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Just like Elvis, crumbly burgers have left the building. However, if you’ve got a tank of gas, they’re still within driving reach. There’s five Nu-Way locations in Wichita, Kansas, and another in Leavenworth, Kansas at 510 Shawnee St. 
For the uninitiated, Nu-Way served loose meat sandwiches (Maid-Rite was popular competitor) topped with mustard and pickle made on a custom cooker developed by founder Tom McEvoy. And, yes, they were called sandwiches. Let the burger-sandwich debate commence.  

(Courtesy of Kansas City Memories: Facebook Group)

Loose meat sandwiches are made with ground beef on a soft white bun. The beef hasn’t been pressed into a patty, but instead has been piled on in a fashion akin to Sloppy Joe’s sans sauce. Both however can wreck a dress shirt with equal aplomb. Nu-Way Drive-Ins were here in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s at 2515 Swope Parkway, 4627 Independence Ave., 10503 Independence Ave., 48th and Prospect, 3205 Main St., and 48th and Main. For close to two decades, there was a location at 6348 Troost Ave., but all of the Nu-Ways were closed by 1975.
The first Nu-Way opened in 1930 at 1416 W. Douglas in Wichita and it’s still operating. They make their own root beer, served in frosty mugs, and onion rings alongside the crumbly burgers. The success of the burger stand in Wichita led to expansion in Hutchinson, Kansas, and here in Kansas City. Nu-Way briefly returned in the 1980s with locations in the Ward Parkway Center and the Blue Ridge Mall. 
“We just closed all of them up because we simply couldn’t run them from out of town,” owner Neal Stong told The Wichita Eagle back in 2010. 
If you’re looking for loose meat sandwiches right this very moment, Runza (out of Nebraska) in Mission, Kansas, Mugs Up in Independence, Missouri, and In A Tub in Kansas City all serve their take on a crumbly burger/pocket/taco/sandwich.
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