Lulu’s Thai Noodle Shop

What Lulu’s Thai Noodle Shop does

Lulu's Thai Noodle Shop is a privately held, family-owned Thai restaurant chain founded in 1997 by Malisa Monyakula. The business operates three dine-in locations in the Kansas City metropolitan area — Crossroads (Kansas City, MO), Westwood (KS), and Overland Park (KS) — plus a companion neighborhood dive bar called The House adjacent to the Westwood restaurant. Lulu's serves traditional Thai cuisine built on multi-generational family recipes originating from Bangkok, including street food, noodles, curries, rice dishes, and drinks, with customizable spice levels and dietary accommodations (gluten-free, no-meat, low-carb). The customer base spans local Kansas City diners, Crossroads arts-district patrons, suburban families, and event catering customers; no enterprise customers or institutional accounts are served.

The company's core products are dine-in service, takeout, delivery, event catering, gift cards ("Lulu's Lucky Card"), branded merchandise, and bar service at The House. Menu pricing ranges from $4.80 for soups to $17 for select curries and $20 for premium entrees, with catering pans (serving 6-8 people) priced at $34.99-$84.99. Lulu's operates without proprietary technology; its technology stack consists of the Toast POS platform (online ordering, reservations, gift cards, rewards, marketing signup, payroll/hiring), DoorDash and Uber Eats for third-party delivery, and Square Site for merchandise e-commerce. Social channels are Instagram and Facebook, with email newsletter marketing through Toast.

Revenue is generated entirely through unit-priced food and beverage transactions across multiple channels, with catering orders carrying an 18% service charge. Lulu's is bootstrapped under direct founder ownership with no institutional investors, no parent company, and no funding rounds; control is concentrated in the Monyakula family. The company maintains an active portfolio of community partnerships (KC Symphony, Kansas City Zoo/Jazzoo, AriseHealth Gift a Meal, The Children's Place, The Giving Grove, Cultivate KC/New Roots, STEMS) that support local brand affinity in the Kansas City market. Operational headcount is 51-100 employees across all sites.

Name

Lulu’s Thai Noodle Shop

Legal name

Lulu's Thai Noodle Shop

Website

https://lulusnoodles.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Lulu's Thai Noodle Shop is a privately held, family-owned Thai restaurant chain operating three dine-in locations and a companion dive bar in the Kansas City metro area, serving traditional Bangkok family recipes via dine-in, takeout, delivery, catering, and gift cards.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Thai Restaurant

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Caterers (722320), Restaurants and Other Eating Places (72251)

SIC

Retail-Eating Places (5812), Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro primary industry

All-Day Dining Restaurants (THAFACAJ)

Keywords

• Thai restaurant dining
• Authentic Thai cuisine
• Thai noodle dishes
• Event catering services
• Casual dining restaurant

Headquarters

HQ city

Kansas City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Dine-in Service: Traditional sit-down restaurant service at three Kansas City area locations and The House bar, generating revenue from food and beverage sales to dine-in customers.
2. Takeout/Online Ordering: Direct takeout ordering through Toast POS platform at each location, allowing customers to place orders for pickup.
3. Third-Party Delivery: Delivery revenue through DoorDash and Uber Eats marketplace partnerships at all locations.
4. Catering Services: Catering menu for events with 48-hour notice required. Large party pans serve 6-8 people. Menu includes street food, noodles, curries, rice dishes, and desserts with per-item pricing.
5. Gift Cards: Gift card sales through Toast platform for all three locations, branded as 'Lulu's Lucky Card'.
6. Bar Operations (The House): The House bar adjacent to Westwood location serves beer, wine, cocktails and street food, operating Thursday through Saturday evenings.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Lulu's Thai Noodle Shop is a multi-location Thai restaurant founded in 1997 that prepares and serves traditional Thai street food, noodles, curries, rice dishes, soups, salads, and desserts at three dine-in locations in the Kansas City metro area (Crossroads, Westwood, and Overland Park). The business also operates a companion bar concept called The House in Westwood, and offers catering for events, takeout ordering through Toast, and delivery through DoorDash and Uber Eats.

Product overview

Lulu's Thai Noodle Shop is a traditional Thai restaurant founded in 1997, operated as a multi-location restaurant business with dine-in, takeout, and delivery services. The core offering consists of authentic Thai cuisine prepared using family recipes from Bangkok, served at three Kansas City area locations (Crossroads, Westwood, Overland Park). Supporting products include catering services for events, a gift card program, a merchandise store, and a companion bar concept called The House Bar at the Westwood location. Online ordering and reservations are handled through Toast Tab platform, while delivery is facilitated via DoorDash and Uber Eats partnerships.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The House - Westwood: Lulu's funky take on a neighborhood dive bar, tucked into the tiny blue house next to the Westwood Lulu's location, serving beer, wine, cocktails and street food.

