February 2015 Encounter

J A N U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 5

HOTEL FRANK

Omaha’s Legendary Rock Hovel

HERE COME THE HUDLIES

Techies Invade Downtown as Hudl Expands

MAXINSIDE OMAHA’S PREMIERE BACCHANAL

TO THE

The perfect spot for your Holilday Gathering.....

11th & Harney • 402-614-9333 • Old Market

The

Above The Rock

A Note Perfect Beginning or Ending to your Evening.

http://www.rockbottom.com

The perfect spot for your Holilday Gathering.....

11th & Harney • 402-614-9333 • Old Market

The

Above The Rock

A Note Perfect Beginning or Ending to your Evening.

RESTAURANT & LOUNGEConveniently Located Inside

The Hilton OmahaOmaha’s Premier Downtown Hotel

• Connected to the CenturyLink Center Omaha

• Open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner

• Happy Hour Monday-Friday 4:30-7:00

LIBERTY TAVERN AT THE HILTON OMAHA1001 Cass Street, Omaha, NE 68102402.998.4321 · libertytavern.com

Valentines Dinner SpecialPromo 1: ½ Price Bottles of WinePromo 2: Four Course Dinner for Two with Champagne Toast, $100 per couple (Not inclusive of tax or gratuity)

When making reservations, mention code: EncounterValentine

Cannot be combined with any other discounts for promotion.

http://www.libertytavern.com

Contents6 L IV ING: A Space For Everything The Om Center Loft

10 ART: Beautiful Decay The Art of Shawnequa Linder

14 MUSIC: Hotel Frank Omaha’s Famed House of Music

16 PERFORMANCE: Zedeka Poindexter Poetry in Motion

18 FEATURE: Invasion of the Hudlies! Wave of techies move with Hudl into the Old Market

20 FEATURE: A Night at the Max Inside Omaha’s Premiere Bacchanal

24 DINING: Tokyo Sushi Sushi With a Focus on Family

26 FASHION: Glam in All its Glory

36 FACES: Quincy Ellefson A Face You Know—8 years older

38 FACES: Carrie Meyer “The Fun Buster” Saves Omaha’s History

40 Downtown Omaha Map

41 Merchants & Attractions

44 Calendar of Events

O M A H A M A G A Z I N E . C O M

E N C O U N T E R 4

Old Market Passageway • 1022 Howard St.Reservations Recommended: Call 402.345.8980

Reservations Online: www.vmertz.com

Artisan Cheese • Award Winning Wine List

head chef Kyle Lamb certified sommeliers David Eckler, Jennifer Fravel

proprietor David Hayes general manager/wine director Matthew Brown

J A N U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 5Publisher

Todd Lemke

Executive EditorDavid Williams

Managing EditorRobert Nelson

Editorial InternClaire Martin

Contributing WritersLindsey Anne Baker • Kim Carpenter • April Christenson

Judy Horan • Jason Kuiper • Claire Martin James Walmsley • Matt Whipkey

Creative DirectorJohn Gawley

Director of Photography & Interactive Media

Bill Sitzmann

Contributing PhotographerKeith Binder

Senior Graphic Designer & Web Content Manager

Kristen Hoffman

Graphic DesignerRachel Joy

Account ExecutivesGreg Bruns • Gil Cohen • Kyle Fisher

Angie Hall • George Idelman • Gwen Lemke

Assistant to the PublisherSandy Besch-Matson

Event DirectorErin Cox

Account AssistantsAlicia Smith Hollins • Jessica Linhart • Dawn Dennis

OperationsTyler Lemke

AccountingJim Heitz

Warehouse Distribution ManagerMike Brewer

For Advertising Information:402.884.2000

omahamagazine.com

Owned and Managed byOmaha Magazine, LTD

All versions of Encounter are published bimonthly by

Omaha Magazine, LTD, P.O. Box 461208, Omaha, NE 68046-1208. Telephone: (402) 884-2000; fax (402) 884-2001. No whole or part

of the contents herein may be reproduced without prior written permis-sion of Omaha Magazine, excepting individually copyrighted articles

and photographs. Unsolicited manuscripts are accepted; however, no responsibility will be assumed for such solicitations.

J A N U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 5 5

http://www.vmertz.com

Sandy Aquila and her mother, Natalie Goodkind.

E N C O U N T E R 6


GANESH GRACES THE soft purple cover of Sandy Aquila’s guestbook. The book is bound at the top; inside, on delicate

handmade pages, the dates corresponding to the signatures within start at 2001. On some pages, the handwriting is big and breezy. On one, it’s in Arabic.

The book tells the story of the loft space at the top of the Old Market’s Omaha Healing Arts Center, which Aquila opened in 2001. On the main floor of the center, situated at 1216 Howard St., is a retail area, tea bar, and event space, where concerts, speakers, poetry events, yoga, weddings, and more are routinely hosted. On the lower level, holistic practitioners offer massage therapy, acupuncture, ayurvedic medicine, and other Eastern healing techniques.

Before the center was the center, Aquila said, the space was her uncle’s antique shop, and the loft at the top was his office. There’s still homage to that time—an antique claw crane game in the corner of the kitchen.

“We’ve joked about putting herbs and vitamins inside,” Aquila said.

It would befit the setting now, a sort of multipurpose space used by Aquila’s family at times, for small yoga sessions or healing workshops at others, and perhaps most often, by guest artists and healers performing or practicing at the center—the names filling Aquila’s guestbook.

In the loft’s open layout is a six-seat dining table and fully stocked kitchen on one side and, on the other, two comfy couches and a low-lying, Japanese-style seating area in front of a mirrored wall. A central raised sleeping area is cozily out of view. The windows are treated with breezy sheers, and a few Asian-inspired tables—including a large Japanese tansu with movable pieces that currently house a TV and its accessories—are placed throughout. There’s a big pile of pillows for impromptu seating. Tibetan sculptures speak to the Center’s—and Aquila’s own—world-culture influences.

There are, of course, also exposed brick walls, a high ceiling and a local artist’s piece—an abstract with Asian embellishments—prominently hung.

“It’s still Old Market,” Aquila said. “It’s just older world. It’s the Age-Old Market.”

Holistic medicine stems from a lot of ancient Eastern traditions, Aquila said, attractive to her because they focus on both outer and inner aspects of humanity.

“When I began studying Chinese medicine and Ayurvedic healing, I noticed that even the intake questions were holistic, asking about who you are, not only about the symptoms you’re having,” she said. “There is a spiritual quality, and I don’t mean religious—it takes into consideration the whole being. These ancient healing arts are holistic, treating the body, mind, spirit and the emotions through lifestyle, herbs, hands-on healing and much more.” Aquila looks at the center as a body, of sorts, and the people and healing inside as its spirit. >

A Space for EverythingA L A N A R K I N . T I B E T I A N M O N K S .

V I N X . T H E L O F T O F T H E O M A H A H E A L I N G A R T S C E N T E R

H A S S E E N I T A L L . by Lindsey Anne Baker

photography by Bill Sitzmann


L I V I N G

E N C O U N T E R 8


< “This space is like a womb,” she said. “It’s a creative and healing place that holds the

potential for possibilities. Just as people hold space in their hearts for love or compassion for another, this space holds a healing and nurturing atmosphere for people to remember the light inside themselves.”

Aquila’s guestbook tells of so many connections made.

There was Dr. Alain Abehsera from Jerusalem who, during a three-day stay, shared his connective therapy practice—healing with his mind.

There was Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, the Spiritual Head of the Himalayan Institute

—a nonprofit that promotes inner prosperity through yoga, meditation, holistic health practices, and humanitarian projects—who spoke at the Center in 2005.

There was Sondra Ray, known as the Mother of Rebirthing, who led sessions designed to help people recover from the trauma of birth.

Alan Arkin taught a workshop on improvisational theater. Vinx, a world-influenced jazz and soul musician, riffed on traditional chanting and earned an Om-Center-specific nickname during his repeat visits: Grand Master Om. Musician Gerald Trimble, his ensemble and his assortment of old-world instruments—viola da gamba, lute, Turkish saz—are regulars here.

In November 2014, eight Tibetan monks created a sand mandala at the center. They spread out in sleeping bags in the loft one night, cooked traditional Tibetan momos, or dumplings, one morning.

Each guest who’s stayed, Aquila said, has left something in the loft, in its air.

“So many amazing people have visited and stayed here now that it has been infused with a bit of their spirit and love.

“Who we are emanates from us,” she said. “How we move through the world has an energy;

that energy has created an atmosphere that has made this space so special to so many. It’s not only about four walls but about the quality of the place on an energetic level. Encounter

ConvenientCareWALK-IN

MEDICAL CENTER

No Appointment Necessary

www.convenientcarecouncilbluffs.com

105 N. 31st Ave.Omaha, NE402.346.1111

3502 Metro Dr. Ste. 200Council Bluffs, IA402.346.1111

Hours:

Mon-Fri 8am-8pmSaturday 8:30am-3pm

Farid Sadr, M.D.

PREMIUM HOMEMADE ICE CREAM

8 Years In A Row1120 Jackson Street • (402) 341-5827tedandwallys.com

f


L I V I N G

http://www.convenientcarecouncilbluffs.com

http://www.tedandwallys.com

http://www.thehavanagarage.com

WHEN I PAINT, I don’t start with just one idea,” said artist Shawnequa Linder. “If something emerges, I go with it and see how it reveals itself.”

And revealing it is. The artist’s paintings involve complex combinations of color and texture, which in turn result in works that are simultaneously harmonious and discordant, yet wholly unified. Linder likes to describe her paintings as fitting within the abstract decay genre, a genre that highlights how visually compelling weathered and worn art can be. “I love the beauty of inner destruction when everything is not related to each other,” she stressed.

That means Linder has an uninhibited, spontaneous approach to painting. Her technique is loose yet controlled, and she applies layer upon layer of paint to create a surface density that she in turn wears down and builds back up—or vice versa. While she uses conventional artist brushes, she often eschews them in favor of foam brushes and particularly her fingers, which allows her to control the work in a fluid manner that lends a distinctive quality to her work. >

Beautiful DecayPA I N T E R S H A W N E Q U A L I N D E R

by Kim Carpenter photography by Bill Sitzmann

E N C O U N T E R 10



A R T



Cubby’s Old Market Grocery601 S. 13th St.

< Linder also often changes the direction of her paintings as she progresses. “A lot of pieces have paint that I don’t like,” she said, “so I paint over it with different colors, and I scrape to find a pattern. Then I paint over that again using a water wash.”

The artist also doesn’t confine herself to creating just one painting at a time; instead she works on several paintings at once—sometimes up to seven—with each one interacting with and playing off the other. Linder loves when this kind of synergy occurs. “I’m in the mode of something happening,” she explained, “and it’s somewhere I’m happy to be.”

Size frequently depends on the amount of space a painting dictates. “I used to paint so small,” she said. “I was afraid of all that space, but an art professor once projected an image of my work onto a large-scale screen and said to the class, ‘This is museum quality right here.’”

Museum quality, however, doesn’t mean that Linder’s paintings are priced too expensively for most art lovers. They range anywhere from $125 to $600, with sizes that display well on the walls of typical homes or apartments rather than in large, sprawling spaces. “I want to make my paintings affordable,” Linder explained, “because I want a Shawnequa on every wall.

In the end, all of Linder’s techniques and approaches result in inimitable paintings that are wholly her own. “I don’t know how a painting will turn out,” she said, “and for that reason, every painting is an original. I don’t duplicate.” That means sometimes her work is so varied, they don’t even seem created by the same artist. “In the end, all the pieces are different,” Linder said. “They all have their own personalities.” Encounter


A R T

http://www.urbanabbey.com

http://www.cubbys.com



BETWEEN ADOLESCENCE AND adulthood, is chaos. No single Omaha building embodies one’s formative years

of 18 to 22 more than a dilapidated mansion on 38th and Farnam streets. Although you may not remember the party, you probably partied there. Farnam House, Jerkstore, Gunboat, Lifeboat, and Power Pad: all names affectionately affixed to this broke- down palace of music, art, and madness. All names precursors to the legend of a hotel known as Frank.

