11 lost restaurants of Lincoln. They're gone, but not forgotten.
Cheese frenchees, malts, hamburgers and fries, tachas and tastees all disappeared from Lincoln menus, lost to the sands of time with the closure of local eateries, where those dishes were unique specialties.
The deep-fired cheese and mayonnaise sandwiches, aka frenchees, burgers, malts, etc. were found at King’s Food Host, a chain that began at a Nebraska State Fair stand and expanded across the Midwest and had, at its peak, nine Lincoln locations. To say it was popular is understatement at its finest. King’s was packed on weekend evenings .
King’s Food Host
Diners placed orders by phone from their tables at King’s Food Host, 1315 N St. This file photo is from 1958. The restaurant, which began as a State Fair booth and grew to 140 locations in the U.S. and Canada, closed its last location in Lincoln, at 923 South St., in 2001.
The Knolls County Club
The Knolls County Club opened its golf course in 1963 and the restaurant three years later. The club was private, but the restaurant was open to the public. It closed in 2015.
Tony and Luigi’s
Chef Dennis Barratt (from left), assistant Lewis Prue and manager Dave Harrison at Tony and Luigi’s in a 1982 photo. The restaurant was founded in 1945 and grossed $6.50 on its first day. It closed in 1993.
P.O. Pears
Scott Mercer (left) was helped by Bob Scura and Kurt Cameron of Grand American Fare chain in assembling décor for P.O. Pears, popular with college students in the 1980s and '90s. It closed in 2008.
Crane River Brewpub and Café
Clint and Shelly Burge hang a 26½-foot-long quilt on the north wall of Crane River Brewpub and Café in downtown Lincoln in December 1992. Shelly Burge worked on the quilt for 319 hours. It depicts sandhill cranes on the banks of the Platte River. The restaurant closed in 2003.
Acme Chili Grill
Acme Chili Grill at 14th and O streets, shown the year it closed in 1963, served enough chili during its 54 years “to float the state Capitol,” according to the Lincoln Star.
K’s Restaurant
Paul Bruner entertains in 1979 in the Simba Room during dinner hour at K’s Restaurant, which was in the Piedmont Shopping Center on South Cotner Boulevard. Lions were a part of the restaurant’s décor. It closed in the early 2000s.
Tony Domino’s Italian Village
This 1960 file photo of Tony Domino’s Italian Village restaurant at 5730 O St. was taken when the Legionnaire Club announced it was buying the building. The Italian Village, founded in 1936 at the same location, was rebuilt in late 1951 after a May fire destroyed everything but the building’s brick walls. Smoke from that early morning fire killed the restaurant’s custodian as he slept in the boiler room.
Arturo’s
In 1979, the Taco Hut, 233 N. 11th St., officially changed its name to Arturo’s. The Mexican restaurant was forced to move in 1987 when the city condemned it with other businesses to make way for development that didn’t happen.
Bishop Buffet
Bishop Cafeteria, which opened in Lincoln in 1956 at 1325 P St., moved into Gateway Shopping Center in 1972 and was renamed Bishop Buffet, shown here in 1985. It closed in 1996.
Tastee Inn and Out
Tastee Inn and Out, 1530 N. 48th St., opened in 1949 and was known for its loose-meat sandwiches and onion chips. Shown here in 1982, the drive-in restaurant closed in 2014.
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