pop-we Dinner Club Reviews Omaha Press Club

OPC on the 22nd Floor

For February the population-we™  (pop-we) Dinner Club went to the opposite end of the spectrum of eating establishments by choosing the Omaha Press Club for dinner. Each month a member picks a restaurant to dine at this month's was Becky's pick. She chose the Omaha Press Club or better known to its members as "OPC." An elegant restaurant on the 22nd floor of the old First National building in downtown Omaha, Neb., OPC is located at 16th and Dodge Street. To eat here you either have to: be a member, go with a member or get a guest pass. We got a guest pass called "One-Night-Stand" from a friend -- former Omaha Press Club President Wendy Townley.

When you get off the elevator you walk in then climb a few stairs to the maître d' station which is next to a large inviting fireplace. From here you can see out the windows for a high-rise view from three sides of the restaurant. Out the front windows, which face east, you can oversee Omaha's downtown, the Qwest Center and the new TD Ameritrade stadium. To the south is a round bar and through these windows you can see the side of the new First National Bank Tower, from this vantage point you seem to only be half way up! Don't get me wrong the views are very nice; especially, for the downtown holiday lights and the 4th of July fireworks.

OPC decor is also fun with the caricatures on the walls and in the floor, this month they added their 128th caricature. Below is the explanation of the drawings taken from the OPC website:

"The Omaha Press Club’s 'Face on the Barroom Floor' honors newsmakers who have had an impact on the community. The caricatures are drawn by artist Jim Horan who worked for the Omaha World-Herald when he began drawing the 'Faces' in 1971. The drawings are unveiled during a roast and toast of the honoree that is open to the public. They are then placed on the floor to be walked on and admired until they are framed and join the other newsmaker caricatures on the club’s walls. No other press club has anything like the 'Faces on the Barroom Floor.'"

We made reservations for 12. They seated us in a room off of the entrance. One side of the table was along the glass and protruded out towards the door. The tables had nice white linen and comfortable seats on wheels. Our waiter was cool, he joked with us often, and was very attentive to our needs. The menu had gourmet meals for fine dining along with a couple lesser entree’s. Again I ordered a steak, the filet mignon ($28). It came with whipped potatoes and asparagus, which were delicious. The steak was a good size (for that type of place) but I asked for medium and came out well, it was not pink at all. It was good but obviously the steak could have been better, at least for me.

After compiling the surveys from the other foodies the pop-we Dinner Club gives OPC: 4.16 star average on a scale of 1-5.

Atmosphere/Decor - 4.8

Cleanliness - 4.6

Wait Staff - 4.4

Menu - 4.2

Food Presentation - 4.4

Food Portions - 3.4

Food Taste - 4.2

Cost (was the cost worth meal?) - 3.2

Noise Level - 4.2

Overall Experience - 4.2

What other Dinner Club Members had to say:

"Rack of Lamb had only two bones. Should have been about five. It wasn't just a little small, it was a lot small. Everyone else's looked pretty good though." - Rick

 "Stuffed Chicken Breast - delightful experience." - Sue

"I had the shrimp scampi with pasta. The shrimp was succulent and cooked to perfection. I especially liked that it didn't come on skewers and that the pasta was cut, which made it easier to eat. The portion size was huge. Dueling pianos in the background and a very friendly and attentive hostess and wait staff, made for a very memorable dinner club night out. Kudos to OPC!" - Becky

Fellow population-we™ readers, if you’ve been to the Omaha Press Club leave us a comment and tell us what you thought? If you want to experience the OPC for yourself visit http://www.omahapressclub.org/THECLUB.html and click on "Visit the Club" for a One-Night-Stand visitor's pass.

Want to do this yourself? To review how to start your own dinner club, visit our January post about doing just that. Remember it is a template; tweak it to fit you and your friends’ tastes. pop-we Dinner Club: good food…good friends…good times.

-population-we™ blog post by Brian Brown

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