Omaha Exploration

The story of Dinker’s Bar & Grill doesn’t start at its familiar location at the corner of 29th and Castelar St which proudly displays a sign that reads “Omaha’s Best Burger”. It actually starts two doors down but we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Built in 1914, the brick building at 2968 S 29th St that it currently calls home was originally the Hanscom Theater. With seating for 200, the neighborhood theater only remained in business for two years before closing.

Once the theater closed, Joseph Zagurski moved his family grocery store into the building in 1918. Joe converted the neighborhood store into a bar called Hanscom Inn by 1938. Once World War II started, customers of the bar would often leave their ties at the bar prior to being deployed. Over the months, they had accumulated 190 ties. Fortunately all 190 men returned home to reclaim their ties. The bar continued to operate even after Joe passed away in 1956 at which point his son took over and ran it until 1961.

By 1962 Omaha Police Sergeant Fred Bruning and his wife, Rose Cascio, opened Big Fred’s Bar. Yes, the same Cascio family that started their namesake restaurant in Little Italy. Fred and Rose opened their restaurant called Big Fred’s Pizza Garden and Lounge in West Omaha in 1965. We’ll get into their story at another time. Up next was the Scheely Tavern who for some reason added a ‘C’ to the word Sheely.

The son of Polish immigrants, Frank Synowiecki was born in Sheelytown and lived his entire life in South Omaha. After serving in the Navy during WWII, he returned home and married Rosemary Slizoski in 1950 and started a family. First finding work in the meat packing plants like his father before him, Frank was laid off in 1965. At that point, he started a bar called Dinker’s which happened to be his nickname. From what I’ve read, no one is quite sure where the nickname came from. The bar had belonged to Anton Kurtz who first operated a bar across the street at 2367 S 29th St until 1961 when it was demolished for the interstate in addition to other bars, grocery stores, barber shops and homes east of 29th. 

Frank was very involved in the community’s Polish music scene and regularly booked polka bands to perform at Dinker’s. His community involvement didn’t stop there as he also hosted the Sheelytown street dances during the 1970’s when he would shut down 29th St in front of his bar. I’m not entirely sure why the street dances stopped but assume it has something to do with the interstate and the declining number Polish residents in the community. Even so, Frank was named King of Nebraska Polka Days at Peony Park in 1972.

The addition of a kitchen belonged to Rosemary who would make 10 pounds of hand-pressed hamburger patties before heading to work at Western Electric. Bartenders would then cook them on a small grill in the corner to feed the customers who sat around drinking and playing cards following their shifts at Falstaff or Kellog’s. In those days the bar opened at 6:30 AM. 

After a fire destroyed the Scheely Tavern in 1979 Frank saw an opportunity to relocate and expand his establishment. He gutted and renovated the building before adding an even larger bar. The family retained the previous location and used it as a rental hall before turning it into a residence. While extremely detrimental to the Sheelytown neighborhood as a whole, the construction of the interstate was probably beneficial to Dinker’s as motorists driving past the bar would see its “Omaha’s Best Burger” sign after it was added in 1994.

The shrewd businessman that founded Dinker’s was described as a larger-than-life, loud, boisterous, promoter. People often gravitated towards Frank who was also an active member of his church. The beloved family was also a longtime coach of both softball and football and used his bar to hold Easter egg hunts and brought in a Santa Claus that handed out stockings each year. Before passing away in 1999, Frank turned the business over to his children.

59 years since it first opened, Dinker’s has witnessed the destruction of Sheelytown when the interstate resulted in the closure of four of the five bars in the area. It also made the transition from a neighborhood bar for regulars to a bar and grill that, first and foremost, focuses on its food. While some of the old-timers continue to visit from time-to-time, it’s mostly during lunch hours. The evenings typically attract people from all over in addition to Creighton Blue Jay fans and those who just have a hankering for a good old fashioned hamburger. 

The old school burger joint is one where you seat yourself, order food from the back counter and drinks from the bar. The cash-only establishment has an ATM on-site for the unprepared. The legendary burgers are made of ⅓ pound unseasoned ground beef using a seven ounce ice cream scoop and then cooked on a griddle that is primed with bacon which gives the meat its flavor. The hand pattied burgers are then served on a Rotella’s bun. The restaurant remains committed to serving high quality meat using Rosemary’s recipes.  

For its 50th anniversary, Dinker’s brought back the street dance in 2015. In 2016 the large mural depicting scenes from Omaha’s three original Polish neighborhoods in addition to St. Stanislaus and St. Francis Churches and Sheelytown was painted on its southern wall. It was one of a series of murals painted through South Omaha intended to capture its rich history of immigration. 

Dinker’s remains family owned and has received numerous accolades over the years including favorite burger bar, best burger, Nebraska’s most iconic bar by Thrillist and one of the 38 essential Omaha restaurants by Eater in 2023. 

Please feel free to comment and share your memories. Thank you following along and keep exploring!

Bonus pics

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