The Question about Burger and Fries

CEBU, Philippines - True blue gourmands know that the world of gastronomic creations is riddled with specials that have contestable origin stories - even if the names of some of these dishes point to a particular place.

Like the buzzwords and trends circulating online, the specific backstories of these dishes may be the subject of countless arguments and debates, but this hasn't stopped the world from loving specials like the burger and fries combo.

Was the hamburger made in Hamburg, Germany?

Food experts and historians generally agree that the hamburger is named after the city of Hamburg in Germany - the home city of a number of emigrants to the United States.

What's not exactly agreed upon is if the hamburger - as we know it today - was made in Hamburg or in the USA.

In line with the implications of its "made in Hamburg" name, some historians argue that the hamburger was made by Otto Kuase in Hamburg in 1891, in Germany.

However, other historians say that the hamburger was not made in Hamburg, but in America - with a Danish immigrant named Louis Lassen often mentioned as the seller of the first hamburger steak sandwich in 1900.

Other names linked to the creation of the hamburger in the US include Oscar Weber Bilby (who is said to have served the first hamburger in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1891), Fletcher Davis (who is said to have served burgers in Athens, Texas during the 1880s) and Charles and Frank Menches (who are noted to have sold the special during the Erie County Fair in Hamburg, New York in 1885).

There are other names attributed to the making of the "world's first hamburger," apart from the ones mentioned.

Though there are different claims tied to the hamburger's making, one thing is certain - it is one of the world's most well-loved specials, prepared in different varieties, shapes and sizes. (FREEMAN)