Big Ten Trip of a Lifetime - Year 5

[HeyBurke]

What is the Hay Market?

 

The Haymarket is the happinest place in downtown Lincoln. There're a lot of very good restaurants down there. Lazlo's and El Potrero are just two of the fine selections the Haymarket has to offer.

[huskernumerouno]

Make sure your refreshments are in the red KEG Cups and the police will leave you alone. Any open beer can will result in wasting beer and possibly a ticket. The plastic cups are good to go though.

[Ratt Mhule]

Runza hamburgers and fries are amazing. Runza original sandwiches are meh. End of debate. Thank you!

[huskerswrkhavoc]

No one's said it yet.. unless I missed it...

 

But I absolutely LOVE the Watering Hole's grilled wings.. Go to the one downtown, just off 13th and O.

 

Another thing I've never personally seen but people always talk about is the Sidetrack Band..

[bbeerma2]

*Obligatory 10 posts concluding, yes the Watering Hole wings are awesome*

[The Dude]

yes the Watering Hole wings are awesome

[TripOfALifetime]

Question about Nebraska in general - what time is bar time and what time can you buy beer until at liquor stores / grocery stores.

 

Also, what are the main grocery stores in Nebraska? Kroger's? Hy-Vee? Other?

 

We'll be sure to add red cups to our grocery list.

[Lyons in the Sea of Red.]

Bars are open til 2. And I think the latest most liquor stores sell is midnight, but dont take my word for it. Hy-vee is popular here.

[HotGrillonGrillAction]

Don't listen to the Runza haters....they are good man. If you want to be guiltless, get a cheese Runza and dip it in their homemade ranch with a side of large fries! I only eat fast food once or twice a year...and that's what I get.

Wait... how is that guiltless? I was confused about cheese being healthy so I went to their website and the cheese runza is more calories than the original

(The whole meal is 960 without ranch). But maybe that has nothing to do with what you were trying to say.

 

Hahahaha....yea - I was completely joking. It's horrible...yet so good!

[papersun87]

Is there an "official beer" of Nebraska that isn't a Budweiser or Miller / Coors product?

It's brewed at a place called Thunderhead in Kearney, NE (central part of the state) but I've never seen it anywhere else. If there's a Husker beer, it's gotta be this:

 

[knapplc]

Bars in Lincoln close at 1am.

 

You can buy booze in Lincoln at any grocery store 24/7, except on Sunday mornings until noon. Not sure about Gretna/Omaha. Main grocery stores around here are Hy-Vee, Super Saver (in Lincoln) and Wal-Mart superstores, but I recommend avoiding the Wal-Marts. For obvious reasons.

 

The Haymarket is a region of downtown Lincoln from O Street to R street, 9th street to 7th street. It contains kitschy little shops and is the best concentration of restaurants in town, including The Oven, Lazlo's, Vincenzo's, El Portrero, Maggie's, Bread & Cup, Brewsky's, Buzzard Billy's, Old Chicago (which I'm sure you're familiar with), and for dessert Ivanna Cone, the best ice cream in Nebraska (7th & P, right across from Lazlo's). There are several bars down there as well, but the "main" bars are from 9th street east along O street.

 

You will be thoroughly unimpressed with a runza. Try one just to try it, but you won't buy two. It's a traditional old food in Nebraska that is very meh.

 

Valentino's pizza is slightly better than frozen pizza. 30 years ago it was fantastic, but they went corporate, lost their soul and now they make trash. Do not get their pizza. It is an absolute crime what they have turned that business into.

 

There are no good pizza joints in Lincoln. If you want fantastic pizza come to my house on Friday and I'll make you a pie, regular, thin-crust or deep-dish.

 

Misty's in the Havelock district (on Havelock Ave) is a traditional old restaurant in Husker folklore. They serve a mean prime rib and the Havelock location has a pep band every Friday night before the game. As many have mentioned, it is in dire need of renovation. The food is meat-and-potatoes, and decent. They have a downtown location at 11th & P, but I have heard way too many people talk about bad experiences there. The one time I went there I had a very bad experience with the server and I won't go back.

 

For tailgating I highly recommend hitting the 'gates under the viaduct west of the stadium. I go over there before every game and it's a great time.

 

Elk Creek Water is the shizzle. Just don't drink too much of it. The comparison to a screwdriver someone made up above is apt, but it's got about 10x the alcohol of a regular screwdriver. It tastes like a nice mix of orange and grapefruit juice and it will knock you on your keister.

