Ole’s Big Game Steakhouse & Lounge

On a dark drive down I 80 in freezing fog, we stopped for a late dinner with the family at Olé’s. Upon arrival, the dining room was empty, but the greeting was warm. It’s definitely a place to see since with a giant polar bear /​seal stuffed by the door. From there, it is a journey to Africa and all the animals of Africa mounted. For kids. very entertaining. For vegetarian wife. well, it was interesting.lol. Now for the food… I had the small prime rib. was a nice leaner cut, definitely roasted in a lowery’s like seasoning blend. My cowboy beans were missed, but asparagus was plentiful and cooked well. Kids had a burger which looked like it was grilled well and they enjoyed it. Oldest had ribs which tasted more baked then smoked, but after 6 hours in car, our oldest thought they were decent. Wife had the breaded shrimp and that hit the spot with the salad as a side. Overall, good meal, waitstaff was excellent and kid friendly and got us in and out easily. We would definitely stop again since it was interesting to the kiddos.

The setting alone is worth the visit. An amazing and incredibly broad collection of animals hanging on the walls. The old photos and captions are entertaining. The setting is so unreal that the food is an afterthought… but the food was tasty as well. Plan on spending the time looking at the great décor while waiting for your meal.

We went here for dinner earlier today and the place had an interesting number of hunting trophies on the wall and tv screens! We were hungry so it wasnt like we thinking about them staring at us while we eat… Service was excellent and food was very delicious! We enjoyed the Chef salad, BBQ Baby Back Ribs, Olé’s Prime Rib Large 16oz for the 2 sides included for each entrée we got Olé’s Sweet Potato Casserole, and Vegetable of the day-​mixed veggies; however, we didnt like the coleslaw or the cup of soup-​some kind barley beef stew as much… Overall I would go back here if we ever travel from Illinois to Nebraska!

This place is a historic landmark in Paxton. Just cool to walk into. The service was great. Lets get to the point way we visit restaurants to eat. We ordered the combo sampler there was two of everything. A one person app. We ordered two t-​bones and one filet. It took over 45 minute and my steak came out cold as ice. The filet had a toothpick through it and the bacon was raw to burn depending what side it was. The coleslaw tasted like sauerkraut. The pre made rolls were honestly the best part of the meal. The waitress apologized that the cook was new and should not be one his own. She comped the app and took half off the steak. Do not come herein a Monday.

I got to cross Rocky Mountain Oysters off my list of foods to try and sat under a huge moose head. Rock. My dining partner also enjoyed his meal and the taxidermied décor. A good food stop along I-​80!

I’ve never witnessed slower service in my life. Stopped for breakfast and They had a total of 2 patrons and 1 waitress who clearly couldn’t even chew gum and walk at the same time, let alone wait on more than 1 table per hour. After waiting 10 minutes we left, wow maybe they ought to
rename the place Olé Slow as Snails

The Cobb salad is great, if you don’t mind being stared at by 45 taxidermic animal heads and 5 tvs, whilst bad country music blares. Do you like eating as you gaze at a real elephant food wrapped in a chain? This place is for you.

Automatic 5 star, no questions asked. Great atmosphere and unbelievable food. Best place in all of Western Nebraska (west of Lincoln) I have ever been to. If your ever driving through Paxton, it is well worth the stop. Order any peice of meat in any form.

After reading some of the reviews I didn’t think my experience was going to be as bad as it was. I ordered the Rocky Mountain oysters and sweet potato casserole. When I got my food my potatoes were cold and my fries were luke warm. I asked the server to take them back. After a couple of minutes my plate came back. My potatoes had been microwaved and my fries had been thrown back in the frier and were very over cooked. This was my first experience at this restaurant and with Rocky Mountain oysters. Let’s just say I’d have to be starving to ever go back because it was a huge disappointment. The only positive thing I can say is that I didn’t have to pay for my meal which is good since I didn’t eat it.

Bison burger and French dip both very good. Ambiance is a big game hunter’s dream. Lots of interesting taxidermy displays. You have to check out the restroom signs for a good laugh :)

A Vegetarians dream (and by dream, I mean nightmarish venue of severed animal heads watching you eat ;). This bar and grill has been around since 1933 and is full to the brim with hundreds of stuffed big game the original owner hunted on every continent, over the years. We are talking about more taxidermy than Ted Nugent’s house! While not a hunter myself, there is an appeal to at least have gone here once. A definite road-​side attraction type of place. It would definitely be worth it just to say you have seen it in person, if you happen to be driving down I-​80 through Nebraska.
Now as to the food, we sampled their lunch fair, and it is decent bar food, nothing exceptional. I had a bacon cheeseburger which was ok, and the fries were good, but a little salty. My wife had the BLT, which had a couple brown spots on the lettuce, and the chips were a bit stale. My daughter got a hot dog off the kids menu, which was huge, but tasted pretty good. Can’t speak to the dinner menu as we didn’t try it, but they have steaks, prime rib, etc.
Overall if you are in the area and up for something different stop and try it. Not so much for the food, but the atmosphere.

