Restaurants in Lincoln (esp. downtown, near UNL) (price, bars)

[Empidonax]

Hi All,

Later this week I'm going to be in Lincoln, so I'm trying to do a bit of legwork on places to eat in the downtown area, especially in the UNL vicinity.

There's not much mentioned on this forum: the most recent thread on restaurants in Lincoln is a bit old:

//www.city-data.com/forum/nebra...coln-eats.html

I'm interested in hearing about all sorts of cuisines, atmospheres, and price ranges, but I'm especially interested in the following:

1. "vintage" places, like ice cream parlors, hamburger stands, old diners, etc. I've read a bit about the Hi-Way Diner--any opinions? Is it even anywhere near downtown or UNL? Are there other vintage or divey places to visit?

2. Local or "Nebraska" food. I already know about Runza, but is there anything else that reflects the state's heritage or locally sourced foods? Is there a "can't miss" steakhouse?

3. International cuisine. I've read about various Indian places (Sher-e-Punjab, The Oven), but what else is there? Any Thai around downtown? Eastern European? South American? Korean?

Other recs are appreciated, too. I'd also like to hear about good places for coffee and pastry in the morning.

Thanks!

[dsrich98]

My favortie Place to eat in Lincoln is Lazlo's in the Haymarket, (close to UNL) it's a gourmet brewpub. Across the street you can hit up Ivanna Cone for dessert, homemeade ice cream (YUM). Both are in great historic locations.

[Gunluvver2]

Originally Posted by Empidonax

Hi All,

Later this week I'm going to be in Lincoln, so I'm trying to do a bit of legwork on places to eat in the downtown area, especially in the UNL vicinity.

There's not much mentioned on this forum: the most recent thread on restaurants in Lincoln is a bit old:

//www.city-data.com/forum/nebra...coln-eats.html

I'm interested in hearing about all sorts of cuisines, atmospheres, and price ranges, but I'm especially interested in the following:

1. "vintage" places, like ice cream parlors, hamburger stands, old diners, etc. I've read a bit about the Hi-Way Diner--any opinions? Is it even anywhere near downtown or UNL? Are there other vintage or divey places to visit?

2. Local or "Nebraska" food. I already know about Runza, but is there anything else that reflects the state's heritage or locally sourced foods? Is there a "can't miss" steakhouse?

3. International cuisine. I've read about various Indian places (Sher-e-Punjab, The Oven), but what else is there? Any Thai around downtown? Eastern European? South American? Korean?

Other recs are appreciated, too. I'd also like to hear about good places for coffee and pastry in the morning.

Thanks!

I can't help much because I eat 99% of my meals at home. The only regular exception is my weekly lunch at the HiWay Diner. It is a long ways from the UNL campus. It is on Hwy 2 and about 22nd street. They don't take orders at the table. You order at the counter and the waitresses will bring it to your table. They are open 24/7 and serve one of the best breakfasts in town 24/7.

For lunch I usually order their Chicken Fried Steak with a small bowl of Chili and Fries on the side. The items my friends order always look and smell great but I am a creature of habit so I stick to the CFS. I cannot stand to drink anything but Diet Coke so I never order their fountain drinks (Pepsi). They look the other way when I bring in my own Diet Coke so no problem. They are very reasonably priced and other than having to wait in lines to order everything is OK.

One thing you might want to remember: Avoid like the plague from 2 AM to 4AM. Lincoln bars close at 2AM and a huge number of inebriated patrons head to the Hwy Diner to chow down. Unless your tolerance level for drunks is very high you don't want to be there.

GL2

[RYNO71]

Misty's Steakhouse is worth going to, although I've never been to the downtown location, just the one in Havelock. Their prime rib is about as good as it gets. Also try a cup of their seafood bisque.

[Empidonax]

So far I've been to Lazlo's, The Oven (Indian), Sher-E-Punjab (also Indian), and Runza. Everything has been quite tasty.

But the real treat so far has been Ivanna Cone. Holy cr@p, is that good. Tonight I had a scoop of toffee and pepitas and a scoop of peach-lavender. I was expecting a kind of hyped-up version of the usual "gourmet" ice cream, but this was the real deal--fresh, creamy, flavorful. It's a good thing I leave in a couple of days, as this place could get quite addictive.