Omaha: The Food Edition

A few weeks ago I told you how we had so much fun in Omaha.  I also told you about the best thing I ever ate in Omaha:  fantastic out-of-this-world ice cream.  Here's the rest of that trip, along with a wild and crazy unexpected find for the front porch.

Our hotel offered complimentary shuttle service within 3 miles.  Well, sign us up!  There are a boatload of restaurants and stores within 3 miles!  So we get on the shuttle, and unbeknownst to us, there was a bachelorette party going to a Mexican restaurant for a few rounds of tequila who just boarded the shuttle before us.  We got on and made our way to the back, and Todd said "Don't I feel out of place?" to which all the girls laughed.  It was pretty funny.  They were all 20- or 30-somethings dressed up in heels and short skirts.  You know they were hurting the next day.

The bachelorette party on their way to "eat the worm"

We decided to hit a dive of a little seafood restaurant which got really great reviews.  Sounds fun, why not?!  We can have a steak when we get back home (at a fraction of the cost, and cooked to perfection with no worry of disappointment).

My blackened scallops with pineapple relish atop a bed of mushroom risotto.  Very tasty!

Not sure what my possessed look was about.

Todd's blackened tilapia:  spicy!

We had a fun evening sampling crab cakes, clam chowder, and lobster bisque.  Then we had our main courses shown above.  We were stuffed, so we ended up walking back.  Note: there is a prison not far from the Old Market area.  Just sayin' in case you weren't expecting it.  It put a giddy up in my step.  I felt better once we made it to the police station just a few blocks away.

The next morning, we went to WheatFields for breakfast.  I highly recommend this place for dining or shopping for baked goods.

Their "Roll sampler" was mini portions of 5 different delectable sweet rolls.  All for $3.99!

I had egg scramble with sausage, red peppers, onion, and monterey jack cheese

Todd had their "bruleed potatoes" (almost like mashed taters with broiled muenster cheese) and poached eggs

After a pants stretching breakfast, we discovered a gem of a store called Hollywood Candy which was open on a late Sunday morning!  It was a "candy" store FILLED with nostalgia.  And every single kind of candy you could possibly ever want from current times or your childhood.

The Reese's candy machine that looks like a soda pop machine caught my eye.

I cannot imagine how they visualized displaying ALL THIS STUFF before they did it.

Old time working soda fountain counter.

One wall was adorned with click pens.  CLICK PENS!

Every candy imaginable.  And tons of different soda pops in coolers.

This was a true museum documenting our candy heritage.

Their company vehicle.

I decided to purchase 2 strings of Zotz candies (blue raspberry and cherry), a Black Cow, and my favorite candy bar I loved growing up: the Curly Wurly which used to be known as the Marathon Bar.  The Marathon Bar was a braid of chocolate covered caramel with a ruler on the back.  It was the longest candy bar on the shelf.  So I thought I was getting more for the money.  I never understood why everyone didn't choose that candy bar compared to all the others--it was BIGGER!  Of course, I didn't understand net weight at the time...

We spent just enough time exploring the candy store, which had a movie theater and consignment shop in it, to find another store open full of outdoor art.  Iron Decor & More was a feast for the gardener eyes.  We found so many neat things there.  Garden arches, benches, metal signs, metal sculptures of every size and shape, wine bottle holders, beer pail holders, large metal flowers, small metal flowers (painted or not), holiday themed items, etc. etc. etc.  They had seen us looking through the windows before we found the candy store, and they opened just a little early, just for us.  They were happy to see us.

We were mesmerized by this unbelievable rooster.  Just look at the size of this thing!

OH LOOK, IT'S A CHICKEN!

We loved this big guy!

But alas, he was way out of our price range.  Not to mention impossible to transport.  But he was fun to look at, if only for a few minutes.  Who doesn't want their picture taken standing next to this mammoth rooster?

We looked around and found an awesome 4' wine bottle holder that goes perfectly in an empty corner that I wanted to fill.  We found a teetering rooster that swivels with a big rock, sort of on a pendulum to put by the front door.

AND GUESS WHAT ELSE WE FOUND?!?!?!!?!!!

A 4' version of that rooster--Oh YES we DID!

Meet Otto.  He's made out of recycled automobiles.  Hoods, roofs, etc.