Town Topic

Town Topic is part of Kansas City history. From my parents and grandparent’s perspective, it was better 20 years ago. For myself, I find that it is average greasy spoon small-​diner fair.
It is one of the few establishments in Kansas City that is truly 24/​7, so if you work a graveyard shift this place will likely come up at least once as an option.
— The breakfasts are better then the lunch/​dinner items
— If you come in at 2am in the morning, prepare to meet colorful people
— Do enjoy friendly chats with the staff as they are wonderful at night, during the day the friendliness dims due to a constant influx of customers
— Do enjoy the drunken customers as they are a customary part of your dining experience
— Don’t expect to get a seat, you are better off eating in your vehicle anyways
— The hamburgers are as good as the cook who is working. Some are good, others are great
— Do have the malts and pies are desserts that are part of the experience, have some with your breakfast
— Don’t bring an expensive vehicle here and expect it to remain untouched
— Don’t eat here if you want something healthy
–The sandwiches are not the same as Paul’s Drive Thru, and the fries are traditional without any fancy double-​frying or seasoning.
— Johnny Ray’s has better sauces.
–Don’t expect memorable taste from the food but remember it is cheap, prepared quickly, and quickly tempers any drunken hangry-​ness
— During normal daytime hours Tay’s Burger Shack is a better option
Locale and ambience: 2
Friendliness: 5
Food: 3
Price: 4
Overall: 4

This was the conversation witnessed at 1am, «I want the chicken» says drunk man. «We don’t have chicken» says waitress. «Well I’d like the chicken», he says. «We don’t have chicken, that’s the menu order from that» she says pointing to the menu overhead. «You think your better than me?» he retorts. «Get out» she responds stoically rolling her eyes. «I just want the chicken, your uniform doesn’t make you better than me!» he shouts at the woman wearing a T-​shirt. «Get out now» still stoically and holds his eye contact staring him out the door.
It was pretty much like this, customer after customer. This is Town topics normal and I will watch that show every time while I enjoy my egg and cheese sammy for 2.75 or slice of fresh pie. Open ²⁴⁄₇ this place is a KC landmark in the crossroads district. Cheap tasty burgers that hit the spot after the buzz wares off and you realize your starving. At lunch this place is packed but that’s easy to do. They only have maybe 12 bar stools available and than some counters to stand and eat at. It all works like some crazy kind of entropy, the terrible lighting, gritty staff, cramped dingy space, watching your food sizzle on the grill, anticipating the simple but good grub’s timely arrival. Lots of parking except for jam packed first Fridays.

One of my favorite places in the world. Can’t ask for a more classic, authentic American meal! I’ve been coming here since I was a kid and its stayed constant. Gotta have those onion rings ;)

Awesome little joint with fantastic service. I would love to try breakfast here sometime!

The food isn’t amazing but it’s an awesome late night snack– great local flavor!

We needed to grab a quick breakfast before our tour at Boulevard Brewing Company. Quick decision was made and a good one at that. Love little dives like this one. I love seeing places that are keeping a tradition alive. They have a spot for everything. Very organized. Friendly staff. Good food! Getting in our carbs before a day of day drinking begins!

Solid, Consistent, and a KC Tradition! What more can you say about this hole in the wall Diner? Some of the best burgers in KC, and their shoestring fries are legendary! Can’t beat their breakfast, shakes, pies, etc, etc… I could go on and on. Yeah you’ll pay a bit more than McD’s, but remember it’s fresh, not frozen, so in my book it’s worth it!

This is a simple place with simple food and great service. My go to at Town Topic is a double cheeseburger, a chocolate shake… and pie! The cheeseburgers aren’t technically anything special, but they are always served hot and DELICIOUS. A healthy amount of grease, but nothing over which my weak stomach has ever gotten upset. Get everything on it! Fried onions and pickles when ordering and ketchup and mustard at the counter.
This is THE PLACE for pie. There are probably 10 – 15 different types of pie, fruit and cream both. The eternal dilemma for me here is whether I get a shake or pie, and I’m usually unable to make that decision. You shouldn’t make that decision either. Get ‘em both.
This place is pretty much always packed, with limited diner stool seating at the food counter and counters overlooking Broadway, so we tend to save Town Topic for when we have the late night munchies and time to wait. Also, if your picky-​eater of a dad from the Dakotas visits you in KC, he’ll probably only want to eat here from now on! You’ve been warned :)

Was down in KC for some training for work and decided to try this place out as I was pretty hungry when I arrived at my hotel.
Upon arrival, the small diner was quite packed with people. I ended up grabbing a double cheese burger and hashbrowns after waiting about 20 minutes in line but boy was it worth it.
The burger was nice and piping hot and tasted great and the hashbrowns were awesome. Too bad I am not from the area, otherwise I would be stopping by often, but if I ever come back to KC I am coming here again.

