Hesburger: History, Key Facts and Reviews

1966-1980: from a Naantali grill kiosk to the first Hesburger in Turku

Hesburger grew out of a grill kiosk, Kievarin grilli, that Heikki Salmela opened in Naantali, on Finland’s southwest coast, in 1966 (Wikipedia). In 1980 he opened the first restaurant under the Hesburger name in the Hansakortteli shopping center on Kristiinankatu, in Turku (Wikipedia). Turku, Finland’s former capital, is still home to the company’s head office.

1988-2002: sold, bought back, then leader in Finland

Hesburger is still a family company even though it was once sold. In 1988 Salmela sold the chain, together with several hotels, for almost 200 million Finnish markka. He bought it back during the recession of the early 1990s for 25 million markka (Wikipedia). The chain had only 12 restaurants in 1992. It then spread across the country to more than 200 restaurants in 60 cities, and in 2002 it absorbed its Finnish rival Carrols.

1995-2024: Germany, the Baltics and Eastern Europe

Hesburger’s first restaurant outside Finland opened in Germany in 1995, according to the company. Estonia followed in 1996, Latvia in 2004 and Lithuania in 2007, which is now its strongest foreign market by restaurant count (Hesburger). The chain entered Ukraine in 2015, Bulgaria in 2016, and Romania and Poland in 2024, Poland with a home delivery kitchen only. Russia is the exception: Hesburger opened in Moscow and St. Petersburg in 2010 and 2011, then announced on March 29, 2022, that it would leave Russia and Belarus, where it then had about 40 restaurants (Wikipedia).

2025-2026: 497 restaurants and €569 million in sales

Hesburger is owned by the Salmela family through its parent company, Burger-In Oy. Heikki Salmela chairs the board and Kari Salmela is CEO. In 2025 the chain’s restaurants had taxable sales of about €569 million, €327 million in Finland and €242 million abroad, and employed about 9,500 people, 6,000 of them in Finland (Hesburger). The company lists 497 restaurants: 257 in Finland, 71 in Lithuania, 56 in Latvia, 54 in Estonia, 34 in Bulgaria, 15 in Romania, 7 in Ukraine, 2 in Germany and one delivery kitchen in Poland (Hesburger). Its house cucumber mayonnaise sets its burgers apart, and our Hesburger cheeseburger copycat recipe shows how to make it at home.

Key dates

• 1966: Heikki Salmela opens the Kievarin grilli kiosk in Naantali.
• 1980: the first Hesburger opens in Turku, in the Hansakortteli shopping center.
• 1988: Salmela sells the chain, then buys it back in the early 1990s.
• 1995: first restaurant outside Finland, in Germany.
• 1996: arrival in Estonia, the start of the Baltic expansion.
• 2002: Hesburger absorbs its Finnish rival Carrols.
• 2022: Hesburger announces its exit from Russia and Belarus.
• 2024: openings in Romania and Poland.