Venue Restaurant & Lounge — Restaurant in Lincoln

The short version of this revue? Whether you live here or are just passing through, make VENUE your stop for excellent service and food. Even if you can only go once or twice a year. It's a little bit above average price yet the experience is anything but.

Okay, more info:

Thanks to a tip from Jeff Bonsall (of Bonsall Pool & Spa fame-Lincoln, NE), my wife and I went Christmas eve (2016) to give this place a go. We weren't overly hungry so the slightly extended wait time for seating didn't trouble us even though we had reservations. This place was packed and with a cozy atmosphere and we could understand why they do not force turnover of tables like so many other establishments.

The clientele ran the gamut from couples (all ages) to families with wee ones. Even with the families, although a bit loud (the adults), it was a manageable sound level. Pretty low key compared to other places with family parties, I must say.

We can't say enough about our server 'Anika B'. She is tops (I know, I was trained as a 5 star wait captain years ago) and didn't have the typical dribble conversation as is typical in so may places. I am really bothered when a waiter says “I'll take that plate for you.” Sure, um no thank you, I was going to the kitchen anyway so I'll take it myself. You know the drill. Anika was very personable, looked at both my wife and I while conversing (typically the female servers just look at the man while ignoring the woman...yes, that's typical) and was present while not being overbearing. That's an artistic skill one normally doesn't experience in restaurants although I really don't care to lump Venue with 'restaurants'.

On to the food!

Our appetizers (Lobster Rangoon & Bacon/Scallops) were tops. We almost canceled our order to reorder just appetizers, really! I enjoyed (understatement) my Caesar salad that was topped with fresh dressing, chunky sliced Parmesan and anchovies, best I've had in years-literally.

My wife tried the Crab Bisque (decent-tasty but not her ultimate experience with said) and the Osso Bucco. The main dish was prepared very well sans that someone either stubbed their toe when adding the Cilantro or made a mistake? The Cilantro was an obtuse flavor experience that didn't support the other flavors in dish. We both came to that same conclusion. Had another flavor been used or the Cilantro absent or drastically diminished, then the entree would have been first cabin.

In addition to my delicious salad, I flipped over the 8oz Filet Mignon (medium rare and they nailed it!) with the Gorgonzola Cream sauce. It is difficult to explain just how incredible this dish was. As weird as it sounds (or reads), the Filet was so tender, it was like eating a delicious cloud. The asparagus was cooked to perfection (yup, I also served as a second line chef for a while) and that is not easy to do while scrambling on the line (by the chefs) to carefully prepare each entree for so many people. The Parm Risotto rounded out a fantastic dish.

My wife's White Russian was good and our heavenly Raspberry Tuxedo desert melted in our mouths while drinking pressed coffee (not as good as the rest, perhaps the grind, the bean?) and again we never felt pressured to leave...what a treat!

In addition to the great care we received by Anika, other staff helped deliver this bit or that drink in unobtrusive glide-by deliveries.

If there were a 6 star category/selection, I would confidently score that way and will always recommend Venue to family-friends or travelers. Well done...

Date Night

The Venue is one of those special places we only hit about twice a year. I'm constantly checking their ever-changing menu for something that catches my eye (Hello Mushroom Wellington 😮). My husband was wanting a Steak dinner. After a few suggestions on my part he decided and I was able to make a reservation for later in the evening.

We both opted for an entree off the Specials Menu, skipping our usual Apps to save room. He still had a favorite soup- the Potato Bacon- smoky, creamy, and rich. While I had a yummy Side Salad sub Olives (of course). Our Complementary Bread Course was temporarily forgotten about but as soon as I expressed my need for Fresh Focaccia it was quickly delivered.

My husband went All-In with the monstrous Cowboy Ribeye. His two chosen sides were the Grilled Asparagus and Yukon Gold Mashed Potatoes. He honestly hasn't treated himself like this in ages. Steak is something he is SO incredibly critical of but they Absolutely Nailed It! He literally sat there with a stupid grin on his face while working his way through the meaty-ness. Loved the Veg as well, seasoned and garlicky.

I am always sooooo hesitant to order a pricey Fish Dish. Have you ever had a bad piece of fish? Ruins everything for so long. Sucked it up and chose the Halibut En Papillote Special. Just means it was cooked in a parchment paper pouch with lemons and herbs and veg. Duuuuuuuuude. 1000% the Best Fish I've ever had in Lincoln. No joke. I spent the whole time doing my Happy Food Dance. Plus the Steamed Veg was seasoned Perfectly! It came with a Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette which I tried but ultimately didn't use. My husband sampled everything and explained it's for those who like malt vinegar with their fish. Made sense.

We rarely do Dessert but both agreed to split the Red Berry Tiramisu. It was very yummy BUT the selling point for me was the Lemon Curd in the description. It was pretty much non-existent which left me somewhat disappointed. Didn't matter, he practically licked the plate clean. Finished with a Raspberry Dragonfruit Margarita. Surprisingly tart, totally my department!

Our server Madison was wonderful! This place is collaborative so we had other great unnamed team members assisting us as well. Always Top-Notch!

• Originally posted to EAT IT in Lincoln, NE...

We started by ordering drinks and an order of Spinach and Artichoke dip. We didn't get our drinks until we got our appetizer which was a little annoying but no big deal. Apparently they wanted to get the most out of their chips because it seemed that we got the bottom of the bag. I cannot believe that neither the cook or the waitress didn't notice that half of the chips were crunched up/crumbs. The dip was good so it was unfortunate we were only able to eat part of it.

We then realized the waitress never brough the complimentary bread so we asked for that. That was good as usual.

It was time to order dinner so I asked what the special was... The waitress had no clue. ok... So she goes to check and returns about 10 minutes later and informs us the special is a mushroom tortellini with a pesto sauce. When we first started coming here the often had dry age steak options, or fresh fish options so I was surprised and disappointed that this was their only special for the night.

I ordered the Delmonico ribeye which is wet aged. It was good and cooked perfectly. The side of risotto was extremely bland. The wife had the three by the sea, which was ok. They used to plate it neatly, however this time it was all just heaped into a pile. It also featured the bland risotto and the seafood on it was pretty meh.

Desert we ordered the bread pudding. Again it took quite a while to get, I would say probably 15 minutes which isn't typical for ordering a desert. Frankly I've had much better but it was still good.

Overall the food was acceptable however not extraordinary. But for me combination of the slow service and the lack of attention to some details (the chips on our appetizer plate) that was lacking for a restaurant of this quality. When you spend $100+ on a dinner, it's a bummer when you leave feeling a bit underwhelmed. Overall it just doesn't seem worth the price anymore so I don't see us coming back here for...