New pizzeria coming to former Nichols Lunch space

Kansas City Kitchen & Pizzeria is taking the former Nichols Lunch spot in midtown.

Danny Clarkson and his father, Dan Clarkson, are partners in the new operation at 3906 Waddell Ave., just west of Southwest Trafficway.

Dan Clarkson has been in the restaurant industry for more than 30 years in the Minneapolis area and his son previously worked at some of the operations. Danny Clarkson currently owns a Branson retail shop.

They will spruce up the inside of the 4,000-square-foot Waddell building and put on a new facade for an early May opening.

Kansas City Kitchen & Pizzeria will specialize in pizza but also offer burgers, sandwiches, pastas and appetizers. The restaurant, which will have about 20 employees, will eventually be open around-the-clock. It also will deliver within a 5-mile radius of the restaurant.

“It is obviously a very busy intersection and is a really, unique, kind of cool Kansas City area,” Danny Clarkson said.

The 85-year-old Nichols Lunch closed in 2006.

Mama’s 39th Street Diner and Sosa’s 39th Street Diner had short stints in the space. Then Anton Kotar of Anton’s Taproom began working on the spot in mid-2014 for Estelle’s restaurant but later dropped his plans.

This story was originally published February 23, 2016 at 6:24 PM with the headline "New pizzeria coming to former Nichols Lunch space."