Omaha Exploration

The story of Dinker’s Bar & Grill doesn’t start at its familiar location at the corner of 29th and Castelar Streets, which proudly displays a sign reading “Omaha’s Best Burger.” It actually starts two doors down at 2364 S. 29th Street, where Anton Kurtz operated his bar until 1965.

The son of Polish immigrants, Frank Synowiecki served in the Navy during World War II before returning home to marry Rosemary Slizoski and starting a family. The lifelong resident of South Omaha opened his bar in 1965 after being laid off from his job at one of the meatpacking plants in South Omaha.

Nicknamed Dinker, Frank operated Dinker’s Bar from its original location for 14 years, at which point he saw an opportunity to relocate and expand his establishment to its current home. Built in 1914, the brick building at 2368 S. 29th Street was originally the Hanscom Theater. With seating for 200, the theater only remained in business for a short time before closing. Afterward, Joseph Zagurski opened a neighborhood grocery which he converted to a bar called Hanscom Inn with the help of his son, Ted, in 1938.

Once the war began, young men preparing for deployment often left their ties at Hanscom Inn which accumulated more than 190. Fortunately, all 190 men returned home to reclaim them. After Joe passed away in 1956, the bar continued to operate until 1961.

In 1962, Omaha Police Sergeant Fred Bruning and his wife, Rose Cascio, opened Big Fred’s Bar. The Bruning family later relocated and opened Big Fred’s Pizza Garden and Lounge in West Omaha in 1965. Bill McDowell subsequently operated the Scheely Tavern from the building until it was destroyed by a fire in 1979. Following the fire, Frank gutted and renovated the space, adding a large bar and a full kitchen.

Frank was deeply involved in the community’s Polish music scene and was named King of Nebraska Polka Days at Peony Park in 1972. He regularly booked polka bands to perform at Dinker’s and hosted Sheelytown street dances beginning in the early 1970s, shutting down 29th Street to accommodate the large crowds. The street dances came to an end as Polish residents largely moved away from the area, due in part to the construction of the interstate.

The addition of a kitchen was Rosemary’s doing. She would make 10 pounds of hand-pressed hamburger patties before heading to work at Western Electric. Bartenders cooked the burgers on a small grill, along with Polish sausage and kraut on a steamer, feeding customers who sat around drinking and playing cards after their shifts at Falstaff or Kellogg’s.

Frank was described as a shrewd businessman that was larger-than-life, loud, and a boisterous promoter. The devoted family man who along with being an active member of his church also found time to coach softball and football in addition to hosting Easter egg hunts and hiring a Santa to hand out stockings each year. When Frank retired in 1993, he turned the family business over to his children.

More than 60 years after it first opened, Dinker’s transitioned from a neighborhood bar for regulars into a bar and grill focused primarily on food. It continues to attract old-timers as well as visitors from all over town, including Creighton Bluejay fans and anyone with a hankering for a good old-fashioned hamburger.

It’s one of a dying breed of bar and grill 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. Served on Rotella’s buns, the burgers continue to follow Rosemary’s recipe and are made from one-third pound portions of unseasoned ground beef, formed using a seven-ounce ice cream scoop, and cooked on a griddle primed with bacon, which gives the meat its flavor.

Dinker’s 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. For its 60th anniversary in 2025, Dinker’s even brought back its popular street dance.

In 2016, a large mural depicting scenes from Omaha’s three original Polish neighborhoods, along with St. Stanislaus Church, St. Francis Church, and Sheelytown, was painted on the southern wall. It was one of a series of murals throughout South Omaha intended to capture the area’s rich immigrant history.

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