'The Donald' fired from menu of Winnipeg's Nuburger

Staff at a Winnipeg restaurant are firing an item named after Donald Trump from their menu.

In the wake of the U.S. Republican presidential candidate's proposal to ban Muslims from the country — and a growing list of controversies that have come to define his campaign — Nuburger management is inviting Winnipeggers to enter a contest.

• Donald Trump calls for 'complete shutdown' on Muslims entering U.S.

• Republican debate: National security in the spotlight as candidates sound off

It involves renaming a burger with what staff call the "finest, most decadent" ingredients; a burger that represents indulgence and currently has what they thought, before Trump announced his intention to run for president in July, was an appropriate name: The Donald.

Making fun of Donald Trump

"All joking aside, we knew Donald Trump was an arrogant, ignorant joke and we named the burger after him to get a laugh!" says a post on Nuburger's Facebook page.

"We didn't know until now the extent of his disturbing, bigoted, fascist and misogynist ideologies. Now we absolutely want NO association with his name in any way shape or form."

The burger includes Bothwell cheddar cheese, an omega-3 egg, sautéed mushrooms, truffle aioli, balsamic onions, tomato and lettuce tossed in a black currant-shiraz reduction. 

Kyle Matheson, one of the restaurant's co-owners, said changing its name is not a political statement.

"We were more so making fun of [Donald Trump] than anything. We thought, 'Who could we name it after that always wants the best and makes everything huge?'" he said.

"In light of recent events with his position to ban Muslims and that complete ignorance there and bigotry we decided to just wipe ourselves clean of him."

Customers speak up

When Trump announced his proposal regarding Muslims, customers spoke up about the burger's name, Matheson said.

As for the replacement, he said the restaurant is looking for a name that isn't too serious and has an element of fun.

"One that's stuck out that's kind of local is, 'The Golden Boy,'" he said, noting the burger has a sunny side of eggs so it fits the name, which also has relevance to Winnipeg.

"We had, 'The Ron Burgundy,' which I thought was kind of funny … He has many leather-bound books and wood of rich mahogany … kind of making fun of all you want is expensive stuff."

The contest is on until Dec. 19 but already, Nuburger's Facebook page has received more than 50 submissions.

"How about naming it The Bowman after our mayor who wrote the open letter to Donald Trump?" wrote Amy Wu.

Jacob Tea Marks wanted to shift the focus of the burger's name from United States politics to what's going on in the Canadian political landscape. 

"Sunny Ways," he wrote.

To enter the contest, visit Nuburger's Facebook page and leave your suggestion in the comment box under their post about it.