Very cool restaurant! Lots of animals to see! Food is good and servers are friendly. Lots of history in this small Nebraska town restaurant. A must visit Western Nebraska staple.

Out of prime rib at 640pm, ad said not served b4 5pm. Eaitress non — apologetic abot it «we’ve been busy». So am I, made special trip to go for the prime rib. No offer of free dessert or anything. Won’t be back!

It is the thing to do while in Paxton, NE. All kinds of exotic taxidermied animals from all 7 continents, including a stuffed jackalope, bagged by the original owner. Definitely a fun place to visit. The chili was really tasty, but the cheeseburger was okay, very average (I was hoping for some outstanding Nebraska beef I’d had in the past visits to the state). BUT… the place is cool and the staff is friendly. With its interesting history (est.1933) it is like no other… so… I recommend it :)

The only big game other than Bison was on the walls. The burger was raw and the wait person ignored us most of the time. I wanted to like it but was seriously underwhelmed. Maybe I’ll try it again but I won’t go out of my way.

This plac is for someone who loves to see a large array of stuffed animal heads. Food is not bad, had a tenderloin, was grilled pretty good. A place to stop by to entertain the kids with all the animals.

A HAIKU REVIEW
Have a burger. Beer.
Have it with lions, tigers,
and bears, too. Oh my!

The food is just okay, but the restaurant itself just keeps getting better and better. Between the taxidermy (and the wormhole back to a less PC era), and their recent renovation which spruced up the booths, floor, and restrooms, Olé’s is a place I’ve been proud to visit every year of my life.
EVERY year of my life? Why, yes, and my parent’s refrigerator will attest to this fact. There is a picture of me posing next to the jackalope every year from six months to 23 years old. That’s what you get when you couple a yearly road trip to Colorado with a father obsessed with tradition and photography. There was a time in my preteen years when I was less than enthused at the prospect of standing on a booth in front of strangers and posing next to a rabbit with horns, but thankfully those years are behind me. I can’t wait until my 25^th visit to Olé’s this coming summer.

Out of this world! The place is filled with head trophies, and not a space on the wall is free of these items. The service is excellent, the food is ok, but the place is amazing. Overall a fun place to have dinner in the middle of nowhere Nebraska. Oh! And don’t expect fine wine to be served, this is not the place. It is very appropriate for its location. I was surprised to see that it has been featured in Saveur magazine. Who would have thunk it?

Holy macaroni, we got lucky with this one. I just HAPPENED to be looking at a «roadside attractions» app on my iPhone while we were driving through Nebraska on our trip from RI to CO.
Strange enough, a restaurant popped up ten miles away.
A restaurant as a roadside attraction? How could this be? Oh it can be, and it is. The big attraction however, isn’t the food, it’s all the big game stuffed heads and bodies you’ll encounter when you walk in the door.
I also enjoy the fact that this place opened at 12:01am on the day that prohibition ended.
The food is nothing spectactular. In fact, my chicken fried steak was downright greasy. That said, it was my first time trying the stuff and I got it without gravy. I think I cursed myself.
However, the soda was flat and my salad was super generic and tasteless. My boyfriend did enjoy his burger though.
The good news is that the food could have been complete crap and we’d still be glad we came. This place is epic. Have you ever seen a stuffed polar bear before? Maybe. but how about a freaking stuffed elephant head? Or a giraffe neck and head?
It’s almost unsettling to eat here and look into the faces of hundreds of different animals, but at the same time it’s more impressive to see how in the world you preserve elephant ears. Seriously, how do they do that?
It’s a good thing we stopped because nearly every person who we talked to that knew we traveled through Nebraska asked, «did you stop at Olé’s?» or «you stopped at Olé’s right??» or «OMG on your way back you have to stop at Olé’s if you didn’t already».
So if you’re on I-​80 and you’re looking for a small town to stop in for a weird meal, this is your place. The bonus prize here is that there’s a little winery shop across the street. Score!