OWLS HEAD — It’s a great spring day outside. You’ve spent your morning cleaning or getting your garden ready for planting. And then, it hits you. You’re hungry. And it’s that kind of hunger that only a good ole American burger can cure. You get in your car and point toward Owls Head because you know in your heart that only the seven-napkin burger can tame the desire that drives your soul.... I mean stomach.

I wasn’t surprised to find the parking spaces all full and cars beginning to line up across the street when I pulled up to the General Store. Easy to find, it’s right beside the Owls Head Post Office.

 I knew I would have to wait and of course I didn’t mind. I was pleasantly surprised when I placed my order and 10 minutes later I was staring my burger in the face, I mean buns, I mean it was in front of me. My mouth watered.

Seems even though the store was busy, a lot of people took advantage of the to-go option and had ordered ahead.

Take a look on Yelp and Tripadvisor, They are loaded with entry after entry singing praises and accolades to the monster sandwich. The repeated advice to all out-of-state visitors is go there, eat it, you won’t be sorry.

Even the Food Network gave it the recognition it deserves when it voted it Best Burger in Maine.

But maybe a little history is in order here.

It’s said that Lionel Sternberger is reputed to have invented the cheeseburger in 1926 at the age of 16 when he was working as a fry cook at his father's Pasadena, Calif., sandwich shop, "The Rite Spot," and "experimentally dropped a slab of American cheese on a sizzling hamburger."

There are five stories just like this one that involves a fry cook and a piece of cheese in an American Diner. They all purport to be the humble beginning of the all American cheeseburger.

Regardless of how it all began, we know where it is now. Everywhere, in every shape size and variety.

A quick search of the web turned up several five-napkin burgers in spots stretching from Boston to New York. But only one, the Owls Head General Store, claimed a seven-napkin burger. And it’s rumored from more then one source that it actually takes up to nine napkins to eat it.

Linda Posson and Lyn Barnard had just finished their lunch of the seven-napkin burger. I was quick to point out to Lyn that she had more then seven napkins piled beside her basket.

“Yes, I do,” she admitted. “And I only ate half the sandwich. I’m taking the other half home for dinner. I visit here frequently all year and I bring my summer visitors here, too.”

What was the best part about the burger.

“Everything,” she said. “The sauce, the pickles, the burger itself, just absolutely everything.”

Berry Saucier and Liz Knauer, from Rockport, said they were sure they would use at least seven napkins, if not more.

Owner Rob Craig and his wife have owned the store for five years. He said it’s been a great five years and they stayed open all winter.

“Business was good; we didn’t have to close all winter long,” he said. “The weather really helped us out quite a bit.”

Craig says the secret to the seven-napkin burger is freshness.

“I pick up the beef every morning, fresh ground, and I make every patty by hand myself,” he said. “All our ingredients are fresh, fresh, fresh, never frozen. We use good quality ingredients. We slice the pickles ourselves. I buy them in five gallon tubs and slice every one of them.”

Craig said he uses a Kaiser roll because it’s a good, heavy duty roll. He said it doesn’t break or split and holds up well to the burger and all the ingredients.

Craig said the sandwich is a good six to seven inches tall and though it looks imposing, it doesn’t really take that long to eat.

His advice: “The first bite is the hardest, but once you pick it up, don’t put it down. Once you get into it, you’re good to go, but that first bite can be tough.”

The store is open 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, and 6:30 on Saturday; but after Memorial Day it will be 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

And don’t forget, you can always call ahead.