Glossary · Bureau of Bread Standards

What do you call a burger without a bun?

A burger without a bun is usually called bunless or lettuce-wrapped. At In-N-Out it is protein style; served over greens or rice it is a burger bowl; and on some menus it is simply a naked burger. All of them mean the same thing: the patty, without the bread.

The terms

TERM 01

Bunless

What you get: The burger as normal, with no bun. Sometimes on a plate, sometimes in a box, occasionally on a bed of lettuce.
Where you'll hear it: The general-purpose word. Understood at most counters if you say it plainly.
Bureau note: Accurate. Defines the burger by what it has escaped.

TERM 02

Lettuce wrap

What you get: Large lettuce leaves in place of the bun, holding the patty and toppings together.
Where you'll hear it: An option at Five Guys, where any burger can be ordered lettuce-wrapped, and on Shake Shack's menu, which lists lettuce-wrapped burgers.
Bureau note: Structurally sound for roughly four bites. The Bureau considers this sufficient.

TERM 03

Protein style

What you get: The burger wrapped in lettuce instead of a bun. Available on any burger on the menu.
Where you'll hear it: In-N-Out. A standing request rather than a secret: staff know what it means.
Bureau note: The only bunless term with a brand behind it. The Bureau notes the name does not mention lettuce, and respects the discretion.

TERM 04

Burger bowl

What you get: The patty, usually chopped or crumbled, served in a bowl over greens, rice or potatoes with the usual toppings and sauce.
Where you'll hear it: Mostly a home-cooking term: recipes, meal prep, "burger bowl sauce".
Bureau note: Eaten with a fork. A burger that has accepted cutlery has accepted its freedom.

TERM 05

Naked burger

What you get: The burger served without a bun, typically on a plate, sometimes with a side salad.
Where you'll hear it: Restaurant menus and casual ordering. Less standard than "bunless", but widely understood.
Bureau note: The Bureau does not use this term in official correspondence.

TERM 06

Topless

What you get: The burger without its bun, stacked on a bed of greens.
Where you'll hear it: Bobby Flay's Bobby's Burger Palace offered burgers "topless", stacked on greens without the bun.
Bureau note: A half measure, in the literal sense. Progress is progress.

TERM 07

Open-faced

What you get: The burger on a single piece of bread or the bottom half of the bun, with the top left off.
Where you'll hear it: Diners and sandwich menus. Strictly, it still involves bread.
Bureau note: Permitted when the bread is a slice. See the manifesto, approved alternatives.

How to order one

Say it plainly. Say it once.

Can I get that bunless? Works almost anywhere.
Lettuce wrap, please. Where the menu offers it.
Protein style. At In-N-Out. No further explanation is required.
No bun, on a plate. At a sit-down restaurant, if the first three meet resistance.
If a bun arrives anyway: remove it, place it to one side, and do not explain.

The Bureau's ruling

OFFICIAL POSITION

The correct name for a burger without a bun is a burger.

The Bureau holds that the bun was never part of the definition. Every term above is a polite way of describing a burger that has been returned to its original condition.

The Bureau accepts all seven terms for ordering purposes. It does not accept the premise that the bun is the default and its absence the exception.

Know what you are declining: the Field Guide to Bun Species →
Know what to have instead: Approved Alternatives →

Sources for menu terms: tastingtable.com (In-N-Out protein style) · Eat This, Not That (Five Guys lettuce wrap) · aol.com (Shake Shack lettuce-wrapped burgers) · penntoday.upenn.edu (Bobby's Burger Palace, 2010)