‘Cattle Call’ opened its doors August 10th at the corner of Farnham and 16th in downtown Omaha. It was developed as a late-night food spot but has become so much more. It’s a great place to stop in, grab a bite and a cocktail. It’s also a great date night spot with a short menu that screams fine dining.
Inside is a rustic design with deep reds and blacks. When you walk in, you can immediately see into the kitchen where the chefs take great care, preparing and plating appetizers, entrees and desserts.
Cattle Call dining area
At the helm is executive chef Dominic Gurciullo, who’s previous experience includes working as a sous chef for V. Mertz and Dante (without the official title, as it wasn’t an official position at either restaurant during his tenure). This is Gurciollo’s first time as executive chef, and he’s off to a fantastic start as his entrees are hallmarked with experience and confidence.
Gurciullo credits his team for a big part of Cattle Call’s success. Abraham Vidaurre is the sous chef after working with Gurciullo at Yoshimoto and V. Mertz. They have developed a memorable menu, which will change seasonally.
Cattle Call kitchen
“How we wrote our menu was we kind of used ‘cattle call’ as the deriving factor because that stands for an open audition,” Gurciullo said. “And we kind of wanted any sort of flavors and food styles to be able to find a place on our menu just like we want anyone from any walk of life to be able to find a space in our restaurant.”
Jennifer and I first visited early on Friday, an hour after their 4 p.m. opening. We were glad for our reservation, because the only empty seats were at the bar. Our second visit was on Wednesday when it was quiet and cozy before filling up as the evening progressed.
Mango spicy margarita
We had two cocktails each. Jennifer tried the lychee coconut martini and the mango spicy margarita. I had the amaretto sour and the hanky panky. For the appetizer, we selected nana’s charcuterie. Entrees were Morgan Ranch short ribs and the tagliatelle. Dessert was the pochinki.
The amaretto sour is made with bourbon, amaretto, lime, simple syrup and foamed egg white. The combination of bourbon, amaretto and lime is divine, and the egg white gives it a silky finish.
Lychee coconut martini
Jennifer is making note of new favorite cocktails, and the lychee coconut martini easily made her list. It’s a blend of vodka, lychee juice, coconut cream and lime. The coconut and lime is very tropical and the lychee provides a lovely Asian spin.
The mango spicy margarita with tequila, jalapeno agave syrup, mango and lime is a delicious cocktail. Tequila cocktails like this are a natural match for a bit of heat. Here we get a good balance of mango with the lime and tequila along with a good punch of jalapeno.
The hanky panky is an acquired taste, and while I’m not there yet, I’ve been told that once you acquire it you won’t turn back. I appreciate the craftsmanship of this cocktail. It’s made with gin, fernet branca (a bitter, herbal Italian liqueur) and sweet vermouth. It’s a very bitter cocktail packed with complex flavors. I look forward to trying it more in an attempt to acquire a taste for it. Those who already have will likely not be disappointed.
Nana’s charcuterie
Nana’s charcuterie is a fresh selection of Italian meats, cheeses, olives, almonds and house made ricotta with honey. The hero is the fresh ricotta, which is light, creamy and a refreshing addition. It pairs well with everything on the plate.
Tagliatelle
In the tagliatelle, the noodles are house made, tossed with omstead honey nut squash puree and topped with burrata with brown butter and toasted pumpkin seeds. Nothing beats fresh made pasta, plus the other elements in this dish work well together. It’s an excellent welcome to the fall season.
Morgan Ranch short ribs
When Gurciullo presented the Morgan Ranch short rib and explained the dish, I was a tad concerned because I didn’t see the short ribs. My concern was quickly alleviated when I discovered they were nestled below the risotto. The risotto is made with oyster mushroom, miller-dohrman sweet peppers, Long Walk hakurei turnips and beef jus. The risotto was cooked to expert perfection. The short ribs literally melt in your mouth. Simply a wonderful dish.
Pochinki
The pochinki are delicate fried donut holes with house made ricotta covered in cinnamon sugar. On the side is a thick, silky dark chocolate cremeux that’s topped with smoked salt. Both the pochinki and cremeux are great on their own, but they’re even better when combined. It’s an indulgent dessert that won’t leave you feeling too guilty – especially if you share it.
For the second visit, cocktails were the new cosmo, the east side soda and a hot toddy. We went for steamed momos and Long Walk beets as appetizers. For entrees, Jennifer had the Hope Ranch mussels and I had the chicken thigh roulade. Dessert was the matcha panna cotta.
