It’s easy to walk into 8 Flavors, take a glance at the restaurant’s menu board at the front door and assume that the advertised “Chinese burgers” are some sort of wacky, modern riff on an American staple.

After all, Americans invented the hamburger, right? Wrong.

Chinese Burger at 8 Flavors, 2210 Iowa St.

Turns out, the rou jia mo (a popular street food originating in China’s Shaanxi Province) may just be the world’s oldest sandwich or hamburger, dating all the way back to the Qin dynasty from about 221 BC to 206 BC.

At 8 Flavors, chunks of pork are braised and then coated in a savory sauce of tomatoes and spices. It’s stuffed between two slices of house-made flat bread and garnished with lettuce, onions and diced bell peppers.

Where to get it:8 Flavors, 2210 Iowa St.

What you’ll pay: $4.75 per burger

Try it with: A glass of Thai tea, $2.99

Also on the menu: The restaurant specializes in tons of authentic dishes you’re not likely to find at more run-of-the-mill Chinese-American joints, like the crispy duck (decorated with fanciful slices of cucumber and tomato) and liangpi, a cold noodle dish coated with chile-oil vinaigrette and topped with julienned cucumbers.

— Off The Beaten Plate highlights some of the more exotic, oddly named or inventively concocted dishes from local menus. Know of an offbeat item we should check out? Email reporter Joanna Hlavacek at jhlavacek@ljworld.com. Follow her at Twitter.com/hlavacekjoanna.