Lunch in Hastings Nebraska

As we rambled eastward, returning to our family’s home in Omaha, we stopped for one more lunch on the road.  I’d picked up on this restaurant using our guidebook, “Off the Beaten Path – Nebraska”.  If you’ve been following my blog, you will have noted that I put this travel reference guide to good use…

This is Murphy’s Wagon Wheel in downtown Hastings Nebraska.  As per their website, “…the good times have been rollin’ for over 125 years!”  This building has been a tavern/pub/saloon since 1889.  In 1972, 83 years after the original building was erected, Jim and Shirley Murphy bought the Wagon Wheel.  They named it Murphy’s Wagon Wheel.  Their son, Bob, bought the place from them in 1976 and he has expanded the facility twice since then… 

The inside of Murphy’s Wagon Wheel reminded us both of a typical local bar/restaurant in the lake country of Wisconsin.  It was a bit dark with lots of lighted advertising signs and ‘woodsy’ ceiling mounted lanterns.  Windows were minimal creating a warm but cave-like environment. (The term ‘man-cave’ comes to mind!    

As per our guidebook, Murphy’s is a popular local watering hole… This restaurant’s local nickname is “The Wheel”…as in I’ll meet you at The Wheel!  A plethora of different beers was available, but we had quite a bit of driving ahead of us so we skipped the alcoholic beverages. 

Our guide book recommended the Hot Wings, so Laurie and I started out with this order of 10 wings with “Bob and Tom’s Wing Sauce. ($7.50) The wings were breaded…not usually our favorite preparation…but this version with the spicy sauce was excellent!  …a definite winner!!

The Macho Nacho Plate was another appetizer recommended by our guidebook. (Full order - $9.95) The Beer Battered Onion Rings, (16 rings for $7.25), and the Texas Toothpicks – lightly breaded jalapeno and onion spears, ($7.25) are also popular. 

It was lunchtime and our guidebook recommended the hamburgers.  We love burgers!  Laurie ordered the Mushroom and Swiss Burger. ($8.30) All burgers are 7 oz. hand-formed patties and Murphy’s only uses local beef.  Burgers are served on a Kaiser roll and they come with the customer’s choice of a regular side dish.  Laurie went with cottage cheese.  This was a very good burger…cooked medium rare as requested!

The menu features a large number of sandwiches, both hot and cold.  They all cost $8.30.  There are also dinner salads, chicken, ribs, brisket and baskets. (Including Gizzards and Fries for $7.25) If you really wanted to splurge, you could order the 10 oz. ribeye steak or a 12 oz. New York strip steak with 2 sides for $15.99.

I ordered the Jalapeno Burger with a side of French fries. ($8.30) Heck…we just ‘had’ to test the French fries.  Both my burger and the fries were very good with a bit of a kick from the peppers giving the burger something extra.  Yes…that is mayonnaise on the side.  While it may be anathema to many of you, Laurie has brought me over to the ‘white’ side and we both put mayonnaise on our burgers…

Our waitress was very friendly and talkative.  She told us that Murphy’s is very busy most nights and that it really rocks on the weekends. Checking out the website, I learned a couple of reasons that this place is popular.  Monday through Friday there are low cost lunch and dinner specials.  Monday through Saturday evenings feature drink specials!  How about a bottle of Miller High Life for only $1.25!!  Murphy’s is closed on Sundays.

Murphy’s Wagon Wheel is located at 107 North Lincoln Avenue in Hastings Nebraska.  Phone: 402-463-3011.  Website: http://murphyswagonwheel.net/.

Just click on any of the photographs to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave