Omaha Exploration

Omaha’s first craft beer bar, Crescent Moon, opened its doors nearly 20 years before the Blackstone District became the nightlife hot spot that is today. At that time, it was rundown and overlooked, thanks, in part, to the one-way street that allowed suburbanites to head to and from their downtown offices as quickly as possible.

When selecting a location to open a bar that allowed him to realize his lifelong dream, Bill Baburek saw potential in a building located on the northeast corner of 36th and Farnam Streets. With large employers and colleges located nearby, it offered the potential to draw a steady stream of customers for lunch, happy hour and into the night.

Before opening his bar, the avid collector of beer cans and other memorabilia travelled to Seattle to visit bars in its famous U-District for inspiration. He found it at the Blue Moon Tavern which has a long history of its own and was named the best dive bar in America several times.

In 1996 Bill quit his day job and opened Crescent Moon at 3578 Farnam Street in a strip mall that was rebuilt after a fire destroyed the original building in 1981. The focus of The Moon would be on quality craft beer not the macro brews that had long dominated not only the Omaha beer scene but the country. In fact, his bar would be the first in the state dedicated to craft beer.

He remodeled the space which had a skylight above and added oak furnishings along with a variety of beer signs, tap handles, black-and-white photographs and bicycles. The seating options included barstools surrounding the large U-shaped bar, tables and booths.

When the bar first opened it featured 24 tap handles though it has grown considerably over the years and now there are over 70. The bar predates all of the breweries in town with the exception of Jaipur which opened in 1992 and Upstream which also opened in 1996.

The Moon became a popular hangout for Creighton students, workers and a growing number of craft beer nerds. Bill expanded the bar in 2005 when he converted the basement storage space into a traditional German bier hall called Huber Haus. The space which had booths as well as long communal tables and knotty pine walls became the perfect place to partake in das boot. It became extremely popular for its annual Oktoberfest celebration which extends to the parking lot out back as well as 36th street to the west.

Just one year later, he opened a Belgian Beer Tavern called Max & Joe’s in the bay to the east of the Moon. These days Max & Joe’s has turned into a tasting room, party hall and the site of pop-up bars such as the Under the Mistletoe Holiday Pop-up. He also operated a retail beer store called Beertopia until 2024.

In addition to its craft beer, Crescent Moon is also known for its Reuben sandwich. The sandwich wasn’t on the original menu and was only added after the kitchen manager suggested it as the sandwich was invented across the street at the Blackstone Hotel. You can read the history of the Reuben sandwich on my page. Originally called the Black and Tan Reuben to keep with the beer theme, it didn’t become the popular menu item it is today until it was named Best of Omaha in 2012. Since that time it’s consistently rated among the best in town.

Crescent Moon has received numerous accolades since it opened nearly three decades ago. It’s been named one of the top 100 beer bars in America by Draft Magazine at least seven times, it’s been named Best of Omaha for its beer selection five times, and it received a world class rating by BeerAdvocate.

Bill would go on to open Infusion Brewing Company in Benson in 2013 and is currently located in Southwest Omaha. He also converted the old Bohemian Cafe into a tasting room for Infusion. It is now the home to a neighborhood bar called The Bohemian.

Crescent Moon served as a catalyst for the development that followed as abandoned buildings and parking lots replaced with bars, restaurants, offices, hotels and apartments. It remains a fixture in midtown due to its selection of top-notch craft beer, pub fare and the many events it hosts throughout the year including the aforementioned Oktoberfest, Bockfest, Ultimate Beerfest, Reubenfest, Holiday Beerfest and Fat Tuesday among others.

Special thanks to Bill Baburek for his help in writing this history.

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