A solid, traditional style cheese burger joint. I wouldn’t say it was the greatest, not sure if my double cheese burger and side of tator tots was worth 9 $. The thin juicy patties reminded me of a burger from Five Guys. I would probably choose five guys because of greater value with large selection of toppings and great fresh fries.
Otherwise, a cool, classic diner, would come back to try their breakfast.

Five stars for the burgers, chili, tator tots and service!!!
Simple, fresh and delicious. Tiny spot with very little seating but worth the wait to get in!
I wish we would have eaten here both nights we were in town for dinner!!!

I’ve been by Town Topics thousand of time and never stopped, until today… to make a long story short, due to lane closures in the River Market Area, and unable to find Beignets, we ended up at Town Topics… beignets, for the loss… but, i had no idea Town Topics served fresh pies. For the win!!!
I figured Town Topics would be tiny hole in the wall joint, which it is. What’s cool was the staff knew the name of almost every customer that walked in. I ordered us cheeseburgers, onion rings and a rootbeer float. We found seats which are at the counter. The tiny place seats 8. Within minutes we got our rootbeer floats, then the food.
The cheeseburgers were smallish, skinny, but not bad. The onion rings were divine. If I worked downtown, I’d eat there 4 days a week. I imagine the tenderloin is delicious, not to mention the patty melt. I didn’t find it any more greasy than anywhere else I eat. I wasn’t surprised about the line, which moved fast.
Town Topics has got to be the friendliest place in the city. I fully believe that. And it’s a standing classic.
When we finished, we grabbed pie to go. Pie for the win!

This is my all time favorite breakfast and hamburger restaurant … Also get the Chili «To-​go» …

A wise man once told me that the greasier the floor of a place, the better their food is. And this place… well, it’s got a pretty greasy floor. The girlfriend and I stopped by for breakfast. It’s got its own parking lot which gets points in my book, and the food was pretty good. If you’re looking for something divey, this is it. I’m on a personal mission to try out any divey looking diner-​type place I come across, and this fit the bill perfectly. It’s open 24/​7, and they cook the food right in front of you. Be warned, the location is small. However, you can sit right up at the counter, get a quick bite, and skate out in under 30 minutes.
My advice: Try the tater tots and get yourself a greasy burger. Let me know how the pie is, I didn’t get a chance to try it.

AWWWWW HELL YES.
So this is the greasy spoon you’ve been looking for. We happened to find it at 1:00am. The burgers are your standard thin patty but they have the best char on them. The girl behind the counter was awesome and very friendly. The line was out the door, so we thought we’d be waiting forever to get our food but after we ordered, only took about 10mins. We did end up eating outside because there is only about 7 chairs inside. Absolutely love it though. My only complaint is that there’s no seating and you really can’t get in the door, out of the elements until you order. But I would come back here in a heartbeat.

The burgers are amazing! Get the double cheese burger and onion rings. Something about that sauce on the burger or something that keeps me coming back for more!
Since they open so late it’s a fave for late nighters and the place is tiny so expect a crowd. Most the time the place is jam packed and have to order food to go, but if you get a chance you have to sit at the bar just once. Best place to people watch!
Don’t be fooled by the other location… This one is the place to go to.

Came here for a late night burger after my first Royals game. I ordered the single patty cheeseburger and fries. The food came out fairly quickly. I opted to take it all home and ended up eating several of the fries on my way home. The fries were a little bland though there did seem to be a healthy portion of them. The burger was a little dry but it did have plenty of onions and ketchup to make it a bit more palatable.
Overall, I’ll probably only be back in a pinch. The price and divey ambience make this place worth checking out but it won’t be my KC burger staple spot.

Tiny little joint with bar stools and no tables! We ordered two single burgers and some onions rings. The onion rings were very crispy and yummy, mostly batter not much onion however! The burgers were delicious but small so get a double or triple if you’re super hungry! The patties are thin and comes with grilled onions and pickles! Bf liked it so much he got another. Don’t be expecting a magnificent, glorious burger of the ages or something. The burgers are not mind-​blowing but they do hit the spot and are yummy. The pie was also great!

As far as diners go, this is the top of the list in KC!
Incredible burger, amazing chili cheese tots, onion rings, and perfect shake all at 3AM!

Really? You’re out here reading reviews for Town Topic? You don’t know?
Then I’m not telling.
P. S. to the middle aged black lady that served me this a.m.: honey, you are about the nicest gal on the planet. You should be very proud of the service you provide.