The capital city of Nebraska, Lincoln is a college town with an active downtown area, featuring several art galleries, theaters and performance halls, and an eclectic mix of restaurants and bars, including cigar bars. Smoking in public places was outlawed in Nebraska in February 2008. Several cigar shops in Lincoln closed at that time, but in April 2009, an exemption allowing cigar bars to continue operating was passed, with certain restrictions. One cigar bar re-opened its doors in Lincoln, and a few others in nearby Omaha opened up.
Jake's Cigars and Spirits has two locations in Nebraska, one in downtown Lincoln and one in Omaha's Benson neighborhood. Jake's Cigars has a laid-back and classy atmosphere and is a local favorite.
Jake's Cigars features a fully stocked walk-in humidor with an extensive cigar collection and a variety of flavors and brands from Nicaragua, Honduras and the Dominican Republic, including Arturo Fuente, Cuesta Rey, Ashton, CAO and Cojimar, as well as a few Irish blends. Jake's complements its cigar collection with a well-rounded beer and wine menu, offering domestic beers, micro-brews and imports as well as dry and sweet wine varieties from all over the world. Jake's cigar and liquor menu includes options for a range of budgets.
Jakes' Cigars & Spirits
114 N. 14th Street
Lincoln, NE 68508
402-435-8117
www.jakescigarsandspirits.com
Ravenite Cigar Bar is in Omaha, about an hour's drive from Lincoln. The bar opened in January 2010 and is in the city's western suburbs. Ravenite Cigar Bar is an upscale lounge, decorated in a mobster-style theme, with black and burgundy wine-colored walls and photographs of famed mobsters such as John Gotti. In fact, the bar's name, Ravenite, is an homage to Gotti. Ravenite was the name of a social club in Little Italy, New York, where Gotti's Gambino crime family made their headquarters.
This indoor smoking lounge offers a collection of cigar brands, including Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta and Cohiba as well as its own brand. Ravenite features a full bar, with imported and domestic beers, single malt, premium and blend Scotch whiskys, and high-end vodkas.
Ravenite Cigar Bar
114th Street & West Center Road
Omaha, NE 68144
402-505-9411
www.wix.com/blubay/rave
Nickleby's Smoke Ring is also in Omaha, in the city's western suburbs. The lounge has a casual, relaxed atmosphere and features big-screen televisions and comfortable couches. Nickleby's cigar collection offers a variety of brands, including Cohiba, Comacho, Sanco Panza, Arturo Fuente and Diamond Crown. Nickleby's also sells humidors and pipe tobacco and has a full bar, with a wide selection of spirits, imported and domestic beers and non-alcoholic refreshments.
Nickleby's Smoke Ring
2464 S. 120th Street
Omaha, NE 68144-2811
402-330-4556
www.nicklebys-cigars.com
