Rookies Bar and Grill

The food is very good for bar food. Larry and Tommy are excellent cooks. Mondays and Thursdays are the best nights to be up there because Wayland is the best bartender in Omaha period. I have been to restaurants and bars in 34 countries and Wayland takes care of his customers far better than any bartender I have seen. The owners keep the bar well stocked which I can’t say is the same for other bars in the the close proximity. They just upgraded their cash register and can give you an electronic receipt if you like that. Try out the upgraded version of Rookies and you may be impressed.

I understand they have changed ownership within the last couple years. I can’t speak to how it was before but my husband and I really liked this place. We went on a Tuesday night upon recommendation of their chicken fried chicken special. HUGE portion! The mashed potatoes and grilled green beans were so fresh and yummy. The breading was crisp, not greasy and I loved the gravy. Ate more than I should have (did I mention huge?). My husband got a hamburger which was also solid. The atmosphere was very relaxed and had a neighborhood feel. Live music on Tuesdays and no cover (at least not that night but I don’t think any night).

This place is not a sports bar as the name may suggest. It is a dive bar. It has a very limited selection of beer, and it feels like the place hasn’t seen a remodeling since the early 80s.
I rarely give a 1 star rating, but when they served me beer in a hot glass just out of the dish washer, well, that’s unforgivable.
The beer prices are inexpensive and it’s never been busy the few times I have been there.

A friend of mine recently had his 30^th birthday party at Rookies. I’d never been here or heard of it before that. Based on the name, I figured it was a sports bar, but I think they need to change the name to Veterans or 30-​day disabled list, because this place is not for people who are new to professional drinking.
While the rest of the bars in Omaha continue to have lame drink specials like $ 5 pints of miller lite (I didn’t know a pint was 12 oz, until I moved here), Rookies has good regular prices like $ 5 pitchers of beer all the time or $ 10 buckets. Plus, the drink specials really are special, and your behavior will be just as special by the end of the night.
They have karaōke on Saturday nights, and it was good karaōke, not just some dude with every song by Neil Diamond plus today’s freshest country hits either.
I ate a taco bar that they had arranged for my buddy’s birthday, which was excellent, but I’m not sure if that was on par with their usual fare or not. I intend to return in order to find out.