From 2006 to 2008, Hotel Frank was ground zero for myriad musical artists and performances. Capgun Coup, Bear Country, Conchance, Dim Light, FTL Drive all called Hotel Frank home. While they were far from the first bands the house on Farnam had seen (previous residents include Conor Oberst and The Faint), figuratively they made the most noise. With Capgun Coup concerts packing in upwards of 200 people, literally the house rocked.

“When everyone was pogoing in unison the floor would give a couple feet,” said Capgun Coup front man Sam Martin. “If you went to the basement you could see cracks in the beams opening and closing.”

While most individuals would not willingly place their residence in such jeopardy, Hotel Frank’s recklessness was equal parts youth and the product of constant home disrepair.

“It was a wretched place to live,” said Martin. “It was February of 2007 and the heat quit working. It was not fixed until March. It would have been a much better house if it was kept up by the owners.”

Capgun Coup, with all of its members one time residing in the west wing of the Farnam triplex,

have come to define the Hotel Frank era. With their danceable yet artistic approach to brash spastic rock, the building and the band fed off each other.

While Capgun’s time at Hotel Frank was a relatively small window, Dim Light front man Cooper Lakota Moon resided in the triplex on four separate occasions from 2000 to 2008.

“No one has ever lived there as many times as I have,” Moon said. “In 2008, at 28, I think I was the oldest person to ever live there.”

Moon, with his perspective of seeing the house throughout the last decade and prior, felt the national spotlight that romanticized the Hotel Frank experience around 2009, left some cracks unnoticed.

“You live in that place for a reason, it’s cheap. You don’t live there because it’s cool, it’s not cool,” Moon said. “People tend to romanticize it. People are there because we are broke.”

For every frozen winter afternoon and sweltering summer day, cracked wall, and bucking floorboard, the camaraderie throughout Hotel Frank seemingly trumped all opposing forces. A spirit that exists to this day: with all three wings occupied, vibrant and hosting live, uninhibited rock and roll.

“It was no parents,” said Martin. “The essence of it was hope of not jumping into the same thing you see everyone do. Not jumping into the work force but trying to do something real with your music.”

“I love that triplex,” Moon said. “It was a special time, an amazing creative energy and flow. We certainly had our fun, but we were getting things done.” Encounter

A Frank Look at Hotel FrankO M A H A’ S FA M E D R O C K ‘ N R O L L H A N G O U T

W A S O N E H O P P I N ’ H O V E L .by Matt Whipkey



M U S I C

ZEDEKA POINDEXTER HAS had a good year.

In the spring, the Omaha-born performance poet was named slam master of the Om Center Poetry

Slam, a monthly event where Omaha’s nationally recognized slam teams come together. She was named a 2014 fall fellow at the Union for Contemporary Art. In January, she—alongside Nebraska State Poet Twyla M. Hansen—will present in a new interactive poetry reading series at KANEKO called Feedback. A week and a half after that, she’ll read at a Backwaters Press-sponsored reading at the Community Engagement Center. She was nominated for the Omaha Entertainment and Arts Award’s Best Slam Poet title for 2014 and again for 2015.

“It’s really strange,” she said. “I wasn’t expecting it. It’s like all the things I thought I possibly might want are all happening.

“Matt told me I should probably start investing in lottery tickets, because this is a pretty good run.”

That Matt is Matt Mason, the longtime master of the Om slam who handed the reins to Poindexter in May. A longtime fixture of the slam scene—and a three-time member of the Omaha Slam Team, the rotating members of which compete at the National Poetry Slam—she was well-positioned to take the role. Now that she’s in it, she’s been hosting regular

“slam family meetings” and trying to connect the city’s slam poetry, spoken word, and other creative communities.

Zedeka PoindexterP O E T R Y I N M O T I O N

by Lindsey Anne Baker photography by Bill Sitzmann



“It hasn’t been without its challenges,” Poindexter said. “While slam has a very specific following, I wouldn’t say it’s as wide-reaching as I would like it to be. A lot of it is just a matter of making sure we’re talking to each other. Spoken word is so diverse, and slam is just one specific outlet. There’s so much out there—it’s a matter of us all appreciating things we do well and opening our arms wide.”

To that end, Poindexter has her eye on bringing one of slam’s most prominent national competitions, the Women of the World Poetry Slam, to Omaha in 2016. Started in 2008, WOWPS is a three-day event designed to foster women’s involvement in the global slam poetry scene.

“We could have the top 80 women in performance poetry from this country and other countries here,” Poindexter said. “I think we’re well-placed for that.”

She’s also at work on an exhibition piece she’ll show with the other Union for Contemporary Art fall fellows at the completion of their fellowship. She’s been working with the ideas of food and family, building a table with place settings and love letters for people living and dead she’d like to have at her table.

It makes sense for this poet locally known for a piece about her family’s recipe for peach cobbler, for a writer who’s filled a notebook with the Southern idioms her mother and grandmother would use, for a woman who wants to help people tell stories while she tells her own, too.

“There’s this idea that you can go into someone’s mind,” she said. “Slam is the perfect vehicle for that: You can see it in [poets’]

faces and their reactions, and they can see it in your face and your reactions. No matter how tired or frustrated or fed up I get with art in general, I don’t think I could ever truly walk away. There are so many stories out there to hear that keep me coming back. I’m certain there’s something I haven’t heard yet. And then I think if I listen hard enough, I’ll be able to write it myself.

“With the way things have been going, maybe I’ll be the first to write something I’ve been waiting to hear. I hope. I hope.” Encounter


P E R F O R M A N C E

HUDL, THE LINCOLN-BASED sports video editing company, is now making its presence felt in Omaha and shows no signs of slowing down.

In September, Hudl opened a new location in the Old Market at 1013 Jones St., in the space that used to be the Nomad Lounge. The expansion to Omaha has proved a popular move for both Hudl employees and potential employees. So now, company spokesperson Alli Pane said, the company already has plans to employ more people at the Omaha site.

“It’s been great, we actually have people who work at our Lincoln office but love this new Omaha office so much they come up and spend a day there,” she said.

Hudl has been generating plenty of buzz recently. The company was recently named by Inc. Magazine as Nebraska’s fastest-growing company for a second straight year. Hudl was created by three classmates from UNL’s Jeffrey S. Raikes School of Computer Science and Management and has two Lincoln locations in addition to the new Omaha office.

Invasion of the Hudlies!H U D L’ S E X P L O S I V E G R O W T H I S

B R I N G I N G W AV E S O F Y O U N G T E C H I E S T O T H E O L D M A R K E T.

by Jason Kuiper photography by Bill Sitzmann



Hudl began when Omaha native and Millard North graduate David Graff started working with the Nebraska football team in 2003 to improve their use of video. The company now boasts more than 20 professional teams, including the New York Jets, Detroit Lions, Boston Celtics, and Washington Capitals, as well as more than 80 percent of college football teams, as clients.

The Omaha office has more than 20 employees. Pane said that while the company has hit their hiring goal for the year, they hope to double their hiring next year. She said the company has planned to have 75 to 80 “Hudlies”—Hudl employees—to fill the new Omaha office.

Pane said the company’s hiring goal for 2015 calls for 80 to 90 new members for their product team alone. The product team is made up of designers, developers, and engineers.

Company officials saw the need for the Omaha presence after finding there were potential new hires who didn’t want to make the commute to Lincoln. Pane says the company also recognizes there is a rich talent base in Omaha and great universities to draw from. Employees love the Old Market location because it’s new and flashy, Pane said, and is “wide open.“

“It looks great, we have the brick walls, large wooden posts throughout the space, and have taken out and opened up the ceilings,” Pane said. The company has installed a new Wi-Fi system, meeting rooms, and numerous tech updates throughout the 8,000 square feet of space.

Employees also enjoy having access to all the funky amenities the Old Market is known for, Pane said. The Omaha site hosts software developers, sales team members, designers, and other employees. Pane said company officials are excited that the new space has plenty of room for their plans to continue to grow the company, which bodes well for both the company and city. Omaha, Pane said, should get ready for a major influx of “Hudlies.” Encounter


F E AT U R E

HERE ARE THE town eccentrics, the artists, the kings and queens of drag, those who love to dance and those

attempting to hook up. Here are the civilized, but just as often the debauchers and hedonists, the flat-out jerks, and, at certain times, the tittering bachelorette bacchanals and the best and worst of Husker fandom.

This is the Omaha that dies every Monday morning, then rises again on weekend nights. And they flock to a distinct dance club in droves, all of them, proving—contrary to a well-worn blurb The New York Times issued once upon a time—The Max is no longer the place to be on Saturday nights. It’s the place where everyone is on Saturday nights.

And tonight, I am one of them.

“People coming to The Max for the first time think we just recently opened,” says Stosh Moran, one of the club’s staple personalities and partner of owner Bruce Barnard.

“There’s a full crew working during the day to keep The Max looking fresh and new. Bruce is constantly ordering new lights and keeping on top of what’s new and trending.”

It’s too dark to tell, but I think I’ve discovered the lekking grounds of an ancient cult. That is, until a strobe flare overpowers a darkness flecked with polychromatic pin spots and lasers. I’m in the disco hall, the club’s most popular room, and a heavy fog of human flesh has been revealed. The air is surprisingly sweet, despite the stagnant humidity generated from perspiring bodies. I move amongst the movement, but I’m not drunk enough yet to dance.

The blast of light expires and a throng of swaying silhouettes returns. A shirtless man tugs at the bulge in another man’s jeans, drawing him in closer. Two women grind arrhythmically as their mouths attempt to meet, and the hands of a middle-aged man trace the curves of a middle-aged woman’s body. The dance floor doesn’t discriminate. >

A Night at The Max

I N S I D E O M A H A’ S P R E M I E R E B A C C H A N A L

by James Walmsley photography by Bill Sitzmann

A drag-queen contest on a recent night at The Max.




F E AT U R E

< “No funny business, but can I touch your beard?” a young disciple of loosened inhibitions asks. “Just once. Seriously, no funny business.”

“Okay,” I say, because, you know, I’m at The Max, and at what other time can I entertain such an odd request?

As he pets my face, I close my eyes and dissolve into the soundscape, which is loud and hypnotic. “Turn Down For What” segues into a remix of “Baby Got Back” to the tune, or rather rhythm, of “Shots.” My foot inadvertently taps to the chanting of “Butts,” but I’m less entranced by the Top-40 pop of yore than the pulsating kick drum that accompanies every tune. It’s the heart of the club, the bringer of life. The same thump that I had felt under 15th Street as I made my way on foot to the multiplex.

“I remember being shocked by the sheer breadth of it —the multiple rooms, multiple DJs, and endless bars,”

says Homorazzi blogger, Nic Opp, who reviewed The Max last year. “I think in the gay communities across North America, we’re more used to seeing the traditional dive bar that we have all mostly grown so fond of. In major cities, you see the bigger spaces as expected, but it was completely unexpected of Omaha as an outsider.”

I retreat to a room called the Arena, which radiates the sensation of slow motion, especially after experiencing the disco hall. Here, the contrast of bright and dark dissolves to an ocher dim. Hip-hop plays at half-volume and half-speed, and a small, esoteric cult pantomimes carnal rhythms on the showroom stage. I’m a convert, but only in spirit, for I’ve found a comfortable spot at the bar. Oh, and more importantly I’ve found God, or a real-life bartender that acknowledges I exist.

This, of course, is not an indictment on the club’s service, but a testament to the capacity they host. And what with the wild pack of rum-thirsty bros roaming the facility at all hours, it’s amazing that anyone gets a drink at all. But The Max gives us all the sort of room we need to find relief from our working lives, whether it be in the main floor lounge, the upstairs billiards lounge, the outdoor garden, the disco hall or the Arena.

