Why is it "Where's the beef" when it should be where's the ham?

The answer is really quite simple: because Hamburg, Germany made the first hamburgers.

However, the history of the hamburger is actually more complicated. Who actually invented the first hamburger remains a mystery.

Some say it was a group of nomadic people called the Tartars who tenderized their beef by placing it under a horse's saddle--flattening it into a patty. Others believe it was the German immigrants who traveled to the United States during the 19th century bringing with them their favorite meal called Hamburg Style Beef-- a raw chopped, piece of beef. Some argue Americans placed the first cooked beef patty on a roll at the St. Louis World's Fair in 1921.

Although beef is the most popular meat used in hamburgers, other meats such as pork and turkey have been used.

Ever since Bob's Big Boy introduced the first double patty burger, new varieties of burgers have been created. Today people enjoy veggie burgers, turkey burgers, and quarter-pound burgers with many different toppings including lettuce, mushrooms, cheese, onions, tomatoes, ketchup, mustard, and pickles.

Hamburgers remain one of the most favorite foods among Americans today.

Ranking #1 among all restaurants with 26,000 stores in 119 countries, McDonald's serves billions of hamburgers worldwide.

Holy Hamburger!

On average, Americans eat 3 hamburgers a week.

McDonald's has sold 12 hamburgers for every person in the world.

60% of all sandwiches eaten are hamburgers.

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