photo by: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

Lawrence's new Whataburger restaurant is pictured on Oct. 16, 2024.

Get ready for the Whataburger line.

The fast food chain has confirmed via press release that it will open its first Lawrence location at 11 a.m. on Monday, at 707 W. 23rd St.

The Journal-World reported earlier this month that Monday was when the company hoped to open the restaurant, but that it may also have to delay the opening for a week while it was completing training.

That training has progressed and the Monday opening is now official. Other Whataburger openings in the Kansas City area have produced long lines on opening day.

This one also may produce some campers. Whataburger announced that the first two guests in each drive-thru line and the first guest in the dining room will receive free Whataburger for a year. The press release didn’t say whether Whataburger was going to place limits on how long people could wait in line to win that prize. Will we see people staking out their spots over the weekend?

One thing you shouldn’t necessarily expect from the opening is an appearance by franchise partner Patrick Mahomes, quarterback of the Kansas City Chiefs. Mahomes — who has been credited as a driving force behind bringing his beloved Texas hamburger chain to Kansas City — indeed is a partner in the KMO Burger franchise that operates the Lawrence restaurant and others in the KC metro. However, the press release has a list of officials who are expected to be at the 11 a.m. grand opening, and Mahomes is not on that list.

The company in its press release said that the Lawrence restaurant will employ 65 people, and will be led by operating partners Natanya Turner Smith and Harsh Dave. The release also confirmed the restaurant will be open 24 hours per day, seven days per week both in its lobby and in its drive-thru lanes. As for other details, the restaurant includes double drive-thru lanes, digital ordering kiosks, and the lobby includes a Lawrence-themed mural.

As for what is a Whataburger, surely you already know. But, if not, the restaurant long has been a fast-food staple in Texas, Oklahoma and other parts south of here. But it has become a big deal in Kansas City because Mahomes was such a big fan and made it his mission to bring the chain to the Kansas City area.

As for the food, well, the hamburger is of course the main attraction. The standard comes with mustard, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and diced onions on a 5-inch bun. Other toppings are available, like jalapeños, grilled pepper and onions, avocado, and sometimes the chain even has special toppings like a hard-boiled egg or green chiles. The other item that gets a lot of talk is ketchup. While the hamburgers don’t come with ketchup as a standard fixing, the restaurant actually offers two types of ketchup — a regular version or a spicy version. Picante sauce and salsa verde are also part of the offerings.

The restaurant also is big into breakfast, and in particular, late-night or early morning breakfast.

When Whataburger opens, it will be the end of a long process. We began reporting on Whataburger securing the site of the old Mi Ranchito building in June 2022. The project won city approvals fairly quickly, but the KMO franchise has been busy expanding in the Kansas City area too.

photo by: Associated Press/Newswire

A Whataburger hamburger is shown in this file photo.