When the team behind Shawnee’s newest burger joint planted roots there, they knew there was a demand for it.
Since Danny’s Burger Shack opened inside the former Bar West space a couple of weeks ago, co-owner Joe Sessel said that’s become even more apparent. The first couple of weeks have brought in an “overwhelming” response — and long wait times, as burgers are prepared from scratch in the back.
“It’s a good problem to have,” Sessel said. “We sacrifice speed for quality, and that’s something our regular customers come to understand about us.”
Danny’s Burger Shack opened at 7174 Renner Road
- The restaurant occupies a space at the Midland shopping center, just off Midland Drive and Renner Road in western Shawnee.
- Bar West occupied that space for more than 15 years before closing earlier this year.
- Danny’s is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily.
Danny’s serves “hand-pressed” burgers
Though the menu does offer some other items like chicken sandwiches and onion rings, Danny’s is primarily known for its burgers — made fresh, never frozen.
“We are a make-to-order, high-value, really good burger joint,” Sessel said. “We don’t just slap a bunch of frozen stuff together. We don’t have a microwave in any Danny’s Burger Shack.”
The two most popular burgers at Danny’s are the “classic” (with shredded romaine, caramelized onion, tomato, American cheese and sweet pickles) and the “old school” (with red onion, pickles, yellow mustard and American cheese). Those two make up roughly half of sales at Danny’s, Sessel said.
The restaurant also rotates through monthly burger specials, which next month will be a green hatch chile burger. Soon, the Danny’s team also plans to add a “build-a-burger” to the menu, for customers who want to keep it simple with toppings.
Though the Shawnee space is larger than the restaurant’s Kansas City, Missouri location, its color scheme and decor mirror that of the flagship location; lots of reds, whites and blues.
That’s all co-owner Mark Denton, Sessel said. Denton also owns design firm Project 607 and cocktail bar The Brass Monkey in downtown Kansas City.
“All of the way that the décor is set up in here was definitely his brainchild,” Sessel said. “I think it has a really great vibe.”
This marks the first Danny’s in Johnson County
The burger joint got its start as a food truck in 2022, launched by at-the-time owners husband-and-wife duo Daniel and Niki Kidwell.
The restaurant went brick-and-mortar in 2023, with its flagship location in Kansas City, Missouri’s Northland.
After Sessel and his business partner Mark Denton took over the Danny’s brand, Sessel said expansion for Danny’s had already been on their minds. Then the team behind Bar West offered their space as a potential place to land.
“They said, ‘Hey, we’re getting ready to close Bar West, you should come take a look at it,’” Sessel said. “And I said, ‘That sounds like a fantastic opportunity.’”
Since opening in Shawnee, Sessel has seen several new faces, many of whom eagerly watched the construction and followed the buildout process on social media as they waited for their chance to try Danny’s.
That type of “hyperlocal” excitement has given him hope about what excitement might be waiting for Danny’s in other pockets of the Kansas City metro.
Eventually, they’ll act on that. But when they expand, he said, they’ll want to do it strategically.
“We’re going to do the work to turn the tribal knowledge into a robust industrialized process,” he said. “Without making it any less local, any less fresh, or any less authentic.”
For now, he and his team are focused on serving up fresh burgers to the Shawnee customers who have been waiting for them.
“We’re just in the perfect location, full of other great food choices, and thrilled at the reception we’ve gotten,” he said.
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