“It’s unlike any other environment in Omaha,” says Mike Mogler, who isn’t afraid to take his shirt down a few buttons and leave it all on the dance floor. “It’s a place to be yourself and have as much fun as possible. It’s also the best place to dance in Nebraska!” Encounter




621 Pacific St, Omaha • 402-345-3438

Orsi’s is famous for our pizza, Italian cheeses and bread products. Our Italian Deli

features a variety of meats, including homemade sausage, cakes, cannolis, and imported olives.

Established in 1919Celebrating our 95th year!

Welcome to Your City in the City

If you’re looking for drinks, dining and

nightlife, all within easy walking distance,

you’re looking for Omaha’s newest

entertainment center, The Capitol District

— your city in the city.

Coming Soon: Capitol District Marriott Hotel!

Currently Open

Located between Dodge and Capitol, from 9th to 11th.

www.capitoldistrictomaha.com

http://www.sgroitobacconist.com

http://www.orsibakery.com

http://www.capitoldistrictomaha.com

The RuebenBeet burger and beet chips

FAMILY IS AT the heart of everything that Randy Gao does.

It was the reason he moved to the Midwest in the early ‘90s, after first emigrating from China to New York City. It compelled him to enter

the restaurant business, following in the footsteps of his older sister. And it has been the driving force behind his latest venture, all-you-can-eat Tokyo Sushi.

For the Gaos, going into the restaurant business seemed an obvious choice— a way for them to make a living, together.

Sitting at the bar of his modern but cozy restaurant in the heart of the Old Market at 1215 Howard St., Gao told me the story about how he first came to the United States in 1993 after leaving his home in China’s Fujian province. He attended high school in New York City and, after graduation, moved to Fort Madison, Iowa, where his older sister had recently opened a restaurant.

Today, over 20 years later, the Gao family remains in the Midwest and now operates three restaurants in the Omaha/Council Bluffs area. Randy, his brother, and two sister-in-laws operate Tokyo Sushi. Other members of the family own and operate two Chinese restaurants in Council Bluffs—Taste of China and China Wok.

Tokyo SushiA L L - Y O U - C A N - E AT S U S H I

W I T H A F O C U S O N FA M I LYby April Christenson




The Original Old MarketIrish Bar

1205 Harney St.342-5887

dublinerpubomaha.com

Nightly SpecialsLive Irish Music Weekends

Open 12 p.m.

FIVE SALONONE PACIFIC PLACE

402-715-5757www.f ivesa lon.com

Hair by Danielle Kempf & Melissa Vredenburg

Opened in 2013, Tokyo Sushi is Randy’s second all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant. The first, Wasabi, was located in West Omaha and closed in early 2013. He says the move downtown has been good for business and their all-you-can-eat business model, unique for a sushi restaurant, lures customers from outside Omaha.

“I love the downtown area,” Gao said. “We have a lot of regulars here and we even have some customers that come all the way from Lincoln.”

Tokyo Sushi’s all-you-can-eat menu is perfect for the indecisive among us. For $19.99 Sunday through Thursday ($22.99 on weekends) you can choose from an expansive menu—including soups and salads, a host of appetizers, traditional nigiri (a piece of raw fish placed atop a pillow of rice), maki (traditional sushi rolls), and many specialty rolls. The weekend menu also includes your choice of five varieties of sashimi (thinly sliced raw fish). During lunch you can enjoy a slightly abbreviated menu for $12.99 per adult.

Although Tokyo Sushi is all-you-can-eat, this isn’t your typical buffet. Every item on the menu is made fresh to order by four sushi chefs. Gao told me how important it is to him to use the freshest fish possible. For that reason, they receive several shipments of fresh fish each week.

True to form, Gao had families in mind when designing the interior of Tokyo Sushi. He wasn’t going for a super trendy atmosphere. Rather, he wanted to create a comfortable space for

families to come together and enjoy a meal. The dining area accommodates around 100 diners and is filled with mainly four-top tables. “We didn’t want it to feel like a bar,” he said. “We really wanted the design to be family friendly.”

Although it doesn’t have a bar atmosphere, Tokyo Sushi does offer a happy hour special every weekday from 3-5 p.m. and a late-night happy hour from 9 p.m. to close (9:30 p.m. to close on weekends). Happy hour is still all-you-can-eat, but the price tag is only $12.99 and, like the lunch menu, is smaller than the dinner menu.

When visiting Tokyo Sushi for the first time, it can be a bit overwhelming. It’s hard to know where to start when you have the entire menu to choose from. Randy said some customer favorites include the Super Dynamite roll; tempura fried with eel, white tuna, crab, cucumber and cream cheese, with eel sauce and spicy mayo on top. Another favorite is the Hoppin Jalapeno Roll, which is crab, cucumber, and crunchy bits of fried tempura batter inside and spicy tuna and jalapeno chips on the outside. The roll is then drizzled with eel sauce and spicy mayo.

“I think a lot of our customers like the idea of all you can eat sushi,” Gao said. “It’s a good way to try a lot of things—without breaking the wallet.” Encounter


D I N I N G

http://www.dublinerpubomaha.com

http://www.fivesalon.com

ROCKERS DAVID BOWIE, Gary Glitter, and David Johansen (you know, the New York Dolls before he tamed things down with his

Buster Poindexter persona) pioneered a special blend of over-the-top, glammed out, gender-bending togs.

Here stylist Nicholas Wasserberger works with one his favorite club kid muses, Jordyn, in a celebration of all that is colorful, carefree, and just a little bit carnal.

stylist | Nicholas Wasserberger hair & makeup | Sandy Butt, Victor/Victoria Salon & Spa model | Jordyn

The Winter of Our Discontent

G L A M I N A L L I T S G L O R Yphotography by Bill Sitzmann

FA S H I O N

FA S H I O N

FA S H I O NFA S H I O N

sweater | vintage Oscar de la Rentaskirt | Wallflower Artisan Collective

bag | Hello Holiday

FA S H I O N

FA S H I O N

dress and cape | Wallflower Artisan Collective

FA S H I O N

omahamagazine.com the encounter | january/february 2014 30

ADVANTAGE COUPONS • (402) 333-3550 FSG OMAHA -E8- 1/15

Local Beers Fresh Food Fun Games

Victory Grill Sports & Tap25 Scott Street • 712-328-7275

Downtown Council Bluffs, IAwww.victorygrillsportstap.com

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––Happy hour 3:00-7:00 Monday-Friday

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––• Craft beers• Cocktails• Daily specials • 21 TV’s• 20 beers on tap

• Coldest Beer in Council Bluffs• Over 50 beers to choose from• Rent a tap for a private party • Made from scratch food • Catch every game here

FREEorder of

NACHOSwith the purchase of any regular priced menu item.

Must present coupon to receive offer

Expires: 2-28-15

Encounter Book #E8 1-15_Encounter-Advantage Publication 12/9/14 10:45 AM Page 2

ENCOUNTERAdvantage

CALL US TODAY AT: (402) 333-3550VISIT US AT: www.advantagecoupons.com

www.facebook.com/AdvantageCouponswww.twitter.com/AdvantagCoupons

AdvantageCoupons®

ENCOUNTERAdvantage

Coupons online at: www.advantagecoupons.com

A+Rating


Expires: 2-28-15


http://www.advantagecoupons.com

http://www.goldsmithsilversmith.com


Local Beers Fresh Food Fun Games

Victory Grill Sports & Tap25 Scott Street • 712-328-7275

Downtown Council Bluffs, IAwww.victorygrillsportstap.com

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––Happy hour 3:00-7:00 Monday-Friday

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––• Craft beers• Cocktails• Daily specials • 21 TV’s• 20 beers on tap

• Coldest Beer in Council Bluffs• Over 50 beers to choose from• Rent a tap for a private party • Made from scratch food • Catch every game here

FREEorder of

NACHOSwith the purchase of any regular priced menu item.

Must present coupon to receive offer

Expires: 2-28-15


ENCOUNTERAdvantage

CALL US TODAY AT: (402) 333-3550VISIT US AT: www.advantagecoupons.com

www.facebook.com/AdvantageCouponswww.twitter.com/AdvantagCoupons

AdvantageCoupons®

ENCOUNTERAdvantage

Coupons online at: www.advantagecoupons.com

A+Rating


Expires: 2-28-15


http://www.victorygrillsportstap.com


Call Today!John Kortus402-679-7030

[email protected]

If you are thinking of buying or selling a home, contact me today!“John went far and above on getting my home sold. No other agent would have done what he did and he has anoutstanding marketing program. John was a true partner and I would recommend him to anyone interested in sellingor buying a home”. – Denyse“John assisted me in purchasing my first home and I was very impressed with the seamless process from start tofinish. John listened carefully and understood what I was looking for and went out of his way to search out ahome that fit my needs perfectly. I will definitely recommend him to friends, co-workers and family”. – Phil

COMPLIMENTARYHOME

EVALUATION Find out what your home

is worth!

Expires: 3-31-15

John Kortus • 402-679-7030

COMPLIMENTARYFOR SALE BY OWNERHELP KITExpires: 3-31-15

John Kortus • 402-679-7030

COMPLIMENTARYBuyers

Consultation*Get FREE information that you needto successfully purchase your dream

home.Expires: 3-31-15

John Kortus • 402-679-7030


www.glassmanhearing.com

Ray-O-VacHearing Aid BATTERIESAs Low As29¢ea.Limit 4 pkg.With coupon only.

30-DAY

TRIAL

0%Fin

ancing

W.A.C.

Includes

FREEHearingExam

(by Audioprosthologist).

DEMONSTRATIONS • TRIAL PERIOD • FREE HEARING TEST TRAINING - SUPPORT - ONGOING HEARING IMPROVEMENT SERVICES

• LIFE ALTERING IMPROVED QUALITY OF LIFE• AS CLOSE TO NORMAL AS YOU CAN GET• NO FEEDBACK NOISE• BETTER SOUND & CLARITY• CAN HEAR IN NOISY ROOMS

100% INVISIBLESOUNDLENS

PROFESSIONALLYFIT IN 1 HOUR

XINOOR

SoundLens, Xino &Surflink Mobile,

The CES InnovationsDesign and

Engineering AwardWinners

Call For your FREE Demonstration

$999Regular $2100 MSRP

PROFESSIONALLY FIT IN ONE HOUR!With this coupon. Not valid with other offers. Expires: 2-28-15

Glassman’s • N.W. Corner Building at 120th & W. Center Rd. • Omaha • 402-571-1207

Only

• High Fidelity/ High Definition• Free of Distortion

• More Natural Sounding• Never a Plugged Feeling• Cosmetically Appealing

OPEN EAR DIGITAL HEARING AID

– Omaha –N.W Corner Building of

120th & Center(In BelAir Plaza)

(402) 571-12071-800-239-7866

–––––––––––

– Fremont –

East Hwy 30 – Next to Earl May®

2415 E. 23rd AVe. So. (402) 727-7866


Here in Omaha at:

402-819-0332www.ductmedic.com

• An average home creates 40 lbs of dust each year.

• Most furnace filters provide only a 30% capture rate.

• All that dust. All those allergensare in the air you breathe.

–––––––––––––––––––––Call us today to

set up your FREE Indoor Air quality Inspection?–––––––––––––––––––––

FREEHOME INSPECTION!

Call for Details Call Today:402-819-0332

Call Today:402-819-0332

$75 OFFAir DuctCleaning

*Not valid with any other discount and must be presented to

DuctMedic at the time of inspection.Expires 2-28-15

$20 OFFResidentialDryer VentCleaning


DuctMedic at the time of inspection.

Expires 2-28-15

After

Before

Locally Ownedand Operated

Ask us about our Total Home Package.

