Lied Lodge at Arbor Day Farm - Nebraska City 

 Main entrance to the lodge.  Surrounded by trees, trails and nature.  Beautiful setting.  260 acres of land complete with trees, orchards, plants, flowers, and plenty of outdoor exploration. It has 140 guest rooms, including two suites, Soothing nature inspired decor and scenic views.

 Large facility with many amenities.  There is a restaurant to the left and guest rooms to the right.  Several meeting rooms are downstairs.

 

 The restaurant can serve a large number of customers and the food is quite good.  Highly recommend you dine there if you're in Nebraska City during a meal time.  The whole north wall is glass and provides a great view.  Arbor Manor is visible across the valley.

 

 There are 140 guest rooms and 2 suites, many have either a view of the beautiful natural setting or access to a semi-private relaxation area.   If you want to venture out of the Lodge, you can explore the hiking trails, orchards, and engage in other outdoor activities.

Enjoy your time at Lied Lodge At Arbor Day Farm. Have a glass of Apple Cider too. They have fantastic Apple Cider. I know because I had some.

 

Poppin' Delights Gourmet Popcorn - Norfolk 

I really like popcorn and they do it differently here than anywhere else I've ever known about.  Two things:

1. They pop some in butter instead of other oil. Maybe others do it too but I never knew it if they did.         2. They don't tumble some of their popcorn.  That keeps it softer and, I think, easier to eat.

I purchased a bag of buttered popcorn (my favorite!) which was more butterier than most because it wasn't just seasoned with buttery flavored seasoning.  It was popped in butter and than lightly buttered, as well.  Of course, I did add additional butter to the bag when I got the chance. 

 As you can see, they have a lot of other items here for many different occasions.  Tracy bought a bag of dill and a bag of puppy chow popcorn.

 

Bean Broker Coffee House & Pub - Chadron 

The Bean Broker was really a fun and interesting place to visit.  As you see here in this photo, the building is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.  We went in and ordered a couple drinks and then looked around.  As we were reading some of the historic plaques and displays, the owner came over to talk to us.

We were in luck because he gave us a grand tour.  There were many interesting things about this place, different uses, different businesses.  The first floor was a bank and you can still see where the teller's station was by the floor patterns and wear.  One of the vaults is still there and used for storage.

He pointed out many things of interest, the glass, ceiling and floor, on the first floor.  Next door is a bar and one of the most fascinating things I've ever seen.  An old 1960 map of Nebraska.

It's pretty large and shows many things I've never seen on a map.  I wish it would have shown better in this photo.  When I was a kid my dad used to tease us about a town that didn't exist.  I always suspected he might have made it up but it's on the map.  Bissel in Colfax County.  If you visit the Bean Broker, make sure you go through the doorway to the room below.

It's in this room to the right of where I'm facing.  See what you can find on the map that you didn't know about.  When you're looking toward the bar, make sure you look up, there are a couple flying animals.

If you like history, there is a lot to be seen here, especially if you're from the Chadron area.  We also got a tour of the upstairs.  I'm glad this building was saved and listed historically.  Here's a couple more photos.

 

 

Notice the tile floor.

Rowdy's Steakhouse - Fairbury

  Fairbury is lucky to have this restaurant.  They have a menu that offers a nice selection of items but not overly large.  It's not very large so seating is limited.  We had reservations and were glad we did.  They opened at 5:00 PM and there were already 6 tables of guests waiting by opening time.  When we left, there were about 8 people waiting.  One couple were also Passport Champions from last year.

 As you can see, they didn't go to great lengths to make it a fancy place.  Just a comfortable place for anyone to feel at home.  The food speaks for itself.  Cindy had fish and I had pork clops.  Well prepared and generous portions.  We also ordered Rocky Mountain Oysters upon the recommendation of our server.  They were fantastic!  My aunt Alma used to make them sometimes and hers were great, too.  Over the years, I've tried them at several restaurants and never cared for them but at Rowdy's, they were as good as I've ever found since Alma's.  When you get old like we are, these kind of things inspire cherished memories of our younger days. 

The staff is super nice, polite and caring.  Every server came to our table at some point to see that we were taken care of.  We also met another table of guests who were finishing up with the Passport, all 85 stops, and they had physical stamps for every one.  They've been participating in the Nebraska Passport since 2014 and have visited every stop, every year.  We all know some people come from a long way away but one of them in the group is from Manchester, England!  Wow!!!

Los Mezcales Ortiz - Fremont

We were not able to have a meal here because of timing.  That was unfortunate because we both like Mexican food a lot.  The store front on the outside of the building is very distinctive and attractive.

Seating is pretty limited but nicely done.  The interior is inviting and I would imagine this is a popular place.  There is plenty of parking.  I really like the colorful artwork on the wall.  Reminds me of Labor Day parades in Schuyler.  The Hispanics have the best costumes which are quite elaborate.

Hopefully, we can make it back again for a meal.

 The Broken Mug - Columbus

The Broken Mug is a Christian, specialty coffee shop that offers a large variety of customizable drinks for coffee lovers and non-coffee lovers.  They also have a variety of baked foods and can make you breakfast and lunch.  The kitchen is closed on Sundays.

I always enjoy going into a coffee shop and The Broken Mug was wonderful to walk into. 

 Immediately you smell great food and coffee. I really enjoy a great cup of coffee. 

 

I was not very hungry that day so I ordered a Large Iced Mocha with Almond milk and Frank ordered a sandwich with water. He is not a coffee drinker. 

 We really enjoyed The Broken Mug. The people were very helpful and pleasant. The interior was decorated very nicely. We will definitely go back to The Broken Mug when we're in Columbus.

 Junto Wine - Seward

Junto Wine is a favorite.  Not just because of its nearness but also because of the staff and location.  Everyone is always so friendly and helpful.  The setting is in a natural environment with a small forest right outside the door.  A trail takes you all over the property.  The outside seating takes advantage of the especially attractive natural setting.

They host events, as well.  June 14th was Founding Father's Day with live music and a food truck.

It can get pretty busy at times.  Interestingly, I was wandering around and found a family enjoying themselves on a platform.  What's interesting is that we have just about finished remodeling our home in Seward and Cindy was looking for someone to clean up afterward.  

And here I came across one of the owners of Dial-A-Shine in Lincoln.  It's crazy how many people we've met with some kind of possible connection, in our travels around the state for the Nebraska Passport.

Inside are a lot of tables and more visually appealing decor.  The books on the wall are real and lend themselves to the name of this location, Junto Wine.  Junto is a word related to Benjamin Franklin, when he made his private book collection available to others.  The meaning is approximately 'a gathering of people with similar interests'.  At Junto, that amounts to a friendly atmosphere, good friends and excellent wine.

This winery is a very special place for me. After we moved to Seward about 6 years ago, Frank took me to Junto. I had never been there before. We were immediately greeted by smiling faces. The servers were very helpful explaining the types of wine that I might want to sample. There is plenty of indoor/outdoor seating. And of course, they have WONDERFUL WINES. We have been there many times over the years.  The most recent was on Mother's Day.  We sat outside (it was a beautiful day) with a glass of wine for me and Frank had a glass of Peach Sangria, which surprised me since his favorite drink is Mountain Dew.  We had a relaxing date and enjoyed visiting with people at other tables.  While you're here, walk around and admire the setting.