CAFE POSTALE
Hoppen Hierarchy:★★⭑
District: Downtown
Event Venue Serving Coffee and Cafe Sandwiches by Day
Perfect For: Breakfast/Brunch; Lunch; Casual Dining; Vegan Options
Standout Dishes: Bombolino Breakfast Sandwich
If there were a Venn Diagram for coffee houses and wedding venues, there wouldn’t be many restaurants handing out in the thin crossover space.
Yet Cafe Postale manages to combine these two very different worlds in a unique way. On weekends, it’s a gorgeous space for intimate weddings, corporate events, and other celebrations. By day, it serves delicious coffee and an updated take on breakfast classics.
The same aspects that make Cafe Postale a beautiful venue—giant windows, spacious patio, brick walls—also make it a great spot to grab breakfast or lunch, a cup of coffee, and post up to work or catch up with friends. The building formerly served as a postal railway transport hub, and its historic features—including an old vault and a vintage telephone booth—provide a sophisticated ambience. Hanging out here feels a bit like stepping back in time.
The atmosphere may be Cafe Postale’s most unique selling proposition, but you could come blindfolded and still have a great time thanks to the food and drink.
The coffee is excellent, from the frothy lattes to the smooth cold brews, and the menu allows diners to choose milk alternatives and flavored syrups to customize their drink.
The food menu focuses mostly on breakfast items with a twist, salads, and sandwiches, along with daily specials (such as Rueben sandwiches and mac & cheese with fried chicken).
The headliner is the mammoth Bombolino Breakfast Sandwich (featured in the header photo of this post), which features a mountain of creamy, airy scrambled eggs. A few slices of grilled black forest ham add texture and salt, and smoked cheddar adds a bit of a bite. It’s an incredibly simple sandwich, but the eggs are so moist and delicious and the cheese so melty that no sauce is needed. The Bombolino is in the upper tier of Omaha breakfast sandwiches.
Cafe Postale’s other offerings don’t quite reach the Bombolino’s heights, but they offer unique flavors. The Omelet Sandwich takes those same fluffy eggs and combines them with chorizo, roasted red peppers and tomatoes, mayo, and Oaxaca cheese for an interesting flavor profile. The only problem is the bread ratio is a bit off—the toasted ciabatta has great chew and aromatics, but it’s a bit dominant.
The same is true of the Vegan Sausage & Kimchi Sandwich. There’s nothing wrong with the toasted baguette other than its thickness, as the starch puts the other flavors in the backseat. They’re still present, but this sandwich has wonderful elements that deserve more room to shine. The kimchi is spicy and lively, adding acidity and crunch to the dish, while the “sausage” brings a welcome sweet/heat combo. It’s not quite as flavorful as pork sausage, but this is a strong meat alternative.
But if thick bread—and delicious bread at that—is Cafe Postale’s largest pitfall, it’s a minor one. The breakfast offerings are all strong, and they’re very reasonably priced.
The staff is exceedingly friendly and willing to accomodate any need they can, and there’s simply no beating the ambience of this beautiful location.
So whether you’re getting married, want a delicious breakfast sandwich, or just need a quiet place to sip a coffee while you work, Cafe Postale is your spot. There is no Omaha venue quite like it.