To answer Serious Eats question about that: based on what I remember from the time I worked for the Scotsman, it is indeed an artifact of the burger construction process. Remember, you’re doing six Big Macs at a time; the cheese slice is put on the bottom piece of bread so that you know which ones are the bottom ones even after you’ve dumped Special Sauce, onions, and pickles on the whole thing. That makes it easier for the person actually assembling the burgers to box them quickly.
Pretty straightforward, really.
Moe Lane
Via… somebody.
Actually, Moe, there is another view or take on placing the cheese on the bottom of the stack (on top of the bottom of the sandwich and placing the meat on top of it).
In so doing, the cheese is closer to the tongue (unless you eat your burgers upside down) and you get a slightly different taste experience. If I had a link to share I would but I heard a couple of food critics/writers who were in the process of grilling and building a burger on NPR explain the logic behind this.
Not straightforward at all in this case but a reasonable explanation.