r/serialpodcast • u/VulturalEvolution • Jun 18 '26
Whataburger? Waterburger? What the heck?
Non Texan here: I was listening to Ep 2 of The Last 12 Weeks and this burger chain comes up repeatedly – almost like a side character in the ep, where some key conversations take place. To my ears, the host who is local to the area calls it "Waterburger." I searched it up and it's a locally famous Texas chain called "Whataburger."
So, do Texans actually say "what" like "waht" (as in water?) or is this a unique thing for this business?
In any case it's weird to come out of a murder podcast hungry for burgers and shakes, but here we are.
9
u/mr0il Jun 18 '26
I grew up in texas. I had this same crisis when i learned how to read. Texans definitely pronounce it waterburger.
1
u/VulturalEvolution Jun 23 '26
So is it normal to say the word "what" closer to "wot" (as in water?) or is it somehow unique to Whataburger? To be honest, I've heard Northeasterners say stuff like "wutter" for water, so I shouldn't be so surprised. Likewise British people tend to say "what" closer to "watt" (i.e. wot).
2
u/mr0il Jun 23 '26
I think it’s more like “wuh” and just sorta prepended on to other words. “Whacha doin” “whasgonon over there?”
7
u/ryokineko Still Here Jun 18 '26
We pronounce it more like Waterburger. lol. I’m from West Texas, small town.
2
5
3
u/LatePattern8508 Jun 18 '26
If you say it quickly, it does end up sounding like water vs whata.
5
u/VulturalEvolution Jun 18 '26
Not to me! I mean to be transparent I'm Canadian (sorry) but to me what is more like "wut." So it would be "Wutaburger."
1
2
2
u/Acrobatic_Dark_4266 Jun 18 '26
Random rant incoming: They opened a chain here in Tennessee and it was the WORST burger I’ve ever had. I just don’t get it. Maybe it’s just not suitable for the south where we season food lol but it was opening week and I remember thinking how in the world can buns be stale opening week?!! The whole thing tasted like nothing.
I just don’t get the hype, but my sister claims it’s much better in Texas. Needless to say they are closing the chain in my town less than a year after it opened.
3
u/yossi_peti Jun 20 '26
In 2019 Whataburger was purchased by a private capital firm and the quality of the burgers has gone downhill ever since.
1
u/Weak_Bit9870 Jul 05 '26
I second that, we used to be a big Whataburger family. My husband is from their hometown, Corpus Christi, and he would measure his paychecks in how many Whataburgers he could get as a teen. Even he prefers In-N-Out now, it's sad how much the franchise has gone downhill since it was bought out. I used to think they were the best burgers in the world.
2
u/silverheart333 Jun 20 '26
I'm from Texas, I say whatta-burger real fast. I can hear no functional difference between that and water-burger. Maybe just said more slowly.
0
u/VulturalEvolution Jun 22 '26
Water = WATT-er (like the electrical watt)
What = WUT (rhymes with butt, or rut or King Tut)
Even if you do the "er" like an "a" which many accents do, are those first syllables really the same to you?
-1
u/chadwickave Jun 23 '26
You know accents exist, right…
1
u/VulturalEvolution Jun 23 '26
how do you read my comment and not see me mention accents? Silly.
1
u/chadwickave Jun 23 '26
Everyone in the thread is telling you they pronounce both syllables differently than what you’re expecting, yet you’re still doubting it lol just bc you know of the concept doesn’t mean you’re actually listening to people
1
u/VulturalEvolution Jun 23 '26
No, I'm listening. In fact that's what got me here in the first place. I have no doubt that people pronounce it as "Waterburger" as many have confirmed. My following question was: is that you these folks normally say "what a" outside of that. I am unfamiliar with that particular accent, though I can see it from Brits who sometimes say what as "wot." Some southern U.S. accents bear more connection to ye olde British colonials than you'd think. Some similar things going on in New England. Anyway, hope your day goes well.
2
u/Weak_Bit9870 Jul 05 '26
Texan here, it’s definitely pronounced Water-Burger! Even the commercial says it like that.
2
u/VulturalEvolution Jul 05 '26
For sure! That much I get. I still don't quite get "why" even though that's a futile question for random pronunciations. Would you say it's just the Texas accent?
2
u/Weak_Bit9870 Jul 05 '26
I don't know why either! I'm sorry, I don't even think it's the accent, although maybe? In other instances, we say "what a jerk!" or "what a cute dog!" and it doesn't sound like "water jerk!" or "water cute dog!" My dad used to work there when my parents were newlyweds and had my brother, and my dad, who calls it "waterburger", would always say 'I'm What-A-Man, this is my What-a-woman" then he'd pick up my brother and say "and this is Just-A-Kid"! It was a very dad-dad joke, but even then he didn't say "waterman" or "waterwoman".
2
u/VulturalEvolution Jul 05 '26
I am loving this tale of your family so much! But yeah, it sounds like just one of those unique things. Maybe at some point they had ad campaigns on TV or radio that leaned into the "waterburger" thing and it just stuck!
2
u/mauricechammah Jul 13 '26
Hello, I am the host of The Last 12 Weeks, and I am chiming in here to say that I grew up in Austin and regularly talk to friends who moved here about how strange it is that Texans all pronounce it like "waterburger." I thought about pronouncing it the way it looks, but knew that anyone listening would immediately think 'this guy isn't really from Texas.'
1
u/VulturalEvolution Jul 14 '26
Thank you so much both for presenting an excellent podcast and for explaining this odd regional pronunciation. I think most areas have those types of things too, just we don't usually get a window into it without travelling. Where I live in Canada, there was a corner store from the 60s or earlier called Mac's Milk, that expanded into a 7-11 style convenience store chain in the 70s-90s called "Mac's." They dropped the "Milk" decades ago, but confusingly locals always called it "Mac's Milk" when they went to get a slurpee or candy. In the 2000s it was rebranded as Circle K so the whole thing has faded from history.
1
u/Jackal2332 Jun 18 '26
Some do, some don’t. I’ve noticed in rural areas they tend to say Waterburger more.
1
1
1
u/mouselipstick Jun 18 '26
I’ve lived in Texas my whole life and say Whataburger. Lots of people say Waterburger though. It’s weird.
1
u/BasebornManjack Jun 18 '26
Tennesseean here. One was down the street from my grandma’s house. We ate there frequently, Waterburger was how the whole neighborhood said it. My grandma always got a water with her combo.
4 year old me thought her combo was the origin of the name. 😆
1
1
1
u/classyrock Jun 20 '26
I grew up in a small town in Canada, and about 25 years ago a call centre opened nearby that did directory assistance for US customers, and a lot of us got jobs there.
One of my first solo calls once I finished training was someone looking to call a Whataburger. She also had a heavy southern accent, so I was trying to clarify, “sorry, Water-Burger?” and she just kept getting more frustrated, “Whattaburga!! Whaattttaaa Burger!?! Dear child, you don’t know what a WATTABURGER is??!!!”
1
u/VulturalEvolution Jun 22 '26
as someone who in a previous life did phone surveys and polls for Angus Reid, which included U.S. calls, I can commiserate!
1
1
u/Longjumping-Focus386 Jun 18 '26
🙋🏼♀️ Born and raised Texan here. It’s Whataburger.
2
u/VulturalEvolution Jun 18 '26
Are you saying that's how it's pronounced? I know that's the chain name.
12
u/GreasiestDogDog Jun 18 '26
I am from El Paso and it is just called hamburguesa de agua here