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Omaha chef ditched ‘familiar trappings’ in his restaurants. Now he’s a James Beard Award finalist
The first thing a person notices when spending time with chef David Utterback is that he’s constantly in motion. He rearranges the bottles behind the counter at his new six-seat, high-end sushi counter, Ota, which sits next to his wildly popular Omaha sushi restaurant, Yoshitomo. He stacks and re-stacks boxes of ingredients. He paces. He…
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Review: Primo’s version of a Mexican diner breakfast affordably hits the spot
I give a lot of recommendations for restaurants, and people often ask me where they should eat. But this week, I’m writing about a recommendation someone gave me — well, kind of. When I saw my friend Mike’l Severe tweeting photos of what looked like an amazing Mexican breakfast recently, I instantly added Primo’s Modern…
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Review: At the Mill on Leavenworth, 90s coffee nostalgia meets a modern, cozy hangout
I remember in 1996, when I first discovered the downtown Lincoln Mill Coffee shop, it felt like it belonged to me. I drank countless cold granitas — a frozen coffee slushy, basically — on its Haymarket patio on warm spring days while studying journalism at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Then, I was still a coffee…
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The 38 Best Restaurants in Omaha — 2023 edition
An omakase and yakitori from the city’s first James Beard finalist, prime rib at a century-old steakhouse, the purported inventor of the Reuben sandwich, and more of Omaha’s best meals
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Review: At Omaha Bagel Co., from-scratch takes on new meaning
Around 9 a.m. on a recent weekday morning, I met a friend in the parking lot of the Dundee Theater on a secret mission: collecting a dozen bagels from the Omaha Bagel Co. The cottage bagel bakery, which has been around for almost a year, only accepts orders via text message until farmers market season…
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Review: At Isla del Mar, fun seafood comes with pops of bright flavor
There is no shortage of fun at Isla del Mar. Whimsical, colorful under-the-sea themed murals decorate the walls. The music is loud and the place always seems packed. And the food is a medley of popping pinks, reds and greens, bright with citrus, herbs, sauces and spice. During two recent visits to the South Omaha…
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After almost 150,000 votes, we have a Nebraska Beer Bracket Champion
We have a champion! Kinkaider Brewing, based in the Nebraska Sandhills with locations in Broken Bow, Grand Island, Lincoln and Omaha, has taken the bracket. Almost 150,000 individual votes got us here. Thank you all for coming along on this journey, and thank you in large part to the Nebraska Craft Brewery Board for awarding…
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Nebraska’s largest kombucha brewer, Ensign Beverage, is fermenting in a new direction
Nathan Hoeft wanted nothing to do with the jar of kombucha his wife, Jessi Ensign, had been making for years “It was this weird looking liquid under the counter,” he said. “I didn’t like it.” Fast forward seven years, and Hoeft and Ensign are now the state’s biggest kombucha brewer through Ensign Beverage, a sister…
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Review: At Heavy Brewing, the beer and pizza names are quirky, but the food and drink are both solid
The pizza at Gretna’s Heavy Brewing, which opened last November, could be throwaway, or boring, or not that tasty. But here’s the good news, beer lovers: it’s none of those things. The super casual brewery, located in an industrial area that’s certainly off the beaten path, has already found its fan base, if the crowds…
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Review: At Kros Strain, it’s all about figuring out what’s next
When you’re already the maker of one of the most well-liked beers in the state of Nebraska, you start asking the big questions: What’s next? What else can we do? How do we stay relevant? After a recent visit to Kros Strain’s west Omaha tap room, it sure seems like that’s what the team of…