It’s been part of Fort Worth since 1959. Now this burger stand is getting a new owner
Clown Burger, a traditional hamburger stand unchanged since it opened in 1959, will change hands to a new owner Dec. 16, owner Kari Snodgrass announced in a weekend Facebook post.
After a series of mishaps including a broken foot and back, Snodgrass wrote that her family has decided to sell the landmark burger stand, 5010 Stanley Keller Road, to another Haltom City family.
Willis Odell, a businessman and bar owner, posted on Facebook that he and his son, Matt, will be the new owners. Odell, a past candidate for City Council in Haltom City, added that he “will no longer be in politics.”
“it is time to part ways” with Clown Burger, Snodgrass wrote in an online message.
“We feel it’s time for a new family to come in and love it as much as we have.”
Clown Burger is a throwback to the era of drive-ins, Elvis Presley and poodle skirts.
First at its original location at 5512 E. Belknap St., then on Stanley Keller Road, it serves old-school thin-patty double cheeseburgers that taste mostly of cheese, mustard and chopped white onions, along with hot dogs and fresh-cut, thin french fries.
Clown Burger was the first clown in town. It opened two years before the Griff’s Burger Bar chain and three years before McDonald’s launched Texas locations, followed by Jack in the Box.
Snodgrass’s father, Bill Louthan, retired in 2016 after 53 years working the grill.
“I did ask my father’s advice, and we came to the agreement that it is time to sell,” Snodgrass said.
Her last day will be Dec. 16, she said.
Odell wrote on Facebook that his son, Matt, will run the restaurant.
“We will be family-operated just a different family,” he wrote. “We will serve the Haltom City citizens with love, we love our city.”
The restaurant is currently closed while Snodgrass recovers from the foot injury.
When she recovers, Clown Burger will be open for lunch Tuesday through Saturday; 817-298-1477, facebook.com/ClownBurger.
This story was originally published May 21, 2022 at 2:38 PM.
