Gerald “Jerry” Foster was born in Falls City in 1940. He moved to Omaha and opened one of the city’s oldest steakhouses in 1978. From the time he was a boy, he always said that if he ever owned a restaurant, he would name it Jerico’s. He did exactly that when he opened his “prime and wine” establishment in Richland Park Plaza at 11732 West Dodge Road.
Jerico’s offered “an open kitchen concept and lovely decor,” targeted at business professionals and families alike. During its grand opening, they offered a complimentary half liter of house wine with the purchase of two meals, or a full liter with four.
Jerry used a top-of-the-line prime rib oven that slowly cooked the meat and then held it until it reached the desired degree of redness. This, along with the quality of the beef, helped Jerico’s earn its reputation for having some of the best prime rib in town. It was also one of the few restaurants to serve lamb chops. Despite its success, Jerry sold the business in 1989 and returned home, where he found work as a communications salesman. He passed away just five years later at only 54 years old.
Born in Illinois, Chuck DiDonato started his career as a meat cutter for Kroger. He learned a great deal about quality meat during his 30-year career in the meat and grocery business. He landed in Omaha after becoming the director of meat operations for Hinky Dinky. From there, he took over Jerico’s when Jerry retired. At the time, he said the founder did not expect the restaurant side of his bar to sell much food. As a result, he built an open kitchen that extended into the dining room so it could be turned into a dance floor if needed. Instead, Jerry ended up with a pretty good prime rib and sandwich restaurant to complement the bar.
Chuck expanded the menu from 14 or 15 items to around 80. He upgraded the quality of the meat, which had been good before but became top notch. With business slowing in 2007 due to construction at 114th and West Dodge Road, he took the opportunity to complete an extensive remodel. Chuck went on to operate Jerico’s for the next 25 years. He was just as passionate about the friendly neighborhood restaurant, which he described as cozy, comfortable, and just a bit romantic.
Described as larger than life, Chuck turned one of Omaha’s most popular steakhouses into a shrine to his beloved Huskers football team. He began collecting sports memorabilia in 1980, which included pictures of Tom Osborne and golf balls signed by Gary Player and Chi Chi Rodriguez. Chuck owned the restaurant until his death in 2014 at the age of 72. During that time, he did it all, from bookkeeping to marketing, staffing, and hosting.
Jerico’s is proof that you should not judge a book by its cover. Despite sitting in a strip mall beneath the West Dodge Expressway, it offers an old-school vibe with dim lighting, white linen-covered tables, leather chairs, walls separated by brick arches and a bar runs along the back.
According to Chuck, Jerico’s mission was to serve the finest selection of beef, pork, chicken, and seafood, paired with the best service around. While it offers filet mignon, strip steak, porterhouse, and sirloin, its prime rib is the star of the show and is widely regarded as the best in town.
Note that Jerico’s announced that it was closing in February 2025.
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