This profile is in active compilation — some details are awaiting a cited source.

Texas Tom’s on Linwood is the store Kansas City has long called the original Texas Tom’s — open since 1972 at 709 E. Linwood Boulevard in Midtown, dark from 2010 to 2014, and reopened by Javaid and Arshad Chaudhri with the same eclectic board: double cheeseburgers, Italian steak sandwiches, tacos and burritos, gyros, whole fried catfish, wings, fried-shrimp baskets and tater tots. It carries the name of Tom Nigro’s 1953 chain, 26 stores strong when he sold in 1983 and now a loose family of independently run survivors. Hours run to 1 a.m. most nights and 4 a.m. on Saturdays, which makes it one of Midtown’s last late-night kitchens.

Description

The stand is on the north side of Linwood Boulevard just east of Holmes, on a stretch The Pitch once noted “boasted the original Lamar’s Donuts and the iconic Earl’s Burgers.”1 It is a small, carryout-leaning room with a late license: Restaurantji’s current listing runs it to 1 a.m. Sunday through Wednesday, 2 on Thursday, 3 on Friday and 4 on Saturday, and reviewers cite the late hours as the reason they come.23

The board is the Texas Tom’s formula the Linwood store has sold since the 1970s — The Pitch’s 2015 description was “cheeseburgers, Italian steaks, tacos, gyro sandwiches, hot dogs, whole fried catfish dinners, hot chicken wings and seafood baskets.”4 The double cheeseburger, the Italian steak sandwich, tenderloins and the spicy chicken sandwich are the items reviewers name; a July 2026 reviewer who had eaten here for decades complained that the Italian steak now arrives “on what looked like the size of a cut in half HOT DOG bun” rather than a hoagie, while an August 2026 reviewer found “everything was fresh and delicious.”2 Restaurantji aggregates 279 reviews at 3.5 stars; Yelp holds 49 with a listing updated May 2026.25 No first-party menu or price list exists online; see Menu.

Ownership and history

The chain. Tom Nigro created Texas Tom’s in 1953. According to Northeast News publisher Michael Bushnell, quoted by The Pitch, the first one at 8401 Winner Road was conceived as an ice-cream shop and briefly called Frigid Cream; by the time Nigro sold in 1983 there were 26 Texas Tom’s in and around the metro.6 Since then the name has been carried by independent operators — Ali Nazam on Prospect (see texas-toms-prospect), the Chaudhris here, unnamed owners on Independence Avenue, in KCK and in Independence — rather than a single company. Who bought the chain in 1983 and how the name passed to individual operators is not documented. The fuller lineage and the 2013 memory thread are on the 7th & Quindaro page.

This store. The Linwood Boulevard Texas Tom’s opened in 1972 and was “supposedly Kansas City’s original” by the time The Pitch reported it boarded up in January 2010, when 5522 Independence Avenue (texas-toms-independence-avenue) and 5401 Blue Parkway were the only other units still open; one reader wrote that he had “been in a state of depression” since it closed.1 After four years empty, Javaid and Arshad Chaudhri “repainted and refurbished the building” and reopened it on March 3, 2014, with hours of 10–10 weekdays, 10–2 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 10–6 Sundays, and a menu of tacos, burritos, double cheeseburgers, fried-shrimp baskets, Italian steak sandwiches and tater tots.6 The reopening had consequences a mile east: when Ali Nazam of the Prospect store opened a second Texas Tom’s at 3360 Troost in May 2015, he closed it in August, saying “I didn’t realize that the other Texas Tom’s on Linwood, which is less than a mile away, would take so much of the business.”74 Whether the Chaudhris still own the store in 2026 is unconfirmed; no source since 2015 names an operator.

Not verified. The Linwood store has no website, first-party ordering page or published menu board; items above come from The Pitch’s 2014–15 descriptions and reviewer mentions, and prices are not recorded. The Leavenworth Road unit’s site and the Prospect unit’s site list the family’s standard board (Texan Burger, Taco Burger, double junior cheeseburger, chili cheese tots, gyros, catfish baskets, wings, milkshakes), which is likely close to what is sold here.89

Sources

Footnotes

  1. Charles Ferruzza, “Closed: Texas Tom’s on Linwood,” The Pitch, 2010-01-21 — Confirms: 709 E. Linwood boarded up weeks earlier, “supposedly Kansas City’s original Texas Tom’s”; the Lamar’s / Earl’s Burgers stretch; 5522 Independence Ave and 5401 Blue Parkway still open; the “state of depression” reader. ↩ ↩2

  2. Restaurantji — “Texas Tom’s, Kansas City — Menu, Reviews (279), Photos.” Retrieved 2026-08-29 — Confirms: 709 Linwood Blvd, 64109; (816) 931-9500; hours Mon–Wed 10–1 a.m., Thu 10–2, Fri 10–3, Sat 10–4, Sun 11–1; 3.5 stars / 279 reviews; August 2026 review (“everything was fresh and delicious”); July 2026 review on the Italian steak’s hot-dog bun. Aggregate; used for hours, dating and reviewer color. ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  3. NovaCircle — “Texas Tom’s Restaurant in Kansas City, MO — Local Dining.” Retrieved 2026-08-29 — Confirms: 709 E Linwood Blvd; “burgers, tenderloins, and Italian steak”; late-night service; tenderloin and spicy chicken sandwich as reviewer favorites. Directory; used only for description. ↩

  4. Charles Ferruzza, “Texas Tom’s on Troost closes after two months,” The Pitch, 2015-08-03 — Confirms: the “less than a mile away” quote about Linwood; Linwood “operating since 1972,” closed 2010, reopened by the Chaudhris; the Linwood menu list (cheeseburgers, Italian steaks, tacos, gyros, hot dogs, whole fried catfish, hot wings, seafood baskets). ↩ ↩2

  5. Yelp — “Texas Tom’s — Updated May 2026 — 21 Photos & 49 Reviews — 709 E Linwood Blvd, Kansas City, Missouri — Burgers.” — Confirms: address; category; listing active 2026. Body not machine-readable. ↩

  6. Charles Ferruzza, “Texas Tom’s is back! Linwood location reopens,” The Pitch, 2014-03-03 — Confirms: Javaid and Arshad Chaudhri reopened 709 E. Linwood, “repainted and refurbished”; opened 1972; empty since 2010; Tom Nigro 1953, 8401 Winner Road / Frigid Cream, 26 units at the 1983 sale (Michael Bushnell); 2014 hours; menu of tacos, burritos, double cheeseburgers, fried-shrimp baskets, Italian steak sandwiches, tater tots. ↩ ↩2

  7. Charles Ferruzza, “New Texas Tom’s restaurant opened today at 3360 Troost,” The Pitch, 2015-05-22 — Confirms: Ali Nazam’s Prospect store and the Troost opening. ↩

  8. Texas Tom’s — official website of the Leavenworth Road unit. Retrieved 2026-08-29 — Confirms: the family’s standard board (Texan Burger, Taco Burger, chili cheese tots, gyros, catfish baskets, milkshakes); the site covers that unit only. ↩

  9. Texas Tom’s Prospect — official website. Retrieved 2026-08-29 — Confirms: 6950 Prospect Ave; Double Junior Cheeseburger, Chili Dog Combo, 5pc Wings Combo, Tots with Chili & Cheese; separate site from this unit. ↩

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On the record — ks.city/registry/texas-toms-linwood · record updated 2026-08-29