. for uk based charity see tommy s charity . coordinates 34 04 10 n 118 16 35 w 34.069545 n 118.276368 w 34.069545 ; 118.276368 original tommy s world famous hamburgers type private industry fast food restaurants founded los angeles california united states 1946 headquarters monrovia california number of locations 34 1 31 california 3 nevada key people thomas james tommy koulax founder 1918 1992 products hamburgers hot dogs tamales chili french fries soft drinks website originaltommys.com the original location at beverly & rampart . the shack is in the foreground the building surrounding is also a part of the restaurant . patrons eat at their cars or standing at the counter along the back walls . original tommy s is a hamburger restaurant chain in southern california united states . it is known for its chili burgers . 2 contents 1 history 2 chili 3 see also 4 references 5 external links history edit the original location was opened on may 15 1946 by tom koulax 3 october 26 1918 may 28 1992 the son of greek immigrants on the northeast corner of beverly and rampart boulevards west of downtown los angeles . 4 the stand which still stands today sold hamburgers and hot dogs topped with chili . at first business was slow but started to pick up . during the 1960s the entire lot at this intersection was purchased . soon after the northwest corner was acquired for expanded parking and storage of goods . not long after that a second service counter occupying the building at the perimeter of the northeast lot was set up . the food was essentially the same from both locations except for longer lines at the original shack counter perhaps for nostalgic reasons . 5 tommy s grew to 30 locations by 2006 . most original tommy s restaurants are found in the greater los angeles area . in recent years several locations have closed . the santa monica location was closed on april 20 2014 when the landlord refused to renew the lease 6 7 8 and leased the location to starbucks instead . 9 in 2008 the company expanded for the first time outside of california by opening two locations in clark county nevada . 10 a third nevada location was opened in 2013 . 11 12 13 the company is based in monrovia california after years at glendale california and is run by the late mr. koulax s family . chili edit chili cheese fries served at the original location note cheese is served under the chili . a ladle or two of koulax s signature chili tops nearly every available menu item even the breakfast sandwich . original tommy s chili is a mixture of an all beef chili con carne base flour water and a secret blend of spices and resembles a condiment more than a conventional bowl of chili . the flour water mixture allows the chili to set up and adhere to the burger or fries . all the chili is made to exact specifications and is the same in each location . see also edit los angeles portal companies portal food portal references edit company website as of 2015 05 27 local chains 101 . washington post . april 25 2004 . retrieved 6 february 2013 via highbeam research . subscription required help . gould lark ellen 2005 04 01 . los angeles off the beaten path a guide to unique places . globe pequot . p. 34 . isbn 9780762735235 . retrieved 6 february 2013 . bartholomew dana may 16 2006 . tommy built it ; they came . los angeles daily news . retrieved 6 february 2013 via highbeam research . subscription required help . original tommy s hamburgers . original tommys . the original tommy s march 14 2014 . we have some sad news to report . facebook.com . retrieved march 20 2014 . simpson david mark february 20 2014 . tommy s burgers may get booted for starbucks . santa monica daily press . tommy s closes after 20 years . santa monica observer . april 21 2014 . simpson david mark april 20 2015 . starbucks opening 21st location in santa monica . santa monica daily press . today s news . las vegas advisor . september 13 2008 . original tommy s opens third nevada location . restaurant facility business . november 27 2013 . martin bradley april 17 2013 . original tommy s hamburgers adds a drive thru . eater las vegas . stapleton susan september 26 2013 . load up on chili burgers and fries at the new original tommy s hamburgers . eater las vegas . external links edit official website v t e fast food and fast casual restaurant chains in the united states chicken chains coffeehouse chains pizza chains hamburgers a & w back yard big boy burger king carl s jr. checkers rally s cook out fatburger five guys freddy s fuddruckers the habit hardee s in n out jack in the box johnny rockets krystal mcdonald s roy rogers shake shack smashburger sonic steak n shake wayback wendy s whataburger white castle asian l & l hawaiian barbecue manchu wok panda express pei wei asian diner pick up stix sarku baked goods au bon pain auntie anne s bruegger s cinnabon corner bakery cafe dunkin donuts einstein bros. great american cookies honey dew donuts krispy kreme mrs. fields nestl toll house panera bread pretzelmaker pretzel time shipley do nuts tim hortons t.j. cinnamons wetzel s winchell s beverages argo tea biggby coffee caribou coffee bean & tea leaf coffee beanery dunn bros gloria jean s jamba juice juice it up orange julius peet s planet smoothie robeks seattle s best coffee smoothie king starbucks teavana tropical smoothie cafe tully s frozen desserts baskin robbins ben & jerry s braum s bruster s carvel cold stone culver s dairy queen dippin dots fosters freeze friendly s golden spoon graeter s h agen dazs handel s kiwi yogurt maggiemoo s marble slab menchie s pinkberry red mango rita s sweet frog tastee freez tcby tropical sno tutti frutti yogen fr z yogurtland hot dogs hot dog on a stick nathan s famous portillo s wienerschnitzel mexican style tex mex baja fresh cafe rio chipotle del taco el pollo loco freebirds green red burrito moe s pancheros qdoba rubio s taco bell taco bueno taco cabana taco del mar taco john s taco mayo taco time wahoo s fish taco noodles fazoli s noodles & company sandwiches arby s atlanta bread blimpie capriotti s charley s cos cousins d angelo daphne s erbert & gerbert s firehouse subs great wraps jason s jerry s subs jersey mike s jimmy john s lenny s sub mcalister s deli miami subs mr. hero newk s eatery penn station port of subs pdq potbelly quiznos rax runza sandella s schlotzsky s steak escape subway togo s tubby s tudor s biscuit world which wich seafood arthur treacher s captain d s h. salt esquire ivar s long john silver s skippers seafood & chowder house defunct bresler s ice cream brigham s burger chef carrols d lites druther s henry s hamburgers hot n now hot sam pretzels naugles red barn sandy s zantigo retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title original tommy % 27s & oldid 744454828 categories 1946 establishments in californiafast food chains of the united statesfast food hamburger restaurantshistory of los angeleslandmarks in los angelesregional restaurant chains in the united statesrestaurants established in 1946restaurants in los angeleshidden categories pages containing links to subscription only contentcoordinates not on wikidatapages using infobox company with unsupported parameters navigation menu personal tools not logged intalkcontributionscreate accountlog in namespaces article talk variants views read edit view history more search navigation main pagecontentsfeatured contentcurrent eventsrandom articledonate to wikipediawikipedia store interaction helpabout wikipediacommunity portalrecent changescontact page tools what links hererelated changesupload filespecial pagespermanent linkpage informationwikidata itemcite this page print export create a bookdownload as pdfprintable version languages add links this page was last modified on 15 october 2016 at 09 36 . text is available under the creative commons attribution sharealike license ; 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