Not a lot of Americans know all that, but what many do recognize is a brand that takes its name from the city itself: juicy, succulent Omaha Steaks. The backstory is that from 1955 to 1973 was the USA’s largest livestock and meatpacking center. It all began in 1862, when several local businessmen were convinced by a Wyoming rancher to create a stockyard as a feed station for western cattle before they headed east to Chicago. That was also the year Congress passed the Pacific Railroad Act, signed by President Lincoln, which provided funds to build railroads from the Missouri River to the Pacific, enabling Omaha to became a railway hub.  Near the end of the 1890s, father and son J.J. and B.A. Simon immigrated to Omaha from Latvia.  A few years later, in 1917, they opened a butcher shop which eventually became Omaha Steaks International.  They expanded to mail order in the 1950s, and as child I remember my mother would fill out the Omaha Steaks mail order form - and by the end of the week, I knew we’d be having a fantastic steak dinner.  Omaha Steaks is currently operated by the fifth generation of the Simon family.

Read more in Tripatini contributor Linda Stewart´s post An Esteemed Trio of Omaha Chefs Cooks Omaha Steaks.

Visit Omaha