy line. Hand-locked blanks take less storage space and cost less, but each one takes a few seconds to fold.

• One sheet, back-hinged lid
• Tab and slot front lock
• Pre-glued or hand-locked corners

Paperboard or fine-flute corrugated?

Coated paperboard covers most burgers. Fine-flute corrugated holds heat longer for delivery.

SBS or kraft board with a grease-resistant coating is light, prints well and keeps juice from soaking through. The coating is worth asking for, since meat juice and sauce collect at the base corners.

F-flute or E-flute corrugated is thicker and has a small air layer that keeps the burger warm and the box rigid. It suits delivery, where the box sits in a bag for longer.

Sizing for the tallest build

Size the box for the tallest burger on the menu, with room for any wrap around it.

Measure the bun diameter and the full height of a double or stacked build. A lid that presses down squashes the bun and smears sauce onto the box, which spoils the look on arrival.

Many outlets settle on two or three sizes: a standard single, a deeper box for stacked builds, and a smaller one for sliders or kids' meals. One box for every burger usually means too much air around the small ones. Send us the bun size and your tallest build, and we size the range around them.

Burger box or paper wrap?

A wrap is cheaper and holds a burger tight. A box protects its shape and stacks in a bag.

Wrap paper uses little material and works well when the burger is eaten at once. In a delivery bag, wrapped burgers get pressed under drinks and sides and arrive flattened.

A clamshell keeps the burger's height and can sit under other items. Plenty of kitchens use both, with a light wrap inside the box to hold the burger together.

Steam, vents and print

Trapped steam softens the bun, so vent holes and where the print goes both matter.

A closed clamshell traps moisture from a hot patty. Small vent holes in the lid let some escape, keeping the bun firmer over a short delivery while holding most of the heat.

The lid top is the panel the customer sees first. Grease tends to show near the base, so darker or patterned artwork lower down hides marks, and the inside is left unprinted.

• Vent holes keep buns firmer
• Lid top carries the brand
• Inside left unprinted

Burger box or open food tray?

A clamshell is the right pick for burgers that travel in a bag. An open tray is the right pick for burgers eaten at a counter or a stall within minutes.

For burgers eaten on the spot, a wrap or an open food tray does the job with far less material. We make both, so a kitchen can serve on trays in-house and box the delivery orders.

A clamshell is not sealed, so loose sauce finds its seams. Burgers dripping with sauce or loose toppings leak at the corners and the hinge, and are better in a box with a coated tray inside or a tall-walled container.