Located on north 30th St. in the historic Florence neighborhood in Omaha, Herold’s Koffee House is like nothing else in Nebraska.
Herold Halstead worked at a local shoe store where he met Pauline Palmer, who he later married before going out to fight in World War II. Once returning from the war, Halstead worked at the Harkert’s Holsum Hamburgers chain of diners, finding his love for the restaurant business. When Harkert’s went out of business, Halstead teamed up with two other businessmen to create the Koffee House Systems of diners. Pauline kept the books for the diner and provided knowledge of which meals and desserts would be the biggest hits.
These Koffee houses opened along many busy streets throughout Omaha before Halstead separated from his partners to take on Herold’s, the popular establishment. The business became a lifestyle and family endeavor when their oldest son started cooking at the age of 14, their second son started washing dishes, and their four daughters filled the final slots of their employee roster as the waitstaff, cashiers, and table bussers.
The family history is evident as soon as you walk through the doors, with photographs of family members from the 1900s and current workers proudly displayed on the walls. The design of the diner transports you back to the 1960s: the bright colors, teal booths surrounded by the walk-up bar top and wait staff meandering their way through the middle. The energy throughout the establishment is electric and truly feels like you are in a different century.
The relationship between employees and customers is like I have never seen before, where someone can walk in, and the waitress immediately knows their name and order and puts it in for them without the need to even ask. Being a regular customer, where an employee remembers you as soon as you walk through the door, truly seems like a dream come true and something I wish to achieve with visiting Herold’s.
The food is your standard diner food experience, with everything from breakfast burritos and sandwiches to French toast, pancakes and waffles.
I have visited Herold’s on numerous occasions, changing my order almost every time. I can confidently say you cannot go wrong ordering the House Special, which includes two eggs, hash browns, and a choice of bacon, sausage, and ham along with a choice of toast, a biscuit or a pancake.
My second choice would be the breakfast sandwich. It’s even better when they make in-house croissants and use those instead of an English muffin or bagel. The breakfast sandwich is a choice of ham, bacon, or sausage with a fried egg and melted cheese served on either an English muffin or a bagel, (unless you get lucky with the croissants).
Finally, you can’t go wrong with their daily specials. My friend and I visited on a busy Saturday morning the first week back to school, when I ordered the two, two, two: two pieces of French toast, two pieces of either bacon, sausage, or ham, and two eggs. While it was a lot of food, it was delicious and a great way to start the day.
If you are looking to take yourself out of the 21st Century for an hour or so and immerse yourself in the true diner experience, Herold’s is the place to be. If you are not able to make it into the restaurant, you can easily order both breakfast and lunch on their website and pick it up.
