Original Tommy's

"Tommy's" redirects here. For UK-based charity, see Tommy's (charity).

34.069545°N 118.276368°W / 34.069545; -118.276368

Original Tommy's

Company type	Private
Industry	Restaurants
Genre	Fast food
Founded	1946; 79 years ago (1946) in Los Angeles, California, United States
Founder	Thomas James "Tommy" Koulax
Headquarters	Monrovia, California
Number of locations	32[1] (29 California, 3 Nevada)[a] (2021)
Area served	California, Nevada
Key people	Dawna Bernal (President)
Products	hamburgers, hot dogs, tamales, chili, french fries, soft drinks
Revenue	US$62 million (2021[4])
Number of employees	5,000 (2021)
Website	originaltommys.com

Location of the first restaurant at the intersection of Beverly Blvd & Rampart Blvd in Los Angeles. The restaurant comprises both the shack in the foreground as well as the building that surrounds it. Patrons can eat at their cars or standing at the counter along the back walls.

Older logo.

Original Tommy's, previously known as Original Tommy's World Famous Hamburgers, is a fast food hamburger restaurant chain in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. It is known for its hamburgers and chili burgers.^[5]

History

The original location was opened on May 15, 1946, by Tom Koulax^[6][7] (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.^[8] The stand, which still exists today, sold hamburgers and hot dogs topped with chili. Initially, the business was slow but it soon started to pick up. During the 1960s, the entire lot at the 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.^[9]

Tommy's began to expand in the 1970s, and grew to 30 locations by 2006.^[10] 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^[11][12] and leased the location to Starbucks instead.^[13]

In 2008, the company expanded for the first time outside of California by opening two locations in Clark County, Nevada.^[14] A third Nevada location was opened in 2013.^[15][16][17]

As of March 2023, there are 32 locations. The company is based in Monrovia, California, after years of being in Glendale, California, and is run by the late Mr. Koulax's family.

The restaurant's success in the Los Angeles market has attracted many imitators. A 2019 study by The Los Angeles Times listed 67 restaurants, more than double the number of Original Tommy's restaurants, in the Los Angeles region with some form of the name "Thomas" in the name along with similarity in the signage and menu. Bob Auerbach, a stepson of the restaurant's founder, Tom Koulax, said that the family made a conscious decision not pursue legal action against the imitators.^[2]

Chili Cheese Fries, served at the original location (note: the cheese is under the chili).

See also

• List of hamburger restaurants

Notes

1. Number of locations was 33 in 2019. The San Diego location closed in 2023.^[2][3]