May is National Hamburger Month, an excuse to celebrate one of America’s most mouth-watering German imports.

Some say the month falls in December or July, but most sources say May is the month for lovers of the minced meat patty first introduced in Hamburg, Germany, in the 1600s.

White Castle, the inventor of National Hamburger Month, is in the celebrating mood.

The Ohio-based chain is sending alerts to those who sign up at Sliderbration.com that divulge where 25 cent Sliders can be purchased.

Different White Castle restaurant locations will host two-hour “Slider-brations” each day through May.

White Castle simultaneously hosted the sales at restaurants in Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, Indianapolis, Louisville, Minneapolis, Nashville, New York, New Jersey and St. Louis yesterday to kick things off.

With a handful of area locations, Culver’s is paying tribute to the hamburger all month on its Facebook page.

The chain has brought its Colby Jack Pub Burger back for a limited time.

The company says the burger starts with a Midwest-raised, grill-seared beef and is “topped with gourmet, real Wisconsin Colby Jack cheese, crispy onions and four-pepper mayo with a touch of A.1. Steak Sauce and served on a zesty artisan bun.”

EO Burgers at The Greene in Beavercreek nabbed the top spot in the 2012 Best of Dayton reader’s choice award. It is owned by a small Michigan-based restaurant company.

The vote for the 2013 winner is coming soon.

Which restaurant makes the best burger in town? Better yet, how do YOU make the best burger in town. Let us know below.

Click here to read recommendations from other local burger fans.

In the meantime, below are five fun facts about hamburgers from a Restaurant News feature on National Hamburger Month.

1) White Castle, considered America’s first fast food hamburger chain, started National Hamburger Month in 1992 for marketing purposes.

2) Ketchup became a hamburger mainstay shortly after Henry John Heinz started his ketchup company in 1869. Onions, pickles and lettuce came along in the 1940s.

3) McDonald’s started as a hot dog stand in California in 1937.

4) Wimpy, Popeye’s friend from the cartoon, first said the words, “I’ll gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today” way back in 1932.

5) A meat patty on a bun first became popular in America in the early 1900s because it was easy for workers to handle on the go.

Contact this blogger at arobinson@DaytonDailyNews.com or Twitter.com/DDNSmartMouth