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Booze and Dinner Service Coming to Tom's Restaurant in Prospect Heights

 The owners of Tom's Restaurant in Prospect Heights want to add booze to the menu and dinner service seven days a week.
The owners of Tom's Restaurant in Prospect Heights want to add booze to the menu and dinner service seven days a week.
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DNAinfo/Rachel Holliday Smith

PROSPECT HEIGHTS — Big changes are coming to Tom’s Restaurant in Prospect Heights.

After nearly 80 years serving a mostly breakfast-and-lunch crowd, the owners of the beloved Washington Avenue diner plan to put booze on the menu, start dinner service seven days a week and add a lot more seating.

The restaurant got approval for its full liquor license application from a Community Board 8 committee Monday night. The restaurant plans to add extra seating in its rear outdoor space, which has room for about 50 customers at 10 to 15 tables, Tom’s manager said on Monday.

This would be the first time the restaurant would serve alcohol in its history. Currently, Tom’s only serves dinner on Saturdays.

 Vote for Your Favorite Neighborhood Institution, Including Tom's Restaurant, in DNAinfo New York's Brooklyn Brackets

The restaurant has been run by the Vlahavas family since it opened in 1936 at the corner of Sterling Place and Washington Avenue. Its longtime proprietor, Gus Vlahavas, died in November after leaving day-to-day operations of the restaurant to family members in 2009. Vlahavas was well-known for serving coffee and snacks to customers waiting in line for brunch at Tom’s on weekends.

Community Board 8’s full board will vote on the liquor license application for Tom’s on March 12. Their recommendation will then go to the State Liquor Authority, which must approve the application before changes can take effect.