 

I-80 between Gretna and Lincoln gets VERY congested before games, so if you're coming down I recommend coming early in the AM to avoid traffic.

[TripOfALifetime]

Bars in Lincoln close at 1am.

 

You can buy booze in Lincoln at any grocery store 24/7, except on Sunday mornings until noon. Not sure about Gretna/Omaha. Main grocery stores around here are Hy-Vee, Super Saver (in Lincoln) and Wal-Mart superstores, but I recommend avoiding the Wal-Marts. For obvious reasons.

 

The Haymarket is a region of downtown Lincoln from O Street to R street, 9th street to 7th street. It contains kitschy little shops and is the best concentration of restaurants in town, including The Oven, Lazlo's, Vincenzo's, El Portrero, Maggie's, Bread & Cup, Brewsky's, Buzzard Billy's, Old Chicago (which I'm sure you're familiar with), and for dessert Ivanna Cone, the best ice cream in Nebraska (7th & P, right across from Lazlo's). There are several bars down there as well, but the "main" bars are from 9th street east along O street.

 

You will be thoroughly unimpressed with a runza. Try one just to try it, but you won't buy two. It's a traditional old food in Nebraska that is very meh.

 

Valentino's pizza is slightly better than frozen pizza. 30 years ago it was fantastic, but they went corporate, lost their soul and now they make trash. Do not get their pizza. It is an absolute crime what they have turned that business into.

 

There are no good pizza joints in Lincoln. If you want fantastic pizza come to my house on Friday and I'll make you a pie, regular, thin-crust or deep-dish.

 

Misty's in the Havelock district (on Havelock Ave) is a traditional old restaurant in Husker folklore. They serve a mean prime rib and the Havelock location has a pep band every Friday night before the game. As many have mentioned, it is in dire need of renovation. The food is meat-and-potatoes, and decent. They have a downtown location at 11th & P, but I have heard way too many people talk about bad experiences there. The one time I went there I had a very bad experience with the server and I won't go back.

 

For tailgating I highly recommend hitting the 'gates under the viaduct west of the stadium. I go over there before every game and it's a great time.

 

Elk Creek Water is the shizzle. Just don't drink too much of it. The comparison to a screwdriver someone made up above is apt, but it's got about 10x the alcohol of a regular screwdriver. It tastes like a nice mix of orange and grapefruit juice and it will knock you on your keister.

 

I-80 between Gretna and Lincoln gets VERY congested before games, so if you're coming down I recommend coming early in the AM to avoid traffic.

Thanks for the summary of everything being said so far....we're not a pizza bunch, but we are meat / potatoes / bar food / bbq type of people.

 

If it's an 11:00 kickoff, would you say be on the road by 8:00? Earlier?

[VA Husker Fan]

I'll admit Val's is not the same as it was when Gill, Fryar and I were at UNL (they used to call us the Triplets until that jerk Rozier showed up), but I still like it.

 

The other thing about the original Misty's is that they have a LOT of neat Husker memorabilia there, new and old. I guess more places are like that these days so maybe it's not such a big deal. Isn't there a place down around 27th and highway 2 like that, or did that close? I can't remember if Don Bryant (former long time SID) was associated with it, or if I just met him there. It was probably at least 5 years ago that I was there.

[knapplc]

If it's an 11:00 kickoff, would you say be on the road by 8:00? Earlier?

 

Earlier. Like 7am at the latest. A lot of folks come to the game from Omaha.

 

I don't know if anyone has mentioned this, but the interstate between Lincoln and Omaha is under construction (widening), so that's the biggest factor in my recommendation to leave early.

 

Since you're staying at the Super 8 next to the outlet malls, you could just take a right as you leave the outlet mall complex and take the very next left, and take Highway 6 into Lincoln. It'll add maybe 10 minutes onto your drive, but you'll drive through a couple of small towns and get the feel of more rural Nebraska - if you're into that kind of thing.

[Ratt Mhule]

Bars in Lincoln close at 1am.

 

You can buy booze in Lincoln at any grocery store 24/7, except on Sunday mornings until noon. Not sure about Gretna/Omaha. Main grocery stores around here are Hy-Vee, Super Saver (in Lincoln) and Wal-Mart superstores, but I recommend avoiding the Wal-Marts. For obvious reasons.

 

Omaha bars close at 2. You can buy alcohol at any 24 hour gas station up until 2 a.m.