Happy National Pancake Day! Here's Where To Get Freebie Pancakes On March 12

CHICAGO (CBS)--It's National Pancake Day!

Pancakes have been a dietary staple in cultures all over the world since all the way back in the prehistoric age, according to National Geographic.

Back then, National Geographic says, cooks made flour out of cattails and ferns by grinding it with tools from the stone age. Then--much like basic recipes sometimes used today--the flour was mixed with water and baked.

Pancakes were also enjoyed by the ancient Greeks and Romans. They were traditionally eaten on 'Pancake Day,' which was a day of feasting before Lent started.

National Geographic says the Greeks and Romans liked to use up perishable ingredients like eggs, milk and butter before the fasting period of Lent began.

To celebrate the day dedicated to America's love of pancakes, on Tuesday, March 12, IHOP is giving away a free short stack of buttermilk pancakes for free. And although pancakes are best known as a breakfast food, it seems to socially acceptable to enjoy them anytime of the day.

Here's where to get a fresh stack of hotcakes for free today at any of four Chicago IHOP locations. The free pancakes are available from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and customers have the option to donate to Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, Shriners Hospital for Children and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

3760 N. Halsted

2818 W. Diversey

4210 N. Cicero

5929 N. Lincoln