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Block 16’s Burger Fight III is about more than who won the contest
How many talented chefs can Block 16 get in one room? Last Sunday, it was three (not counting the restaurant’s owners and many guests) in Le Bouillon’s Paul Kulik; Dario Schicke, of Dario’s Brasserie and Avoli Osteria; and Nick Strawhecker of Dante and Forno, who competed against one another at the restaurant’s third Burger Fight,…
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I got my pho fix at the original Saigon – and discovered a new soup
A few weeks ago, I had a real hankering for a big bowl of pho. It’s partially because it was snowy (it is tonight, too), partially because temperatures had ebbed to the single digits (again, tonight, too) and because winter had no end in sight. Sadly, that also remains the case. But a bowl of…
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New African food in midtown, Thai takes over at old High Peak Asian spot, J’s on Jackson is back and a Salvadorian bakery
→ Okra African Grill is headed to 72nd and Pacific Streets, in Aksarben Center. I’ve seen glimpses of the food, which looks wonderful, on friends’ Facebook pages, and you can see it yourself courtesy of Omaha photographer Ariel Panowicz’s image above. I’m still working on gathering more information about the menu. More soon. → Though…
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Matthew Sez to Drink This: Dante’s “Hazy Shade of Winter”
Omaha winters suck. They are cold. They are gray. The dirty snow piles up on the dirty curbs. The entire city bundles in scarves and coats and hurries hunched through grocery store parking lots. We silently curse the wind. We silently curse ourselves for not living in !$%^&!^@$8#$ Palm Springs. Or maybe I’m projecting. Anyway,…
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SBH Recommends: Dante’s lasagna night
I’ll keep this one short and sweet: Dante’s lasagna is wonderful. It’s a one-night-a-week special, on Thursday, and it’s paired with select half-price wine that evening, too. (You know we took advantage of that.) Dante’s lasagana uses its delicious bolognese sauce folded between several layers of house-made pasta along with bechamel and grated cheese. Honestly.…
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Who knew Omahans loved shrimp this much?
I’d heard about the annual Shucks Fish House “Shrimp Fest” for years, but somehow never managed to check it out. It turns out I might be the only person in Omaha who wasn’t there. Owner Greg Lindberg said during the four-day event, Shucks sold about 47,000 shrimp to close to 3,000 diners. That’s a lotta…
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Pudgy’s Pizzeria announces it’s closing
One of the city’s only Chicago-style pizza spots announced it plans to close later this month. Pudgy’s Pizzeria, which is near 168th and Harrison Streets, will close Feb 22. The restaurant’s owner, Jeff Salakar, is in poor health, and can’t continue to run the restaurant. “The owner faces significant health issues that prevents him from…
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TBH, these are my favorites of 2019
I’m doing the annual year-end wrap up a bit differently this year. Instead of focusing on just what I wrote about in 2019 I’m instead focusing on the entire city. (Side note: Click here to see a couple hundred stories I wrote before I left the Omaha World-Herald in 2019.) I came up with fun…
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Old Man Drinker’s cocktail awards
Let’s do some Old Man Drinker awards, since it’s awards season and there is so much more cocktail love to go around in Omaha Town. Best West Omaha restaurant to get a legit drink: Dante, 16901 Wright Plaza. You my have noticed that my Top 5 bars in Omaha list is East Omaha focused. Sorries,…
Neighborhood: West Omaha
Anything west of 90th that’s considered Omaha