Improve your air • Improve your life



PREMIUM AIRPORTPARKING SERVICE

• Only 2 minutes from Airport• Continuous Shuttle to Airport• A safe, fenced and well lit lot• Frequent Parker Program• Jump Starting Service• Prompt and courteous staff• 24 Hour Service• Luggage Assistance

1515 E. Fort St.Located one block North of Carter Lake Park.

On the Southwest corner of Abbot Drive and Fort Street.–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

1 FREE DAYWith minimum of 2 day stay.

With coupon. Not valid with other offers.Expires 2-28-15


1. Lower Your Payment Now!Cars, Trucks, Motorcycles

2. Rates as Low As 2.99%3. Up To 72 Months4. No Processing Fee5. Buy Out Your Lease As Well

• Service Contracts Available!*Service contracts can be purchased without refinancing

Omaha, NE

www.ready2finance.com

Ready ToRe-Finance? Call Liz Today For

Your Special Deal!

402.315.3329(ext 201)

WeSpeakSpanish

ADVANTAGE COUPONS • (402) 333-3550 OMAHA -E8- 1/15

We Are Your Backyard Bird Specialists!

Locally Owned and Operated

facebook.com/ForTheWildBirds

8505 Frederick St. - Omaha • 402-397-8484(Across 84th St. from Mangelsons)

– and –

4102 Twin Creek Drive, Ste. 112 • 402-733-3555Bellevue (By Nobbies)

• Seed • Feeders• Houses • Birdbaths • Books• Pole Systems• Gift and UniqueItems HandmadeLocally

$5 off a $25 Purchase

Not Valid with otheroffers or discounts.

Expires 1-31-15


http://www.ready2finance.com


Call Today!John Kortus402-679-7030

[email protected]

If you are thinking of buying or selling a home, contact me today!“John went far and above on getting my home sold. No other agent would have done what he did and he has anoutstanding marketing program. John was a true partner and I would recommend him to anyone interested in sellingor buying a home”. – Denyse“John assisted me in purchasing my first home and I was very impressed with the seamless process from start tofinish. John listened carefully and understood what I was looking for and went out of his way to search out ahome that fit my needs perfectly. I will definitely recommend him to friends, co-workers and family”. – Phil

COMPLIMENTARYHOME

EVALUATION Find out what your home

is worth!

Expires: 3-31-15

John Kortus • 402-679-7030

COMPLIMENTARYFOR SALE BY OWNERHELP KITExpires: 3-31-15

John Kortus • 402-679-7030

COMPLIMENTARYBuyers

Consultation*Get FREE information that you needto successfully purchase your dream

home.Expires: 3-31-15

John Kortus • 402-679-7030


www.glassmanhearing.com

Ray-O-VacHearing Aid BATTERIESAs Low As29¢ea.Limit 4 pkg.With coupon only.

30-DAY

TRIAL

0%Fin

ancing

W.A.C.

Includes

FREEHearingExam

(by Audioprosthologist).

DEMONSTRATIONS • TRIAL PERIOD • FREE HEARING TEST TRAINING - SUPPORT - ONGOING HEARING IMPROVEMENT SERVICES

• LIFE ALTERING IMPROVED QUALITY OF LIFE• AS CLOSE TO NORMAL AS YOU CAN GET• NO FEEDBACK NOISE• BETTER SOUND & CLARITY• CAN HEAR IN NOISY ROOMS

100% INVISIBLESOUNDLENS

PROFESSIONALLYFIT IN 1 HOUR

XINOOR

SoundLens, Xino &Surflink Mobile,

The CES InnovationsDesign and

Engineering AwardWinners

Call For your FREE Demonstration

$999Regular $2100 MSRP

PROFESSIONALLY FIT IN ONE HOUR!With this coupon. Not valid with other offers. Expires: 2-28-15

Glassman’s • N.W. Corner Building at 120th & W. Center Rd. • Omaha • 402-571-1207

Only

• High Fidelity/ High Definition• Free of Distortion

• More Natural Sounding• Never a Plugged Feeling• Cosmetically Appealing

OPEN EAR DIGITAL HEARING AID

– Omaha –N.W Corner Building of

120th & Center(In BelAir Plaza)

(402) 571-12071-800-239-7866

–––––––––––

– Fremont –

East Hwy 30 – Next to Earl May®

2415 E. 23rd AVe. So. (402) 727-7866


Here in Omaha at:

402-819-0332www.ductmedic.com

• An average home creates 40 lbs of dust each year.

• Most furnace filters provide only a 30% capture rate.

• All that dust. All those allergensare in the air you breathe.

–––––––––––––––––––––Call us today to

set up your FREE Indoor Air quality Inspection?–––––––––––––––––––––

FREEHOME INSPECTION!

Call for Details Call Today:402-819-0332

Call Today:402-819-0332

$75 OFFAir DuctCleaning


DuctMedic at the time of inspection.Expires 2-28-15

$20 OFFResidentialDryer VentCleaning


DuctMedic at the time of inspection.

Expires 2-28-15

After

Before

Locally Ownedand Operated

Ask us about our Total Home Package.

Improve your air • Improve your life



PREMIUM AIRPORTPARKING SERVICE

• Only 2 minutes from Airport• Continuous Shuttle to Airport• A safe, fenced and well lit lot• Frequent Parker Program• Jump Starting Service• Prompt and courteous staff• 24 Hour Service• Luggage Assistance

1515 E. Fort St.Located one block North of Carter Lake Park.

On the Southwest corner of Abbot Drive and Fort Street.–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

1 FREE DAYWith minimum of 2 day stay.

With coupon. Not valid with other offers.Expires 2-28-15


1. Lower Your Payment Now!Cars, Trucks, Motorcycles

2. Rates as Low As 2.99%3. Up To 72 Months4. No Processing Fee5. Buy Out Your Lease As Well

• Service Contracts Available!*Service contracts can be purchased without refinancing

Omaha, NE

www.ready2finance.com

Ready ToRe-Finance? Call Liz Today For

Your Special Deal!

402.315.3329(ext 201)

WeSpeakSpanish

ADVANTAGE COUPONS • (402) 333-3550 OMAHA -E8- 1/15

We Are Your Backyard Bird Specialists!

Locally Owned and Operated

facebook.com/ForTheWildBirds

8505 Frederick St. - Omaha • 402-397-8484(Across 84th St. from Mangelsons)

– and –

4102 Twin Creek Drive, Ste. 112 • 402-733-3555Bellevue (By Nobbies)

• Seed • Feeders• Houses • Birdbaths • Books• Pole Systems• Gift and UniqueItems HandmadeLocally

$5 off a $25 Purchase

Not Valid with otheroffers or discounts.

Expires 1-31-15



Full line parts counter at 310 S. 72nd St.

$15 OffAny In-Home

Appliance RepairMust present coupon. Not good with any other offer.

Expires 2-28-15

Nebraska Home ApplianceTalk to a Tech: 402-216-0919

Call 402-216-0919nhaparts.com

310 S. 72nd Street (CEDARNOLE PLAZA)

Omaha • Millard • BellevueRalston • LaVista • Elkhorn

Gretna • PapillionCarter Lake • Council Bluffs



HALLSHALLSCARPET & UPHOLSTERY CLEANING

(402) 306-2971 —or— (402) 298-8198Commercial & Residential

— Licensed, Insured & Bonded —100% Money Back Guarantee if not Completely Satisfied!!

Any 2 Rooms

& a Hall(up to 300 sq. ft. total)

$6995Not valid with any other offer. Offer expires: 2-28-15

HALLS • (402) 306-2971 or (402) 298-8198

Many Other Specials Available!Call Today for Details!! (402) 306-2971

Services Include:• Carpet Cleaning– Truck mounted steam

cleaning machine– Most furniture moved– All carpets are pretreated fo

optimum cleaning and stainremoval

• Upholstery Cleaning– Couches, Loveseats, chairs– Bed mattresses

• Additional Services– Tile and grout cleaning– Pet odor removal– Red stain removal– Scotchgard or Teflon

protection– Disinfectant and

Deodorizing applications – Anti-alergen cleaning upon

request

Powerful Truck Mounted Cleaning System

Owner On Every Job!


• We Service All Systems, Makes & Models• FREE Estimates on Equipment Installation• Residential & Commercial• 100% Financing Available (W.A.C.)

8530 “L” Street • Omaha, NE 68127

http://rivercityac.com

Locally Owned & Operated Since 1981

“It’s Hard To Stop A Trane”402-331-3500

Must present coupon. Not valid with anyother offer or coupon. Expires 2-28-15

24 Hour Service

$10 OFFSERVICE CALL

FURNACE or AIRClean &Check

$7450+Tax



FREEHUMIDIFIER or

MEDIA AIR CLEANERWith purchase of complete system.

(Furnace and A/C or Heat Pump)

“It’s Hard To Stop A Trane” “It’s Hard To Stop A Trane”“It’s Hard To Stop A Trane”

From the Management and Staff at Advantage Coupons®

Owner:

Kent Carlson: (402) [email protected]

Sales Staff:

Kathy Swanson: (402) [email protected]

Dan Collier:(515) [email protected]

Tom Johnson:(402) [email protected]

Corporate Office:

5919 S. 118th Circle • Suite 200Omaha, NE 68137

www.advantagecoupons.com

Office:(402) 333-3550Fax:(402) 333-8471

Online at: advantagecoupons.com

AdvantageCoupons®


FEAT

UR

E

35 march/april 2014 | the encounter omahamagazine.com


Full line parts counter at 310 S. 72nd St.

$15 OffAny In-Home

Appliance RepairMust present coupon. Not good with any other offer.

Expires 2-28-15

Nebraska Home ApplianceTalk to a Tech: 402-216-0919

Call 402-216-0919nhaparts.com

310 S. 72nd Street (CEDARNOLE PLAZA)

Omaha • Millard • BellevueRalston • LaVista • Elkhorn

Gretna • PapillionCarter Lake • Council Bluffs



HALLSHALLSCARPET & UPHOLSTERY CLEANING

(402) 306-2971 —or— (402) 298-8198Commercial & Residential

— Licensed, Insured & Bonded —100% Money Back Guarantee if not Completely Satisfied!!

Any 2 Rooms

& a Hall(up to 300 sq. ft. total)

$6995Not valid with any other offer. Offer expires: 2-28-15

HALLS • (402) 306-2971 or (402) 298-8198

Many Other Specials Available!Call Today for Details!! (402) 306-2971

Services Include:• Carpet Cleaning– Truck mounted steam

cleaning machine– Most furniture moved– All carpets are pretreated fo

optimum cleaning and stainremoval

• Upholstery Cleaning– Couches, Loveseats, chairs– Bed mattresses

• Additional Services– Tile and grout cleaning– Pet odor removal– Red stain removal– Scotchgard or Teflon

protection– Disinfectant and

Deodorizing applications – Anti-alergen cleaning upon

request

Powerful Truck Mounted Cleaning System

Owner On Every Job!


• We Service All Systems, Makes & Models• FREE Estimates on Equipment Installation• Residential & Commercial• 100% Financing Available (W.A.C.)

8530 “L” Street • Omaha, NE 68127

http://rivercityac.com

Locally Owned & Operated Since 1981

“It’s Hard To Stop A Trane”402-331-3500


24 Hour Service

$10 OFFSERVICE CALL

FURNACE or AIRClean &Check

$7450+Tax



FREEHUMIDIFIER or

MEDIA AIR CLEANERWith purchase of complete system.

(Furnace and A/C or Heat Pump)

“It’s Hard To Stop A Trane” “It’s Hard To Stop A Trane”“It’s Hard To Stop A Trane”

From the Management and Staff at Advantage Coupons®

Owner:

Kent Carlson: (402) [email protected]

Sales Staff:

Kathy Swanson: (402) [email protected]

Dan Collier:(515) [email protected]

Tom Johnson:(402) [email protected]

Corporate Office:

5919 S. 118th Circle • Suite 200Omaha, NE 68137

www.advantagecoupons.com

Office:(402) 333-3550Fax:(402) 333-8471

Online at: advantagecoupons.com

AdvantageCoupons®


If you’re ever strolling or driving along 13th Street near TD Ameritrade Park in NoDo, you might be surprised to recognize a familiar face or two.