Products and services

• Dine-In Restaurant Service

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• AriseHealth (Gift a Meal)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerLulu's partners with AriseHealth's Gift a Meal program, supporting community food access initiatives through donations.
• Jazzoo/Kansas City ZoominorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual sponsorship and support for Jazzoo, the Kansas City Zoo's major fundraising event.
• KC SymphonyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with Kansas City Symphony supporting arts and cultural organizations in the community.
• STEMS/Arts Recreation Foundation of Overland ParkminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSupport for STEMS arts education program in Overland Park through donations and volunteer work.
• The Children's PlaceminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership supporting The Children's Place organization through donations and community engagement.
• The Giving GroveminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSupport for The Giving Grove's community food security programs through donations and volunteer work.
• Cultivate KC/New RootsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with Cultivate KC supporting urban agriculture and New Roots refugee farming programs.
• Toast POScoreTechnology or IntegrationToast POS platform handles online ordering, takeout orders, gift cards, rewards program, and table reservations across all three locations.
• DoorDashcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party delivery partnership enabling delivery of food from all locations through DoorDash platform.
• Uber EatscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party delivery partnership enabling delivery of food from all locations through Uber Eats platform.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Panera Bread: National cafe-bakery chain with dine-in, takeout, delivery, loyalty rewards, and gift cards via a unified digital stack. Broad incumbent comparable to Lulu's for its multi-channel ordering, integrated loyalty/rewards program, and gift card monetization across multiple locations.
• Buca di Beppo: Family-style Italian casual-dining chain known for shareable pans (6-8+ servings), catering programs, and group dining. Comparable to Lulu's because Lulu's catering menu uses an identical 6-8 person family-pan format targeting events and group occasions — a directly analogous revenue motion.
• P.F. Chang's: National Asian full-service restaurant chain with full bar, dine-in, takeout, delivery, catering, and loyalty. Broad incumbent comparable to Lulu's because both serve Asian/Thai cuisine with full table service, alcohol, catering, and a multi-channel ordering stack — though P.F. Chang's operates at materially higher scale and price point.
• The Cheesecake Factory: Iconic full-service casual-dining chain with an oversized menu, full bar, lunch/dinner daypart mix, gift cards, and catering. Broad incumbent relevant for Lulu's because both leverage a large, varied menu and dessert program to drive dine-in traffic and per-ticket value in casual full-service settings.
• California Pizza Kitchen: Casual full-service chain with dine-in, takeout, delivery, full bar, and catering programs across multiple locations. Broad incumbent peer for Lulu's due to shared casual full-service format, bar revenue, takeout/delivery mix, and gift card/catering extensions.
• Bonefish Grill: Casual full-service chain with full bar, dinner-focused menu, neighborhood locations, and gift card programs. Broad incumbent peer for Lulu's comparable casual full-service model, bar-led evening revenue, and gift-card monetization.

Direct peers

• Thai Express: Thai-focused fast-casual chain specializing in noodles, curries, and stir-fry with similar dine-in, takeout, and delivery channels. Comparable to Lulu's in menu architecture, ticket size, and ingredient authenticity positioning despite operating primarily in Canada.
• Pei Wei Asian Eatery: Multi-unit Asian/Thai fast-casual chain offering noodles, stir-fry, and curries in a similar price-to-Lulu's range. Direct peer because both target Thai/pan-Asian cuisine in a casual dine-in/takeout/delivery format with comparable menu breadth and per-ticket pricing.
• Noodles & Company: Fast-casual chain built around noodle-based entrees (including Thai-inspired dishes like Pad Thai) with nationwide dine-in, takeout, and delivery. Direct peer for Lulu's noodle-shop identity, ticket size, and multi-channel distribution model.
• Pick Up Stix: Multi-unit Asian/Thai fast-casual chain with noodles, wok dishes, and curries at price points overlapping Lulu's $13-$20 entrée band. Direct peer because both compete for Thai noodle/wok occasions with similar dine-in, takeout, and delivery distribution.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/lulusnoodles
• Instagraminstagram.com/lulusnoodleshop/?hl=en
• Xx.com/lulusnoodleshop
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lulu-s-thai-noodle-shop

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lulu’s Thai Noodle Shop