Town Topic
2121 Broadway Street
Kansas City, Missouri
816-842-2298

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In KC's ever-gentrifying Crossroads Art District, Town Topic -- which looks and smells like the kind of place Tom Waits would have hung out in 1975 -- continues to blaze the same neon sign it's had for 70-plus years. It portends the kind of smoky, truck-stop diner that's at its most charming after 3 a.m., a shameless dive where post-bar patrons flick their cigarette ashes on the floor. The burger, like the space, is small and greasy. It's a manageable pat of fresh ground meat on a flimsy bun that's got little else besides pickles and an addictive pile of grilled onions, the latter sinking into the beef to produce something akin to car-nirvana. "Salty" is the first adjective that springs to mind. "Heroic" is the second. Throwback burgers like this one -- served by a no-nonsense staff that gets you in, fed and out in no time flat -- feel like a slice of Formica-counter Americana that's been lost over the years. While the yuppies and artists close in on all sides, and barbecue continues to get the glory in Kansas City, Town Topic keeps on doing its thing. After all, man cannot exist on burnt ends alone.

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Photo: Courtesy of Scot Sparks