Quincy Ellefson, who was 8 years old by the time of completion of Omaha’s Fertile Ground mural, starred alongside his siblings as three of the work’s models. The mural’s creator, the nationally renowned Philadelphia-based artist, Meg Saligman, handpicked them in 2008.

“[Meg] just looked at Quincy and his brother and said, ‘Oh, they’re perfect,’” Quincy’s mother, Amy, said. “She photographed hundreds of people, but ended up choosing them.” Quincy and his sister Annika are depicted holding hands in the mural. They were photographed for the mural when Quincy was 6 and Annika was 9.

The mural was completed in June 2009 as a gift to the city from the Peter Kiewit Foundation. The effort, known as the Omaha Mural Project, was coordinated by the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts.

quincy ellefsonR E V I S I T I N G F E R T I L E G R O U N D F I V E

Y E A R S L AT E Rby Claire Martin




Every character in the mural, save for one important exception, depicts an actual, real-life Omahan. The dancing figure of a woman at the center of the sprawling mural is a composite representing the spirit of Omaha. At 32,500 square feet, it is among the largest such works in the nation and has become a familiar backdrop during ESPN’s annual coverage of the College World Series.

Quincy, who today is 14 years old and homeschooled, has only vague recollections of being photographed in a darkroom during the candidate-selection process eight years ago. But he does remember being photographed with another young boy.

“Whenever I look at it,” Quincy explained, “I always look for the guy that I took photos with but I can never remember what he looks like. I like seeing my brother and sister in the mural, too.”

Amy added that Keanu, Quincy’s younger brother who is now 11 years old, wasn’t originally slated as a mural figure. He was a last-minute insertion on Saligman’s whim.

Quincy’s larger-than-life persona is now one of the city’s most recognizable faces, but the actual-size, flesh-and-blood Quincy is now doubly familiar for another reason. He’s become something of a fixture on local stages, racking up an impressive list of credits that includes work with the Omaha Community Playhouse, Opera Omaha, and Nebraska Shakespeare, among others. Quincy has performed in 13 productions and has been active in film classes and modeling stints.

“I do prefer doing musicals,” he said, “but acting is a lot of fun, too. My favorite part is getting ready before a show.”

Although Quincy added that he didn’t get any special treatment (nor teasing) from friends for appearing in the mural, being immortalized in what is perhaps Omaha’s grandest hunk of public art has its own perks.

“I just kind of like looking at the mural as a whole,” Quincy said. “It’s just weird to think that that’s me up there.” Encounter


FA C E S

1108 Howard Street • 342-2050www.VivaceOmaha.com

Italian & Mediterranean specialties servedin“the Old Market’s most beautiful dining room,” complemented with thearea’s largest selection of Italian wines.

The OldMarket’s favorite spotfor lunch & dinner.

Award-winning food & wine list – open late 7 nights a week.

Call for reservations.

422 S. 11th Street • 342-2550www.MsPubOmaha.comM’sPub

http://www.mspubomaha.com

http://www.pinnaclefitnessclub.com

The “Funbuster” T H E N I C K N A M E I S I N J E S T,

B U T C A R R I E M E Y E R R E A L LY I S S E R I O U S A B O U T P R E S E R V I N G

O M A H A’ S H I S T O R Y. by Judy Horan




NO FOOD IN the gallery. Turn down the heat. Don’t touch that.”

Co-workers at the Durham Museum call curator Carrie Meyer “The Funbuster.” She’s something of a spoil sport. But for a good reason.

She and her staff are responsible for more than 40,000 objects at the museum. Each year, 1,000 more items are donated to the permanent collection. All have ties to Omaha history. All require special care.

The nickname is all in fun. And, for the most part, so is her job as curator of exhibits and collections. She cheerfully describes herself as a

“professional nerd.” What might be tedium for others is a passion of hers.

Traveling exhibits are paired with local exhibits— those researched, written, and produced by Durham staff—with the same theme. An example is the exhibit of 44 costumes worn by actress Katharine Hepburn that opens February 7.

Meyer paired that traveling exhibit from Kent State University with a local exhibit of garments and drawings created by costume designer Georgiann Regan for the Omaha Community Playhouse.

Museum visitors often suggest exhibit ideas. “I can’t tell you how many people said, ‘Why don’t you have dinosaurs,’“ Meyer said.

So she did. The four-month exhibit—A T. Rex Named Sue from Chicago’s Field Museum—contributed to a record year at the Durham with 204,787 visitors in 2013.

A native of Tennessee, Meyer was motivated by television’s CSI to become a biology major. She switched majors to earn a degree in art history in 2005 from Rhodes College in Memphis. After watching the movie The Mummy, she discovered the world of museum history and thought “Could I do that?” Meyer moved to Waco, Texas, to pursue a Master of Arts in Museum Studies at Baylor University, while working two jobs.

In 2007, Meyer became curatorial associate at the Ak-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum in Clewiston, Florida, run by the Seminole Tribe She joined the Durham in 2008.

Meyer is pursuing a Master of Arts in History at UNO with an emphasis on Omaha history. In 2014, she was appointed to the Landmarks Heritage Preservation Commission.

Along the way, Meyer learned that collecting local history can entail some long hours and odd side trips. Durham staff was at TD Ameritrade Park in 2011 to collect programs commemorating the opening day of the ball field. “We keep an eye on the things happening today that people will want to know tomorrow,” Meyer said.

Some day that program will become historical. And when it is, “The Funbuster” will ensure nobody mishandles a piece of Omaha history. Encounter


FA C E S

™

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER • 2013

The Road Home

Prescription Drug Abuse

Among Teens

Nebraska’s Premier Wealth Advisors

The Making of NebraskaJohn Jackson

SUBSCRIBE TODAY!

JULY/AUGUST • 2014

war & PeaceChuck Hagel battles for a future free of the quagmires of the past.

Omaha’stopDentists™

Best of Omaha™ Campaign 2015

The Loyal Royal Alex Gordon

Malorie MaddoxOmaha Stories

™

Don’t miss a single issue of Omaha Magazine

omamag.com/save

Tower Plaza345 N 78th Street

(402) 393-7070

Old Market1118 Howard St(402) 932 3933

TWO LOCATIONS IN OMAHA

www.theteasmith.com

Come In - Warm Up - Relaxenjoy a pot of tea

& our new food items

http://www.theteasmith.com

http://www.omamag.com/save

S. 16th St

S. 15th St

S. 14th St

S. 13th St

S. 12th St

S. 11th St

S. 10th St

S. 9th St

S. 16th St

S. 15th St

S. 13th St

S. 11th St

S. 10th St

S. 13th St

S. 12th St

S. 11th St

S. 10th St

N. 16th St

N. 15th St

N. 14th St

N. 13th St

N. 12th St

N. 11th St

S. 10th St

N. 10th St

N. 10th StN. 10th St

N. 9th St

S. 16th St

S. 15th St

S. 14th St

S. 13th St

S. 12th St

S. 11th St

S. 7th St

Dodge

St

Dou

gla

s S

t

Farn

am

St

Harn

ey S

t

How

ard

St

Jack

son

St

Jon

es S

t

Farn

am

St

Harn

ey S

tH

arn

ey S

t

Om

ah

a C

onven

tion

&

Vis

itors

Bu

reau

Omaha ChamberOf Commerce

How

ard

St

Jack

son

St

Jon

es S

t

Lea

ven

wort

h S

t

Capit

ol A

ve

Dodge

St

Riverfront D

r

Dou

gla

s S

t

Farn

am

St

Jack

son

St

Jon

es S

t

Lea

ven

wort

h S

t

S. 14th St

Capit

ol A

ve

1

2

34

5 6 7

8

910

11

13, D

urh

am H

erit

age

Mu

seu

m

12

Th

e O

ld M

ark

et D

istr

ict

Th

e C

apit

ol D

istr

ict

Park

Park

ing

Art

Galler

y W

alk

Hea

lth

Ser

vic

es

His

tori

cal To

ur

Res

tau

rants

Pu

bs,

Tav

ern

s &

Lou

nges

His

tori

cal To

ur

H1

Ski

nner

Mac

aron

i

Build

ing,

1914

-191

5

H2

J.P

. Coo

ke B

uild

ings

,

1885

-188

9

H3

Bau

m Ir

on C

ompa

ny

Bu

ildin

g, 18

80

H4

Mill

ard

Bloc

k,

18

80-1

881

H5

Bur

lingt

on B

uild

ing,

1879

H6

Eis

enbe

rg B

uild

ing,

1886

-188

7

H7

Hot

el H

owar

d, 19

09

H8

Mor

se C

oe B

uild

ing,

1892

-189

3

H9

Om

aha

Fire

Hou

se,

19

03-1

904

H10

Win

dsor

Hot

el,

18

85-1

887

H11

Om

aha

Bem

is B

ag

Co

mpa

ny, 1

887-

1902

H12

Anh

euse

r-Bu

sch

Be

er D

epot

, 188

7

H13

Uni

on P

acifi

c

Pass

enge

r Te

rmin

al,

19

31

Roa

ds

Inte

rsta

teO

n-R

am

p/O

ff-R

am

pR

ailro

ad

Walk

ing P

ath

/Tra

il

N

A

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19

BC

DE

FG

HI

JK

LM

AB

CD

EF

GH

IJ

KL

M

Downtown Omaha MapN O R T H / S O U T H N U M B E R S 1 0 - 1 9 ( N U M B E R S 1 - 9 O N PA G E 4 1 )


A N T I Q U E S Antique Annex...F16 ........................... 402.932.3229Ashley’s Collectibles...E15 ...................402.934.3100Ashley Jr. Collection...D16 ..................402-934-3100Fairmont Antique Mall...E17 ................402.346.9746Flying Worm Vintage...E16 ................. 402.932.3229The Imaginarium...D16 ........................402.594.7061Joe’s Collectibles...F16 ........................ 402.612.1543Second Chance Antiques...D14 ......... 402.346.4930

A R T Anderson O’Brien Fine Art...F16 ..........402.884.0911Artists’ Cooperative Gallery...G15 .........402.342.9617Bemis Ctr. for Contemporary Arts...E18 402.341.7130FAME ...................................................402.341-3930Farrah Grant Photography...G16...........402.312.8262Gallery 616...F17 ..................................402.214.3061Garden Of The Zodiac...G15 .................402.341.1877Hot Shops Art Center...D2 ...................402.342.6452MANGELSEN - Images of Nature Gallery...F15 ............ 402.341.8460KANEKO...F17 ..................................... 402.341.3800Old Market Artists Gallery...G15 ..........402.346.6569Omaha ClayWorks...F17......................402.346.0560Passageway Gallery...G15 .................... 402.341.1910Sirens at the Loft...F16 ........................402.933.9333White Crane Gallery...G15 ....................402.345.1066

AT T R A C T I O N S & E N T E R TA I N M E N T Blue Barn Theatre...F17 ......................402.345.1576Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge K5 ....... 402.444.5900CenturyLink Center Omaha...H7 ......... 402.341.1500The Durham Museum...H19 ................402.444.5071Film Streams...D4 ............................... 402.933.0259Henry Doorly Zoo...(3701 S. 10th St.) 402.733.8401Holland Performing Arts Center...E12 402.345.0606Joslyn Art Museum...(2200 Dodge St.) .......................... 402.342.3300KANEKO...F17 .....................................402.341.3800Lauritzen Gardens...(100 Bancroft St.) 402.346.4002MJ Carriage Service...(11th & Howard) 402.453.6745Ollie the Trolley .....................................402.597.3596Omaha Children’s Museum...(500 S. 20th St.) .............. 402.342.6164Omaha Symphony...A16 ..................... 402.342.3560Opera Omaha...(1850 Farnam St.) .....402.346.7372Orpheum Theater...B15 ...................... 402.345.0606The Rose Theater...(2001 Farnam St.) 402.345.4849TD Ameritrade Park Omaha...E3 .........402.546.1800Ticket Omaha...(www.ticketomaha.org) ......................... 402.345.0606

B A R S , L O U N G E S & P U B SBar 415...E15.......................................402.346.7455Barry O’s...G15 ....................................402.341.8032Berry & Rye...F16 ................................ 402.631.1331Billy Frogg’s Grill & Bar...F15 ...............402.341.4427Blue Sushi Sake Grill...E15 ................. 402.408.5566Bricks & Mortar Bar and Bistro...G18 . 402.934.0005 Capitol Lounge & Supper Club...G11 .. 402.934.5999DJ’s Dugout Sports Bar/Blazin’ Pianos...G11 ................. 402.763.9974The Dubliner Pub...E15 ....................... 402.342.5887Eat the Worm...E16..............................402.614.4240Havana Garage Cigar Bar...G15 ...........402.614.3800The Hive...F15..................................... 402.504.4929House of Loom...(1012 S. 10th St.).... 402.505.5494J.D.Tucker’s...G15 ...............................402.934.5190Jackson St.Tavern...F14 ......................402.991.5637Julio’s Old Market...D16 ..................... 402.345.6921La Buvette Wine & Grocery...G16 ....... 402.344.8627M’s Pub...F15 ..................................... 402.342.2550Mr. Toad’s...G15 ................................. 402.345.4488Maria Sangria...F14 .............................402.504.4901Nosh Restaurant & Wine Lounge...G11 402.614.2121O Dining & Lounge...G14 .....................402.502.7888O’Connor’s Irish Pub...E16 ..................402.934.9790Old Chicago...F15 .................................402.341.1616The Omaha Lounge...C13 ...................402.709.6815

Ovations @ Holland Center...E13 ....... 402.345.0606Old Mattress Factory Bar & Grill...E6 ...402.346.9116Parliament Pub...C5............................ 402.934.3301Rock Bottom Brewery...F15.................402.614.9333Roja Old Market...E14 ..........................402.346.9190Sake Bombers @ Blue...E15 .............. 402.408.5566Storz Trophy Room J5 .........................402.502.1643The Stadium Club Sports Bar & Grill...G15 ...................... 402.359.1290The Slowdown...D4 .............................402.345.7569Stiles Pub...E15 ...................................402.991.9911The Tavern...G16 ................................. 402.341.0191 T Henery’s Pub...F14 .......................... 402.345.3651Trap Room, The...C4 .......................... 402.505.9368Union Pizzeria & Sports Bar...C2 ....... 402.932.2929Upstream Brewing Company...F16 .... 402.344.0200Waters Edge Lounge @ Embassy Suites...H16............... 402.346.9000Wilson & Washburn J5 ........................402.991.6950The Zin Room...B14 .............................402.991.0660

B O O K S T O R E S Jackson St. Booksellers...F17 .............402.341.2664Our Bookstore..G15 ............................402.763.6793Soul Desires/Urban Abbey...G16 ........402.898.7600

C L O T H I N G & A C C E S S O R I E S All About Me Boutique...G15 ...............402.505.6000Curbside Clothing...G16Drastic Plastic...E16.............................402.346.8843Flying Worm Vintage...E16 ..................402.932.3229The Lotus...E16 ...................................402.346.8080McLovin’...H15 ..................................... 402.915.4002Nouvelle Eve...F15 ................................402.345.4811Old Market Sundries...G16 .................. 402.345.8198Overland Outfitters...G16.....................402.345.2900Reserve Goodwill in the Market...E16...402.342.4102Second Chance Antiques...D14 ..........402.346.4930Silo Skate Shop...D17 ......................... 308. 395 8987Souq, Ltd...G15.................................... 402.342.2972Urban Outfitters...D4 ............................402.280.1936

D I N I N G 801 Chophouse at the Paxton...C14 ... 402.341.1222 9th Street Grill...H11 ............................402.315.4301Ahmad’s Persian Cuisine...G15 ...........402.341.9616Block 16...B14 .....................................402.342.1220Blue Sushi Sake Grill...E15 ................. 402.408.5566The Boiler Room...F17 .........................402.916.9274Capitol Lounge & Supper Club...G11 .. 402.934.5999Culprit Bakery...B14 ............................ 402.505.3897Cupcake Omaha...G16 ....................... 402.346.6808The Diner...F15 ....................................402.341.9870DJ’s Dugout Sports Bar/Blazin’ Pianos...G11 ................. 402.763.9974Eat the Worm...E16..............................402.614.4240Falling Water Grille @ Embassy Suites...H16 .................. 402.346.9000The Flatiron Café...(17th & Howard) ... 402.344.3040Hiro 88...D16 ...................................... 402.933-5168J’s on Jackson...H6 ..............................402.991.1188Jackson St. Tavern...F17 .....................402.991.5637Jazz, A Louisiana Kitchen...C14 ......... 402.342.3662Joe Banana’s (1022 S.10th St.) ..........402.346.7227Julio’s Old Market...D16 ........................402.345.692Kitchen Table, The...D13 .....................402.933.2810Liberty Tavern...G7 ............................. 402.998.4321Little King...F4 .................................... 402.344.2264M’s Pub...F15 ..................................... 402.342.2550Maria Sangria...F14 .............................402.504.4901Matsu Sushi...G14 .............................. 402.346.3988Michael’s at the Market...F14 ..............402.346.1205Nicola’s Italian Wine & Faire...E16 ......402.345.8466O Dining & Lounge...G14 .....................402.502.7888O’Connors Irish Pub...E16 ...................402.934.9790Old Chicago...F15 ................................402.341.1616Omaha Prime...G15 .............................402.341.7040PepperJax Grill...D16 ............................ 402.315.1196Pickleman’s...B14 ................................ 402.505.9775Rock Bottom Brewery...F15..................402.614.9333

Roja Old Market...E14 .......................... 402.346.9190Shuck’s Fish House...(19th & Leavenworth) ................ 402.614.5544Spaghetti Works...F16 ......................... 402.422.0770Spencer’s @ Hilton Garden Inn...G12 ..402.280.8888Storz Trophy Room J5 ..........................402.502.1643Table Grace Café...B14 .........................402.965.1276Stokes Bar & Grill…F15 ......................402.408.9000 Subway...E15 .402.341.8814Sullivan’s Steakhouse...B13 ................ 402.342.0077Trini’s Mexican Restaurant...G15 .........402.346.8400Twisted Fork Grill & Bar...G15 ..............402.932.9600Union Pizzeria & Sports Bar...C2 ........ 402.932.2929Upstream Brewing Company...F16 .....402.344.0200V.Mertz...G15.......................................402.345.8980Vincenzo’s Ristorante...E15 ..................402.342.4010Vivace...F15 .........................................402.342.2050Wilson & Washburn J5 ........................ 402.991.6950Wheatfields Express...F15 ....................402.991.0917The Zin Room...B14 ............................. 402.991.0660Zinc...E13.............................................402.345.0606Zio’s Pizzeria...F16 ...............................402.344.2222

F L O W E R S Garden Flowers...G16 ...........................402.614.5661Old Market Habitat...G15 .....................402.342.0044

H E A LT H & F I T N E S S Acupuncture Omaha Healing Arts Center...E15 .......................... ......................................................402.345.5078Ayurvedic Healing (both at Omaha Healing Arts Center) Dr.Rajesh Kotecha...E15 ...............402.345.5078 Joyce Librunner, LMT...E15 ...........402.740.0366Dental Derek Fender, DDS...E15 ..............402.342.3901 James Polerecky, DDS...C15 .........402.341.7576 Omaha Dental Spa (at the Loft)...F16 .................... ...................................................... 402.505.4424Fitness Anytime Fitness...F18 ................... 402.991.2333 Kempo Karate...(19th & Farnam) ..402.905.6865 Omaha Yoga School...G15 .............402.346.7813Massage Therapy Old Market Massage...E15 ........... 402.850.6651Omaha Healing Arts Center...E15 ........402.345.5078Medical Commercial Optical Co...E16 ........ 402.344.0219 Convenient Care Walk-in Medical (105 N. 31st Ave) ................402.346.1111 Creighton Family Healthcare...D19 402.280.5500 Downtown Chiropractic...(21st & Douglas)............ ......................................................402.345.7500 Ritch Miller, DC..............................402.345.7500 Heartland Pathology...A14 ............ 402.346.0195Physical Therapy Bobby Escolas, CMHT (Hypnotherapist) ................ ......................................................402.990.2979 Jannette J. Davis, MS, CST...G13..402.341.2230 Cynthia Duggin, MSW, LCSW...E15 ...................... ......................................................402.345.5078 East & West Physical Therapy...E15 ...................... ......................................................402.345.5078 Chanell Jaramillo, MTP, CMH, HHP...E15 .............. ......................................................402.689.0905 Jeff Stormberg, PhD...C14 ...........402.393.0642 Tim Swisher, MHR, LMHP, LADC...G13 ................ .......................................................402.341.2230 Pharmacy Depot Drug...C11 ........ 402.544.DRUG

H O M E F U R N I S H I N G S Habitat Restore...(24th & Leavenworth..402.342.0044Iron Decor & More...F16 ...................... 402.346.6123Julia Russell...F12 .................................402.891.0691Niche...G15 ..........................................402.344.4399Room...G15 ......................................... 402.342.7666Simply Fabulous...G4 ............................402.812.2193Urban by Design...E16 .....................................................970.214.7608Zongkers Custom Woods...(S. 3rd St.) ...........................402.344.7784

MerchantsAttractions

O L D M A R K E T · D O W N T O W N · R I V E R F R O N T

&


402.345.44881002 Howard St.

Check us out on

• The Old Market’s Longest Jazz Gig

• Live Music Every Sunday and Wednesday

• Free Orsi’s Pizza on Friday, 4-6 p.m.

