Omaha Exploration

From California Pharmacy to California Tacos & More, the building at the intersection of 33rd and California has served as the anchor of the Gifford Park neighborhood for more than a century.

Built by the Bogard family, they were among the first Belgian settlers to land in Omaha. Remi Vanden Bogaerde was the pioneer of the family, and after his arrival, he sent for his four brothers, three sisters, and parents, Henry and Louise. Upon their arrival, the family changed their surname to the Americanized Bogard.

According to the Omaha World-Herald, there were about 20 Belgian immigrants in the area at the time, all of whom settled in South Omaha with the exception of the Bogards. Instead, they moved to the Gifford Park neighborhood where they made a name for themselves.

Three of Remi’s brothers, Frank, an engineer; Paul, a contractor; and Remi, a builder who built and owned several homes and buildings, constructed a corner store at 33rd and California Street. Frank returned to his native country in 1910 to marry his bride, Emilie DeVolge. Just four years later, the Bogard brothers built the store at 3229 California Street that became home to Wohlner’s Grocery as well as California Pharmacy.

We have previously covered Wohlner’s, so our focus today is on the pharmacy. The store, complete with terrazzo flooring, was particularly popular with the kids in the neighborhood for its soda fountain, at which all nine of Frank and Emilie’s children would work as soda jerks.

In an interview with the Gifford Park Neighborhood Association, one of those children, Tom, recounted his memories of the soda fountain in which kids would line up on the stools that faced it. He recalled the marble-top fountain, which included ice cream wells, soda levers, chocolate, strawberry, and caramel scoops, an ice cream bin, and electric beaters. The shop produced ice cream, sundaes, malted milk shakes, and even a “Green River” drink made with a mixture of lime syrup, soda water, and a squirt of lactic acid. The soda water was made in the basement and pumped into the fountain on the main floor. Two scoops of ice cream with a cone cost five cents while the ice cream sodas were fifteen.

Frank was the first of the Bogard brothers to pass away in 1933. Emilie, however, along with her sons and brothers-in-law, continued to operate the business in his absence. In fact, all five of their sons would go on to become pharmacists operating stores across the city including 30th and State Street, 39th and Cuming Street, and 72nd and Blondo Street.

Even before Frank Jr. took over the original location following World War II, the store had doubled in size as Wohlner’s relocated to 52nd and Leavenworth Street, where it continued as a neighborhood grocery store for decades. The other two brothers who helped build the store, Paul and Remi, passed away in 1950 and 1956, respectively. Emilie, however, continued to live in the neighborhood until her death in 1985 at 95 years old.

Eventually the popular soda fountain was removed as refrigerators replaced iceboxes, making it much more practical to store ice cream at home. That opened up space for additional merchandise including cards, magazines, cosmetics, and small appliances.

Frank Jr. continued to operate the store for decades until a fateful day in 1976 when he was shot during an attempted robbery. By this time, the neighborhood around them had begun to deteriorate and crime had increased. Suffering a spinal cord injury that left him in a wheelchair, he retired from the business. He became an advocate for people living with disabilities and served on the school board for more than a decade while also acting as its president in 1981.

Another son, Tom, took over the pharmacy. While he avoided the catastrophic experience of his brother Frank Jr., repeated break-in attempts led to the store’s closure in 1987. During its long run, the pharmacy was a pioneer in the industry and served as a model for others, as it was among the first to utilize fluorescent lighting, air conditioning, and a computer to fill an order. The building sat empty for the next eight years as the neighborhood began to improve, as residents formed both a neighborhood association and a watch. They cleaned broken glass and trash from the neighborhood park and began to replace out-of-town landlords with homeowners who took pride in maintaining their homes and keeping their yards well kept.

Tom’s son, Brad Bogard, representing the third generation of the Bogard family to operate a business in the store at 33rd and California Street, renovated the long-vacant building and opened California Tacos and More in 1996 after he and his wife, Virna, were inspired by her mother’s taco shell. A native of Guatemala, Maria Louisa Robles showed them how to make the fried bread taco shell. He further refined the shell by merging it with a dough recipe obtained from a local Hispanic grocery, producing the puffy fried taco shell that made the restaurant famous. To emphasize its freshness and their dedication to those shells, they moved the baking equipment up front so it was visible to customers. The shell was not the only contribution from Robles; the meat seasonings were hers as well. The restaurant was also popular for its variety of salsas that were made in-house.

Confusion about the name aside, the restaurant’s massive puffy shell tacos were a hit among not just those in the neighborhood but also students from nearby Creighton University as well as employees at larger employers such as Mutual of Omaha and Saint Joseph’s Hospital. It was also a frequent stop for those attending a show at the Shelterbelt Theater.

Representing generations of the Bogard family that first moved to the neighborhood in the early 20th century, Brad was awarded Destination Midtown’s first-ever Spirit of Midtown award in 2006, which recognizes a merchant who has worked with businesses and neighbors to improve the area. Brad funded many of the projects in the neighborhood, including a tennis program and beautification projects.

No one could have predicted that the family of Belgian immigrants, alongside immigrants from Guatemala, would go on to open one of Omaha’s most beloved taco shops, which was even featured on Guy Fieri’s “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” in 2009.

More than 100 years after the Bogard family built it, the building that was home to two other iconic small businesses, California Pharmacy and Wohlner’s Grocery, continues to serve as a centerpiece of the old neighborhood, now recognized as one of the greenest and best in the city.

Sources

• Omaha World-Herald archives
• History Book | Gifford Park Neighborhood Association
• Gifford Park – Omaha Magazine
• The Hill Family’s California Bar – Omaha Exploration