The Lyceum

Best Prime Rib Saturday nights in the area. You can always depend on getting great food!

The Lyceum in Brownville, NE recently changed hands, ushering in a new adaptation of the space. Gone are the books and book selves that defined it for so long as a premier location for books and food in book town. The refreshed space is newly painted with art on the walls. The main room features a large display of historical photos of old Brownville. Wood tables of various sizes are nicely spaced throughout the four rooms. The new owner, Anita, has added a buffet with salads and hot items in addition to a menu that changes daily. She also has prime rib on Saturday nights. Bookguy, who has a bookstore next door, has been eating there when he comes down from Omaha on weekends. He is a buffet guy and usually gets that. Today was some kind of pork smothered with gravy and sides of mashed potatoes, corn, and peas. I sampled a bite of potato and pork and thought they were savory. I went with the vegetable quiche with salad and muffin. The salad was a nice mix of greens and very fresh. The quiche was flavorful and had a tasty crust. The portion size was perfect so I had just enough room for a delicious piece of house made Snickers cake. The Lyceum has been a Brownville mainstay for years and years. It's great to see all the cars parked outside as people come to little ole Brownville for delicious meals.

We were travelling thru Brownville Sunday & decided to check out the shops & stopped for lunch just before closing time. The folks here took our order for some great homemade comfort food & didn't rush us at all! I have never ate ham loaf before & now I want it again! The portions are large & cost is low. It is a clean restaurant & bookstore with wonderful people working.

Always great food, always great people. I love the beautiful building and atmosphere. It's a very small town, so maybe it won't be what you expect, but it tastes likehome cooking and everyone has a smile. I love living down the street from here, but when we move I'll be sure to visit!

It's fair to say that Brownville is starved for restaurant options (pun unintended). Lyceum was our sole food option on a late Saturday morning biking on the Steamboat Trace.My party and I enjoyed our meal outdoors on the sole picnic table just outside the front door. I'm unsure if it was intended for outdoor dining, but it was too beautiful of a day to eat inside. I ordered a club sandwich ($7.99 or $8.99) that came with a side salad or chips; I opted for the side salad. Less than 10 minutes after submitting our order, our server produced our orders. The club sandwich was very good. Lyceum does tout serving "fine food," but I had a hard time getting over the higher prices on the menu. The service was great. Our server was attentive, the food was delivered quickly, and the staff inside had a good sense of humor. She highly recommended their desserts: cakes that are made in-house, and pies that are supplied locally.If we find ourselves in Brownville again for lunch, I won't hesitate to revisit.The real cool part about this place is that it doubles as a book store. If you're traveling on I-29, I recommend taking the 5 mile detour into Brownville to check out this small downtown area with an impressive strip of mom-and-pop businesses.

I've been here a couple times and every time it's been more than I expected. I visited last weekend after a night tent camping at Indian Cave's. My friends assumed it would be a greasy small town diner, perfect after a night of camping. They were all surprised to find it's anything but that.There's usually just a couple menu items, a salad, cheap coffee, juice, and tea, some muffins, and homemade pie. All homemade with quality ingredients. I had their spinach, feta, strawberry salad and was blown away. No offense to small towns in the middle of nowhere, but I expected ranch with ice burg lettuce as the house salad. For the main dishes of the day they had a turkey casserole or a cheese burger. Even the burger was quality and above average. Bravo! The Lyceum is a great asset the the little village of Brownville and I hope it stays around for a long time. If you're ever in SE Nebraska please make this a stop on your visit. You wont be let down.

Stopped in for lunch after hitting the Steamboat Trace for 20+ miles.Snagged a picnic table out front and split some dishes with the fam. Bacon cheeseburger on ciabatta? Delicious. The bread was just...GREAT. Soft and slightly chewy and full of flavor -- I think I liked it more than a traditional bun.Club sandwich piled high with turkey/ham? Killer. And great, great toasted bread. If the bread here is this good, think of the rest of the ingredients. Top notch, in my opinion.And then a slice of peach pie? WOW. They don't make the pie in-house, but they do get it locally, and it's homemade and boy do you know it when you take a bite.It was very, very good.Prices were fine -- maybe a touch more than what I expected, but then the quality of the food, preparation and the friendliness of the staff made the value hard to beat.Everyone was friendly, hospitable and conversational. This made for a really great lunch, and we will definitely be going back.

This is a popular place for us to eat when the in-laws come over. The menu is ever changing and the food is always high quality and fresh. I can't think of a bad meal I've been served at the Lyceum. I love the decor with all the books and art work. If you are passing through and looking for a neat little place to eat with good food, you owe it to yourself to try the Lyceum. Call ahead as hours to the place seem to be odd during the winter months.

I enjoyed the food and the service was great. The ambiance is really nice. Would definitely recommend it

Consistently good food cooked and served by a super fun staff, on Brownville's beautiful Main Street.