• Omaha’s Most Popular Patio

http://www.omarbuilding.com

http://www.mrtoadspub.com

Roa

ds

Inte

rsta

teO

n-R

am

p/O

ff-R

am

pR

ailro

ad

Walk

ing P

ath

/Tra

il

NN

ich

ola

s S

tN. 16 St

Izard

St

Cu

min

g S

t

Bu

rt S

t

Mik

e Fa

hey

St

Mik

e Fa

hey

St

CenturyLink Center Omaha

Riverfront Dr Riverfront D

r

Califo

rnia

St

Cass

St

Ch

icago S

t

Dav

enport

St

Cass

St

Izard

St

N. 14 St N. 14 St

N. 12 St N. 12 St

N. 13 St

N. 16 St

N. 14 St

N. 13 St

N. 10 St N. 10 St

N. 10 St

N. 11 St

N. 16 St

N. 14 St

N. 12 St

N. 13 St

N. 15 St

N. 16 St

N. 14 St

N. 13 St

N. 15 StP

ark

ing

Res

taura

nts

Pu

bs,

Tav

ern

s &

Lou

nges

Lodgin

g

TD

Am

erit

rade

Park

Om

ah

a

A

1 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

1 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

BC

DE

FG

HI

JK

LM

AB

CD

EF

GH

IJ

KL

M

Downtown Omaha Map

Midt

own

Cros

sing

Map

N O R T H / S O U T H N U M B E R S 1 - 9 ( N U M B E R S 1 0 - 1 9 O N PA G E 3 9 )

Dodge

St

Dou

gla

s S

t

Dodge

St

N. 34 St S. 34 St

Farn

am

St

Farn

am

St

Harn

ey S

t

Dewey

Ave

N. 32 Ave

N. 33 St

N. 12 St

Turner Blvd

N. 31 Ave

S. 31 Ave

Turner Blvd

Turn

er B

lvd

S. 31 St

S. 33 St

N

Z

20 21

22

23

YX

WV

UT

ZY

XW

VU

T

24

20 21

22

23

24


H O T E L S Courtyard by Marriott...H12 ...............................402.346.2200DoubleTree Hotel...B/C10 ...................................402.346.7600Embassy Suites Old Market...H16 ......................402.346.9000Fairfield Inn and Suites...C2.................................402.280.1516Hampton Inn...E2 ................................................402.345.5500Hilton Garden Inn...C2 .......................................402.341.4400Hilton Omaha...G7 .............................................402.998.3400Holiday Inn...E2 ....................................................402.341.0124Homewood Suites...D2 ......................................402.345.5100Hotel DECO XV...B14 .......................................... 402.991.4981Hyatt Place E16 ..................................................402.513.5500Magnolia Hotel Omaha...A16 .............................402.342.2222Residence Inn C12 .............................................402.342.4770

M I D T O W N C R O S S I N G The Afternoon...W23 ..........................................402.933.3809Arlan’s Barber Shop...W23 .................................402.505.8767Brix...W21 ...........................................................402.991.8466Callahan Financial Planning...V23 ......................402.341.2000Cantina Laredo...W21 ........................................402.345.6000Chef2...W22 ........................................................402.991.5656Coldstone Creamery/Rocky Mountain Chocolate...X22 ............. 402.359.1719Corky Canvas...W22........................................... 402.637.4066CRAVE...W22 .....................................................402.345.9999Definitive Vision...W23 ........................................402.502.7323Delice European Bakery...W23 ...........................402.505.9500Element by Westin...X21 ....................................402.614.8080Fashion Cleaners...X22 .......................................402.916.1987Garbo’s Salon & Spa...X22 .................................402.933.8988Glo Lounge...X23................................................402.342.4505The Grey Plume...W22 .......................................402.763.4447Hutch...W22 .......................................................402.955.9842Ingredient...X23 ..................................................402.715.4444Lenny’s Sub Shop...X23 ......................................402.218.1745Marcus Midtown Cinema...X23 .........................402.345.0102NT Nails... ........................................................... 402.991.7676Pana 88 ..............................................................402.934.7262Prairie Life Fitness...W22 ...................................402.916.5000Saints Pub & Patio...W21 ....................................402.932.1911Three Dog Bakery...X23 ..................................... 402.715.4500Wohlner’s Neighborhood Grocery and Deli...X21 402.551.6875Verizon Wireless by Z Wireless...X23 ..................402.991.1180

M U S I C S H O P S Antiquarium Records...D15 ...............................402.345.0294Homer’s Records...E15 ......................................402.346.0264Drastic Plastic...E16...........................................402.346.8843

D O W N T O W N P R O P E R T I E S 902 Dodge Condos...G11 ..................................402.215.7118 Ashley Park...(204 S. 25th) .............................. 402-934-3100Brandeis Building...A13 .....................................402.345.6564Farnam 1600 Building...(1905 Harney St.) ........402.342.1616Grubb/Ellis Pacific Realty...F15 .........................402.345.5866Harney Street Apartments...G18 ........................402.934.7510 Legend Building...(1429 S. 13th) ..................... 402-934-3100Old Market Lofts...K3 ........................................ 402.346.1000Overland Building...D16 .................................... 402-934-3100Pullman Building...(1017 S. 10th St.) ............... 402-934-3100Riverfront Place...C14 .........................................402.397.4837Shamrock Development/Paxton Building...C14 .402.934.7711Skinner Macaroni Apartments...D17 .................402.346.2346The Cornerstone Apartments...F15 ................... 402.346.0510The Greenhouse Apts...H13 .............................. 402.341.3200TipTop Building...C2 ...........................................402.345.8000

S P E C I A LT Y F O O D S & C O F F E E 13th Street Coffee Co...E16 .............................402.345.2883 Aromas Coffeehouse...G18 ...............................402.614.7009Bliss Bakery...G18 ..............................................402.934.7450Blue Line Coffee...D3 ........................................402.932.0294Cubby’s Old Markey Grocery...E17 .................... 402.341.2900Hollywood Candy...H4 ....................................... 402.346.9746La Buvette Wine & Grocery...G16 ......................402.344.8627Nosh Restaurant & Wine Lounge...G11 ..............402.614.2121Old Market Candy Shop...G16 ...........................402.344.8846Patrick’s Market...C15 ........................................402.884.1600Red Mango...D4 ................................................ 402.933.8815Scooter’s Coffeehouse...F16 ............................. 402.991.9868Soul Desires...G16 ............................................402.898.7600The Tea Smith...F15 ..........................................402.932.3933

Ted & Wally’s Ice Cream...F16 ............................402.341.5827Wheatfields Express...F15 ..................................402.991.0917

S P E C I A LT Y S H O P S Cibola of Omaha...G16 ......................................402.342.1200City Limits...F16 ................................................ 402.345.3570Cornerstone Gem & Bead Co...E16 .................. 402.346.4367DSR Power Sports...E15 ....................................402.991.1383Goldsmith/Silversmith...G16 .............................402.342.1737Green St. Cycles...D4 ....................................... 402.505.8002Hookah Ran’s...D15 ..........................................402-934-3100Iron Decor & More...F16 ....................................402.346.6123J.P. Cooke Rubber Stamp Co...D16 ..................402.342.7175Jay Welter Cigars...(18th & Jackson) ................402.345.1965Kessler’s...F17 ...................................................402.715.5888The Lotus...D16 .................................................402.347.8080Machu Picchu Imports...D16 .............................402.706.7818Old Market Sundries...G16 ................................402.345.8198Overland Outfitters...G16..................................402.345.2900Perspective Jewelry...E15..................................402.934.4416Red Square...G15 ............................................. 402.342.8878Reserve Goodwill in the Market...E16................402.342.4102SG Roi Tobacconist...G16 ..................................402.341.9264Simply Fabulous...E17 .......................................402.812.2193Studio 13...(1736 S. 13th St.) ............................402.934.1111The Summit...(1601 Dodge St.) ........................402.341.5555Susie’s Baskets...E13 ........................................402.341.4650Takechi’s Jewelry...(17th & Harney) ..................402.341.3044Tannenbaum Christmas Shop...G16 ................ 402.934.8389Visions Custom Framing Studio...E17 .............. 402.342.0020

S E R V I C E S Banking & Finance American National Bank...C14 .....................402.457.1070 First National Bank...F16.............................402.885.2574 Pinnacle Bank...G12....................................402.346.9180 Security National Bank...G16 ..................... 402.344.7300Commercial Alliance Group...G18 .................................. 402.344.7700 Clark Creative Advertising...D16 ................402.345.5800 J.P. Cooke Rubber Stamp Co...D16 ............402.342.7175 Market Media .............................................402.346.4000 Vic Gutman & Associates ........................... 402.345.5401Information Downtown Omaha, Inc. ...............................402.341.3700 Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce...D15 .................... 402.346.5000 Old Market Business Association...(www.oldmarket.com) Omaha Convention & Visitors Bureau...G14 402.444.4660 Omaha Downtown Improvement District .....402.916.1796 Omaha Public Library...C13 ........................402.444.4800Legal Boyle & Associates, PC...F16....................... 402.706.7810 Cullan & Cullan...F15 ................................... 402.397.7600 Klein Law Offices...H16 ................................402.391.1871 Stinson, Morrison, Hecker LLP...E14 ............402.342.1700 Sutera & Sutera Law Office...F15 ................402.342.3100Other Big Brain Productions...F17 .........................402.342.2885 Movers Not Shakers...H13 ........................... 402.614.9770 Old Market Mini Storage...(501 Pacific St.) .402.342.0022 Omaha CVB...G14 ........................................402.444.4660Salon & Spa Curb Appeal Salon...G16 .............................402.345.0404 Omaha Healing Arts Center...E15 ..............402.345.5078 The Hair Market Salon...G14 ........................402.345.3692 The Nail Shop...(9th & Douglas) ..................402.595.8805 Rain Salon...(1006 S. 10th St.) .....................402.991.9974 Sirens Salon & Day Spa...F16 ......................402.933.9333 Urbane Salon & Day Spa...D15 ....................402.934.2909

MerchantsAttractionS

O L D M A R K E T · D O W N T O W N · R I V E R F R O N T

&


downtownchiroomaha.com402.345.7500 • 2111 Douglas Street

Whether you need an injury or accident treated, have a specific body problem, need pain relief, or just want to

improve your overall health, Downtown Chiropractic Health Center may have a solution for you through chiropractic care.

Improving Your Health

OPEN AT 11AM DAILY

HAPPY HOUR 4 PM - 6 PM

Late Night Happy HourFri. & Sat. 10 PM-12 AM

LIVE MUSIC WEDNESDAYS6 PM - 9 PM

RESTAURANT AND WINE LOUNGE

1006 Dodge St., Omaha402.614.2121

www.noshwine.com

SIP. TASTE. SAVOR.

http://www.noshwine.com

http://www.downtownchiroomaha.com

ART AND MUSEUM EXHIBITS

Selected Works of Cedric Hartman, Wallace Cunningham’s Reality < An Idea, and Olson Kundig: AnthologyThrough January 3. Kaneko—1111

Jones St. Local artist Cedric Hartman is

known for making thoughtful, idiosyncratic

work in the architectural realm—and an

ever-evolving array of furniture, lighting and

hardware. Now 85 years old, he still works

at his Omaha studio workshop every day.

This exhibition at Kaneko will be the first

time Hartman has curated a public exhibi-

tion of his work. Kaneko also will feature the

innovative architectural designs of Wallace

Cunningham (Reality < An Idea) and Olson

Kundig (Anthology). Mon-Fri 9am-5pm; Sat

1-5pm. Free admission. 402-341-3800.

-thekaneko.org

Identity: An Exhibition of YouThrough January 11, Durham

Museum—801 S. 10th St. What

makes you…you? Find out what makes

you tick in Identity: An Exhibition of You, the

highly entertaining exhibit on display this

fall from Philadelphia’s Franklin Institute.

Children $6, Adults $9. 402-444-5071.

- durhammuseum.org

Linda Stephen & Iggy Sumnik ExhibitsThrough February 6, Fred Simon Gal-

lery—1004 Farnam St. Linda Stephen,

origami paper artist, and ceramics artist

Iggy Sumnik, present their works in this dual

exhibition. 8-5pm. Free. 402-595-2142.

-nebraskaartscouncil.org

Katharine Hepburn: Dressed for Stage and ScreenFebruary 7-April 26, Durham

Museum—801 S. 10th St. This exhibi-

tion from the Kent State University Museum

features more than 35 costumes worn in 21

films and six stage productions as well as

other personal items spanning Hepburn’s

illustrious career. Come see how this true

icon of American culture came to epitomize

the modern woman of the 20th century.

Children $6, Adults $9. 402-444-5071.

-durhammuseum.org

American Moderns: From O’Keeffe to RockwellFebruary 8-May 17, Joslyn Art

Museum—2200 Dodge St. Between

1910 and 1960, the United States emerged

as an international power, while also experi-

encing two world wars and the Great Depres-

sion. New technologies changed all aspects

of life, while the art world witnessed dramatic

transformations of its own. This exhibition

explores the ways American artists includ-

ing Georgia O’Keeffe, Marsden Hartley,

Stuart Davis, Rockwell Kent, and Norman

Rockwell engaged the modern world. This

exhibition will have a ticket fee. Free for

members, youth ages 17 and younger, &

college students with ID. 402-342-3300.

-joslyn.org

Cody Heinert ExhibitThrough April 3, Fred Simon Gal-

lery—1004 Farnam St. Mixed media artist

Cody Heinert from Sparks, Ne., exhibits his

collages—many made with found materials on

his farmland. 8-5pm. Free. 402-595-2142.

