Inside new Kansas City restaurant serving smashburgers, shakes and cocktails
Cosmo Burger has officially entered the orbit of the Crossroads.
The smashburger joint, founded by Jacob Kruger and part of the restaurant group 916 Hospitality, has softly opened at 1815 Locust St. ahead of its grand opening Monday, July 7.
Kruger built Cosmo Burger’s reputation cooking out of borrowed space. He started in 2020 inside Dodson’s Bar & Commons in Waldo, then opened a stall in the Lenexa Public Market. The Dodson’s space is still serving, but the Lenexa stall closed this spring. The Crossroads spot is Cosmo’s first standalone joint.
On the menu: smashburgers, french fries, tater tots, milkshakes (traditional and boozy), floats, phosphate sodas, and a smattering of specialty cocktails, beer and wine.
Burgers are $9 for a single, $12 for a double, $15 for a triple, and $12 for a vegan. Standard dress is American cheese, grilled onions, pickles and burger sauce. You can “goob” your burger — add peanut butter to it — for an extra $2 or add chopped chiles or an egg for an extra buck.
Drinks-wise: A pickle margarita (tequila, pickle brine, orange liqueur, agave, lime juice) goes for $12; the more workmanlike Hamm Sandwich (shot of bourbon, Hamm’s beer, shot of pickle brine) is $8. Alma Mader Pilsner and Tank 7 are on tap, among a few other local brews and domestic bottles and cans. Wine is $6 a glass.
There are classic shakes — chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry ($7). There is also a $12 Elvis Shake, made with Dirty Monkey Peanut Butter Banana Whiskey, vanilla ice cream, banana, milk, and chocolate; bacon strips jut out the top like crispy sails on a creamy sea.
The new space is just around the corner from Grinders and the east exit of its music venue. Cosmo Burger has a bar with about 12 seats, a half-dozen booths, scattered tables and four TVs. It’s open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on weekdays, 11 a.m. to midnight on weekends.
This story was originally published July 3, 2025 at 2:32 PM.