The new cosmo is a traditional cosmopolitan made with vodka, cranberry, triple sec, simple syrup and lime. Despite the sweetness of the drink, the tartness of the cranberry punches through with the hint of citrus from the triple sec and the lime. It’s a very good blend of sweet, tart and tangy citrus.
East side soda
The east side soda is refreshing. It’s a crisp concoction of gin, cucumber, mint, simple syrup and lime juice. This is a cocktail to enjoy year round and likely pairs well with just about anything on the menu.
The hot toddy is a warm hug of hot earl gray tea, honey, lemon and bourbon. The lemon is prominent but not overpowering and the honey helps make this a comforting hot cocktail. You’ll have to remember to ask for it as it’s not written on the menu.
Momos.
Sauces (left to right: mild, sherpa, sweet chili and mango habernero)
Given that Cattle Call originated with Momo Station, we had to try the momos, which are either steamed or fried dumplings. We opted for steamed momos and our server let us split the 10 piece order between chicken and pork. There are a selection of sauces, mild, sherpa, sweet chili and mango habanero. Our favorite was the sweet chil followed closely by the mango habaneroi. The dumplings were fantastically tender, and while both meat options were delicious, we favored the pork. I strongly encourage including these when you visit.
Long Walk beets
As someone who used to avoid beets, I’m really becoming a fan, especially with an option like the Long Walk beets. The beets are accompanied by labneh (a strained Middle Eastern yogurt with a ricotta consistency), a toasted yeast cocoa rub, fig gastrique, crunchy chickpeas and arugula. The rootiness of the beets, the slightly sour creaminess of the labneh, the crunch of the chickpeas and the sweetness from the gastrique make this a very noteworthy appetizer.
Hope Ranch mussels
The Hope Ranch mussels come with soffrito (an aromatic sautee of carrots, celery and onion), Nepoli tomato sauce, marinated tomatoes and sliced baguette. The mussels were cooked to perfection, came off the shell easily and paired fantastically with the other elements. The baguette is a necessary accompaniment – you’ll want to soak up the remaining sauce when you’re done with the mussels.
Chicken thigh roulade
The chicken thigh roulade is a visually stunning dish. While the roulade is wonderful, my favorite element on this dish was the aloo chop. These are made with mashed potatoes, mixed with spices, lightly breaded and shallow fried. The result is a delicate potato, crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside. The rest of the dish has kohlrabi kimchi, bok choi and smoked gouda mornay. I found the sourness of the kohlrabi kimchi to be too overwhelming, standing in an extreme contrast to the other flavors that seemed out of place for my taste. That aside, the roulade and aloo chop are fantastic.
Matcha panna cotta
We closed our second visit with the matcha panna cotta. The panna cotta is delicately infused with matcha tea. The sauce is ginger golden honey. It’s topped with grated halva (a Middle Eastern dessert made with sesame, flour and honey). The panna cotta is silky, smooth and wonderful and the honey and halva make this dessert memorable.
Cattle Call is owned by Sagar Gurung and Rocky Shrestha, who first opened Kathmandu Momo Station in the Blackstone District in 2019. They later closed it and merged into the Cattle Call location. There’s still a Momo Station in the Inner Rail Food Hall at Aksarben Village. When you arrive at Cattle Call, you’ll see the Kathmandu Momo Station sign right next to the Cattle Call sign.
Street view inside Cattle Call
“Rocky and Sagar are both Nepolese,” Gurciullo said. “So we try to use some flavors in that regard for the menu. We’re trying to use eastern flavors with western techniques and try to find that healthy middle ground.”
Cattle call plans to change its menu seasonally. They’ve just added a prix fixe menu last week and will be incorporating special evenings with wine pairings. There’s also a plan for food pairings with music.
Cattle Call retail area
“One thing we’re planning for in the near future is going to be with sound bites,” Gurciullo said. “It’s a Really cool concept.” The concept involves Claire James, who has her master’s in classical music.
“Her idea was to pair classical music to food,” Gurciullo explained. “So she composes music and pairs that with different flavor profiles.”
Jennifer and I really enjoyed both of our visits to Cattle Call. While it’s billed as late night food, it’s in every way a complete dining experience. From the momos, to the fantastic cocktails to the inspired menu, Gurciull and his team more than answer the call.
