The Omaha Metro Food & Wine Gazette Feb 2026

The Omaha Metro

Event Report: A Traditional Country Club Celebration

Hello all. Our new Executive Board, approved by the old board, is as follows: President- Michelle Hyder; VP/SecretarySusan Rauth; Treasurer- Brent Rasmussen; Membership Chair-Tracy Tylkowski; Gazette- Tom Murnan; Wine Cellar Master- Dave Thrasher; Webmaster- Jason Sullivan; E-Communications- John Matthews. Many Thanks to Mike Wilke, our outgoing President, for all the work he has done for two years. Mike is still on the board with other members Rhonda Wilke, Jill & Joe Goldstein, Tabitha Thrasher.

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“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.”

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Charles M. Schulz

A Traditional Country Club Celebration

Traditionaly, at least as long as I have been in the IWFS (2008), the Christmas / Hanukkah season has always been at the Happy Hollow Club. It is a great facility, has great food, and enough room to move freely about. The tradition continued with our December 14, 2025, event there. Again, as in the recent past, we combined both the Omaha and the Omaha Metro branches. Our attendance of 59 was reduced by a flu that seems to come around the holidays annually. My own wife Mary couldn’t attend, so I brought my daughter-in-law Katie in her stead. This year, however, there was no band or singer.

We started off with Smoked Salmon Cones, Cucumber Hummus Cups and Steak Tartar Crostini. I found the latter absolutely delicious and could have eaten many more except then, I wouldn’t have had room for dinner!

The HHC Classic Thunderbird Salad was quite good, and I was reminded that the Thunderbird Salad was invented in the 1960’s right here at the Happy Hollow Club by Chef Luis Villamonte, although it is freely promoted at the Omaha Press Club as well because his son, Steve Villamonte, is the chef there. Steve trademarked the salad.

Our next course was the HHC Classic Lobster Bisque. It was presented in a spectacular puff pastry dome, nicely browned, which helped keep the soup warm by trapping in the heat. Since the dome

Story by Tom Murnan. Photos by Tom Murnan

is not just ornamental, when you punch through, you put the pastry in the soup to saturate it with the lobster goodness. It serves to reduce the richness of the cream as well. A Paul Hobbs Russian River Chardonnay 2022 was a good marriage of wine and bisque.

Beef Tenderloin Steak Oscar, Lump Crab, Asparagus, Boursin Mashed Potatoes, Roasted Tomato & Herb Hollandaise followed. Steak Oscar is a classic steakhouse / country club dish named in honor of King Oscar II of Sweden in the 1890’s. except in his day and place, veal was used instead of steak. When you see the name, you know you are getting a surf and turf dish of beef filet, crab meat, and asparagus, with either Béarnaise or Hollandaise sauce. In our case. Roasted tomato and herbs were added to the Hollandaise. Accompanying the filet were two red wines. The Kathryn Hall Cabernet

Sauvignon 2016 hails from their Sacrashe Vineyard and comprises 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot. Its competitor was the Château Larrivet Haut-Brion 2016 from the Pessac-Léognan area south of Bordeaux city. With Larrivet attaching itself to the name Haut Brion, one would think it sat near the famous First Growth, but it does not. I suspect it is a Gallic marketing technique. It sports 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 8% Cabernet Franc. Both were good, but I give the nod to the Kathryn Hall.

We finished with 3 Layer Dark Chocolate Raspberry Mousse Cake with a Warre Vintage Port 2011 chaser. Chocolate and vintage port is always a wise choice. Many thanks to hosts Mike Wilke, who did the yeoman’s work, and Joe Goldstein, as well as the HHC culinary staff and servers, who kept things on track.

The Thunderbird Salad originated in Omaha.

Omaha is known for a few culinary innovations: the Rueben Sandwich, Butter Brickle Ice Cream, and the Thunderbird Salad. Steve Villamonte, himself a chef, writes of his father’s innovation and his efforts to trademark the salad. “The Thunderbird Salad dates back to the 1960’s when Executive Chef Luis Villamonte at the Happy Hollow country club served the salad to his patrons. Peruvian-born chef Luis Villamonte created the recipe to be what fans of the salad know today. Because of this status the salad made its way to most of the Omaha area’s private clubs through working associates of Villamonte.” Steve got the idea to trademark

the salad dressing when serving a wedding for 600. This was not easily done, and it took 5 years just to trademark the brand. It currently sells to consumers at Hy-Vee, and Pegler-Sysco sells twogallon cases to Nebraska restaurants. Then it proved to be too much work to make, sell and stock the salad dressing. “When someone has the idea they are going to take a family recipe and make millions, they quickly learn the process is lengthy, tedious and not realistic. I have been on this project for almost ten years and still feel at times, like I am in the infant stage.”