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    The Nifty

    4.1 (17 reviews)
    InexpensiveDive Bars, American
    Closed 2:00 pm - 12:00 am (Next day)

    The Nifty Photos

    Business Info

    THE NIFTY ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Classy
    Happy hour specials
    Good for groups
    Outdoor seating

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    Behind the bar
    Will S.

    The Nifty is a nice, little neighborhood bar on the east end of Benson. You'll find day drinking regulars draining pitches of domestic beer by themselves or chatting with each other outside under in the covered smoking patio which is heated in the winter. On the inside, the Nifty is floor-to-ceiling beige wood paneling, giving a warm alternative to the gray busy streets and used car lots that surround the building. The TVs show sports, unless it's 4:30, then it's Jeopardy time. The drinks at the Nifty range from bottom of the barrel spirits to streamlined favorites to IPAs and top shelf Scotch. The bartender told us they rarely sell any of the top shelf stuff, but they like to stock it anyway (the Nifty shares the same owner as swank Old Market spot Havana Garage). The Nifty can maybe hold 30 people comfortably, but could squeeze in 50 or more on a busy night. The Nifty also hosts the occasional special event and concert. Get there for nice change of pace from Benson's Maple Street drag.

    a variety of beer taps
    Jonathan N.

    The Nifty Bar is totally a dive. Decent selection of beers and booze. I like how they follow the classic bar rule that if your pour, pint or pitcher, blows the keg, they give you that portion and then they pour you the one you ordered. Whatever happened to that? No food there but cool for a nightcap or drive-by beer.

    The Nifty
    Mike D.

    So we drove down a sketchy, one way, what appeared to be some kind of drainage ditch judging by the sloped sides, through a random used car dealership's parking lot up to this place. But don't worry; there was plenty of parking. Except in the "No Parking" zone, that was already taken by someone else....... Anyways, we walked in and everybody turned to look at us, as we kind of expected to happen. One of the obvious regulars did decide to ask "What we were doing here" and "Who we were". We told them we were here to drink beer and apparently that was a good enough answer for them. They have a shuffle board table in here....you know you're in a good old dive when there's shuffleboard. There is a pool table towards the back and the whole place has been redone in wood paneling, it looks very nice. Good selection of beers on tap, I was surprised, and they decided to be a part of of the 2015 Omaha Beer Week as well. The bartender looked confused when I asked him about the special and suddenly everyone else at the bar was curious about it as well. Overall Andy was a great bartender and there was a cool mix of old regulars who have been coming here for 30 years and new regulars who decide they are going to drink multiple Captain and Cokes at 1pm until who knows how late.....

    two cars parked in a parking lot
    Scott M.

    While visiting Omaha my buddy and I picked this place because the online reviews we read here and elsewhere talked about the rowdy crowd and mentioned that customers are constantly getting their cars towed. Admittedly we did have trouble figuring out how to get to their parking lot, but once we did it wasn't too hard at all to park legally. It was still daytime (mid afternoon) and the crowd inside seemed pretty mellow. We grabbed our beers and settled in to play Silver Strike. A little kid (about 6 years old) repeatedly asked us when we'd be done because he wanted to "play" (as in randomly push buttons and spin the trackball). People were eating, so the kitchen must be open on more than just Thursdays now. We didn't really have the experiences the other reviewers had, the regulars were all well-behaved and kept to themselves. But maybe they just hadn't had enough to drink yet.

    a view of the water from a deck

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    4 months ago

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    3 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    8 years ago

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    8 years ago

    Very nice bartenders affordable drinks love the friendly crowd it brings never any douches. Will be back soon!

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    19 years ago

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    9 years ago

    Love the small bar feel and welcoming staff. Dog friendly is a huge plus! Will return again soon for sure.

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    10 years ago

    I came here after the Beer Fest in 2015x it was a dive, but loved it. It was redone and had a game in there; plus the music was Awesome!!

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    Review Highlights - The Nifty

    I kind of liked the vibe and while the location is a little further east of the rest of the Benson bars, it's worth the drive.

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    The Elbow Room

    The Elbow Room

    3.6
    (18 reviews)
    2.8 mi
    $

    The Elbow Room is a solid choice for a night out, if you're wanting a more chill/divey experience…read more(which are my fave). They're never super busy when I've been. I even was there on St. Patrick's Day and it never got too full. The ambiance is a little dim, which I think is what they're going for, and they have pool, darts, and shuffleboard. The staff is always kind and helpful when I've been there, which adds to the welcoming, chill atmosphere. They sometimes will have crockpots out with food you can snack on. On St. Paddy's Day, it was a corned beef stew that definitely hit the spot. If you're not there on a game day or holiday when they have the crock pots out, they don't serve food for purchase (aside from some tasty bagged chips), so be sure to eat before or after you come, or you can order delivery from a few nearby places. And lastly, they are very affordable. If you're drinking cheap beer, like I do (which they have many options of), expect to spend less than $10 here for the whole night. For the low cost, chill vibes, and good drinks - you should definitely check out The Elbow Room!

    Some friends were recently in town for the weekend and we were looking for a dive bar. Before…read moregetting married and having kids, most of us spent our mid to late 20's playing darts, shuffleboard and any other bar game on the weekends. So, when we get together these days, we like to find a place that allows us to nostalgically re-live those days. We thought the Elbow Room fit the bill. Turns out, we were partially right. It's our kind of bar generally. Kind of run down and dingy but a place where you can drink cold beer. In theory, you could also play shuffleboard and darts. This particular night the dart board was not operational and the shuffleboard table was marginal at best. They had no sand to add to the table and there are dead spots on the board where the pucks literally just stop. Not optimal. But, we were having fun and learning the nuance of the board was kind of a challenge so we spent quite a bit of our evening playing anyway. When you walk in, you are hit with a fairly strong musty smell of old bar. You get used to it and it's not a big deal. The bartender this night was a good dude and took good care of us. This is definitely a locals bar and it was a pretty chill group on this particular Saturday night. If you want to find a hole in the wall to drink some beer, this fits the bill. If you want to play bar games, you might want to go elsewhere.

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    The Elbow Room
    The Elbow Room
    The Elbow Room

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    The Nifty - divebars - Updated June 2026

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