-nebraskaartscouncil.org

CONCERTS

A Night at WoodstockJanuary 17, Holland Performing Arts

Center—1200 Douglas St. Experience

the music that defined an era with watershed

classics from Woodstock, including Jefferson

Airplane’s “Somebody to Love,” Jimi Hen-

drix’s “All Along the Watchtower,” The Who’s

“Pinball Wizard,” and Janis Joplin’s “Piece of

My Heart.” 7:30pm. $22. 402-345-0606.

-omahasymphony.org

Symphonic Space OdysseyJanuary 18, Holland Performing Arts

Center—1200 Douglas St. Blast off from

earth, travel to distant stars, and explore new

galaxies. A visual and musical journey through

the wonders of space, the concert will fea-

ture larger than life visuals from NASA above

the orchestra. 2pm. $15. 402-345-0606.

–omahasymphony.org

Cold War KidsJanuary 22, Slowdown—729 N.

14th St. Watch Cold War Kids perform

with Elliot Moss. Anyone under 18 years

of age must have notarized parental per-

mission slip to attend a concern. Every-

one who enters Slowdown must have an

ID. Tickets $22. 8pm. 402-345-7569.

–theslowdown.com

The Music of Marvin Hamlisch: One Singular SensationJanuary 31 and February 1, Holland

Performing Arts Center—1200 Doug-

las St. Nobody did it better than Marvin

Hamlisch, award-winning composer of A

Chorus Line, The Way We Were and The

Sting. Stars of the Broadway stage join the

orchestra to pay tribute to the legendary

songwriter and performer. 7:30pm, 2pm.

Tickets start at $22. 402-345-0606.

-omahasymphony.org

SinbadFebruary 6, Holland Performing Arts

Center—1200 Douglas St. Ranked by

Comedy Central as one of the top 100 stand-

up comedians of all time, Sinbad tells stories,

and boy, does he tell stories. The actor and

comedian arrived on the comedy scene with a

“hit ‘em in the face” style that has kept audi-

ences laughing in the aisles for decades. 8pm.

Tickets starting at $39. 402-345-0606.

–ticketomaha.com

Pixar in ConcertFebruary 14, Holland Performing

Arts Center—1200 Douglas St. Treat

your family to favorite scenes from Disney/

Pixar films, including Toy Story, Wall-E,

Up, and Brave— all with the scores played

live while visually stunning clips from the

movies play on the big screen. 7:30pm.


–omahasymphony.org


JANUARY/FEBRUARY calendar of EventsS P O N S O R E D B Y P I N N A C L E B A N K

Visit us in the historical RILEY BUILDING at 1016 Douglas on the Mall, 402.346.9180 or online at pinnbank.com.

MEMBER FDICT H E W A Y B A N K I N G S H O U L D B E

Every community has a story. WHYCOMMUNITYMATTERS.COM

http://www.pinnbank.com

David SanbornFebruary 15, Holland Performing Arts

Center—1200 Douglas St. In his three-

and-a-half decade career, saxophonist David

Sanborn has released 24 albums, won six

Grammy Awards, and has had eight Gold

albums and one Platinum album. Among

his many accomplishments, Sanborn played

Woodstock with Paul Butterfield, toured

with Stevie Wonder, played with the Rolling

Stones, and toured with David Bowie. 7pm.


-ticketomaha.com

Hot SardinesFebruary 17, Holland Performing Arts

Center—1200 Douglas St. Celebrate

Mardi Gras the sounds of the Hot Sardines

– wartime Paris via New Orleans – is steeped

in hot jazz and salty stride piano. The space

is transformed into a comfortable night-

club with table seating, light fare, and a full

bar. Tickets: $26 and up. 402-345-0606.

-omahaperformingarts.org

Ladysmith Black MambazoFebruary 20, Holland Performing Arts

Center—1200 Douglas St. South Afri-

can a capella group Ladysmith Black Mam-

bazo is celebrating 50 years of joyous and

uplifting music, along with the 2014 Grammy

Award for Best World Music CD. The intricate

rhythms and harmonies of their native South

African traditions continue to gain praise and

accolades, leaving impressions on audiences

worldwide. 8pm. $34.75. 402-345-0606.

-ticketomaha.com

Thomas’s Adventures in MusicFebruary 22, Holland Performing Arts

Center—1200 Douglas St. Thomas

Wilkins takes you on an exhilarating journey

full of energy and fun, straight into the heart

and soul of music. 2 pm. $15. 402-345-0606.

-omahasymphony.org

Randy BreckerFebruary 27, Holland Performing Arts

Center—1200 Douglas St. Jazz trum-

peter and composer Randy Brecker has

helped shape the sound of jazz, R&B, and

rock for more than four decades. As multi-

Grammy winner, Brecker has worked with

a wide range of artists from his early work

with Blood, Sweat & Tears and the bands of

Horace Silver and Art Blakey, to his co-lead-

ership of the Brecker Brothers Band with his

brother Michael. 8pm. $22. 402-345-0606.

-ticketomaha.com

FAMILY EVENTS

Sesame Street LiveJanuary 2-4, CenturyLink Center

Omaha. – 455 N. 10th St. Sesame Street

Live are live show tours based on the much-

loved Sesame Street television series. The

shows feature the Muppet characters, original

music and professional dancers. The Sesame

Street Live Shows are something the under-six

crowd will be smiling about for a long time.

After all, here are their much beloved television

characters come to life right in front of their

very eyes. 8pm. $21-$117. 402-341-1500.

-centurylinkcenteromaha.com

Dinosaur Train LIVE!January 23, Orpheum Theater– 409 S.

16th St. Dinosaur Train Live! Buddy’s Big

Adventure brings the beloved stars of the

hit PBS series to Omaha for the first time.

Come join Buddy, Tiny, King, Don, and more

in this fun-filled, interactive and immersive lie

trip back in time to an age when dinosaurs

roamed the earth…and rode in trains. 7:00pm.


-ticketomaha.com

49th Annual Omaha Home & Garden Expo / 16th Annual Lawn, Flower & Patio ShowFebruary 5-8, CenturyLink Center

Omaha – 455 N. 10th St. Step out of Winter

and into Spring at Omaha’s most colorful and

largest showcase of landscaping, home - gar-

dens and outdoor living, as well as the latest

products and services for the home - inside and

out. Adults $8, children $4. 402-341-1500.

-centurylinkcenteromaha.com

Extreme PlanetFebruary 10, Holland Performing Arts

Center—1200 Douglas St. Take an elec-

trifying journey into some of our planet’s most

extreme environments with Carsten Peter.

The German photographer and filmmaker

is enthusiastically obsessed with devising

innovative photographic techniques that allow

him to capture dramatic, never-before-seen

images of places few humans have dared

ever go. 7:30pm. $22. 402-345-0606.

-ticketomaha.com

Bad Jews by Joshua Elias HarmonFebruary 19-March 14, Blue Barn The-

atre – 614 S. 11th St. Described as a

comedy about the holy and the holier-than-

thou, Bad Jews is the story of Daphna Feygen-

baum, a “Real Jew” with an Israeli boyfriend


TheConvenientDowntown

Dentist

1415 Harney Street

Telephone: 402.341.7576

www.cityviewdentalomaha.com

http://www.curbappealsalonandspa.com

http://www.cityviewdentalomaha.com

she met on a Birthright tour. When Daphna’s cousin Liam brings

home his shiksa girlfriend Melody and declares ownership of

their grandfather’s Chai necklace, a vicious and hilarious brawl

over family, faith, and legacy ensues. $30. 402-345-1576.

-bluebarn.org

From Field to ForkThrough April 2015, Omaha Children’s Museum

- 500 S. 20th St. Exhibit teaches kids and their fami-

lies all about the role of agriculture in their daily lives

and what is produced in Nebraska. $9, free admis-

sion for kids under 24 months of age. 402-930-2352

-ocm.org

PERFORMING ARTS

Shen YunJanuary 13-14, Orpheum Theater– 409 S. 16th

St. 5,000 years of civilization on stage. This is the world’s

premiere of the classical Chinese dance and music com-

pany based in New York. 7:30pm. 402-345-0606.

-ticketomaha.com

Gaelic StormFebruary 13, The Arts Center at Iowa Western–

2700 College Road, Council Bluffs. Over the course

of 10 albums and nearly 3,000 live shows, Gaelic Storm—

the chart-topping, multi-national Celtic band—is dishing

up a hearty serving of Full Irish: The Best of Gaelic Storm.

Adults, $32, Students and Seniors, $29. 712-388-7140.

-facebook.com/artscenteriwcc

CamelotJanuary 27-February 1, Orpheum Theater– 409

S. 16th St. The four-time Tony Award-winning show

Camelot tells the story of the infamous love triangle between

King Arthur, Queen Guinevere, and Sir Lancelot. Never

has this story of passion and betrayal been more fascinat-

ing. 8pm. Tickets starting at $72.50. 402-345-0606.

- ticketomaha.com

Hands on a HardbodyFebruary 13-March 22, Omaha Community Play-

house– 6915 Cass St. How much will a group of hard-luck

Texans endure to win a pickup truck? When a local dealership

offers a free Nissan Hardbody to the last person standing in

a competition of mental and physical endurance, heart and

determination, only the strong survive. The rules are simple:

don’t take your hand off the truck. Only one winner can drive

away with the American Dream. As hours turn into days, the

American spirit shines in this inspiring and humorous musi-

cal based on a true story. Full of catchy Gospel and Country

Western hits, this wildly entertaining, yet endearing musical

will renew your faith in the human spirit. 402-553-0800.

-omahaplayhouse.com

Aspen Santa Fe BalletFebruary 19, Orpheum Theater– 409 S. 16th St. The bril-

liant contemporary Aspen Santa Fe Ballet returns to Omaha with

a stunning new production featuring the “Square None.” Aspen

Santa Fe Ballet personifies unique modern dance style and broad

appeal. 7:30pm. Tickets starting at $26.25. 402-345-0606.

-ticketomaha.com

The Church Basement Ladies in The Last Potluck SupperFebruary 21, The Arts Center at Iowa Western– 2700

College Road, Council Bluffs. The Church Basement

Ladies in The Last Potluck Supper is the fifth installment

of the national hit musical comedy series. 2 pm and 8 pm.

Adults, $35, Students and Seniors, $32. 712-388-7140.

-facebook.com/artscenteriwcc

Evidenced and competitive based exercise where reaching high levels of fitness is fun again.

SOMETIMES, FITNESS APPROACHES HAVE TO BE OVERHAULED AND WE’VE DONE THAT.

Whether you’re 60, just out of college sports, or middle aged and un-athletic, Vise Downtown is designed with you in mind.

819 South 7th Street, Omaha, NE 68108 | www.visedowntown.com

business.entertainment.family.food & drink.health.home.lifestyle.style.the new


JANUARY/FEBRUARY Calendar of EventsS P O N S O R E D B Y P I N N A C L E B A N K

http://www.visedowntown.com

Eat, Drink, Relax.Sophisticated American cuisine in a relaxed atmosphere. Classy, but unpretentious. Creative, but approachable. Open 7 days a week, live music. Lunch, Dinner, Sunday brunch.Fresh Daily Specials. Open 11AM Monday - SaturdaySunday Brunch 10AM - 2PM, Full Menu After 2PMHappy Hour 4PM - 6PM Monday - FridayReservations accepted

1125 Jackson St. | Old Market, Omaha, NE | 402.991.5637 | JacksonStreetTavern.com

Not Exactly PUB GRUB.

http://www.jacksonstreettavern.com

Sip. Savor. Be Social.

Old Market 11th & Jackson 402.344.0200

West Omaha 171st & W. Center 402.778.0100

View our full menu, happy hours and more at

upstreambrewing.com

traditionsstart with

hops.

The best holiday

http://www.upstreambrewing.com

Documents

February 2015 Encounter