Omaha's historic Sicilian neighborhood just south of downtown, with a century-old bakery, an old-school steakhouse, lodge-hall spaghetti dinners, a 1908 church and the summer Santa Lucia Festival.
Little Italy sits just south of downtown Omaha, along South 10th Street and the blocks east toward the river. Italians began arriving in the 1890s, mostly from southern Italy and Sicily, and in the early 1900s labor agents recruited many workers from the Sicilian town of Carlentini for railroad and packing plant jobs. They built homes, shops, lodges and a parish here, and Carlentini is now Omaha's official sister city. Visit Nebraska notes that the heritage of those early Sicilian settlers is still celebrated throughout the neighborhood.
Today it's a quiet, mostly residential area with a handful of landmarks clustered along 10th Street and Pacific Street. St. Frances Cabrini Church, finished in 1908 and once Omaha's cathedral, anchors the neighborhood. Next door, the Sons and Daughters of Italy lodge serves volunteer-made pasta lunches on Thursdays and dinners on Fridays. Orsi's Italian Bakery & Pizzeria, open since around 1919, bakes bread and pizza on Pacific Street, and a few blocks east the giant "Stile di Famiglia" fork sculpture makes a quick photo stop.
For dinner, Via Farina serves wood-fired pizza and handmade pasta next to the BLUEBARN Theatre, a professional company staging contemporary plays, while Cascio's Steakhouse at 10th and Hickory has been run by the same family since 1946. Café Postale offers daytime meals in a former post office, and Olsen Bake Shop sits farther south on 10th Street, where a line forms most mornings. Most of these spots are an easy drive or a longer walk from the Old Market.
The neighborhood's biggest event is the Santa Lucia Festival, a Catholic and Italian-American tradition that began in the 1920s and has topped 100 years. It's held outdoors at 10th and William with Italian food, music, a Mass and a procession of the saint's statue through the streets. It has usually run in summer, from early June to early August depending on the year, and the festival committee lists June 3-6 for 2027. Admission is free.
A 15-foot steel fork twirled with spaghetti, planted in a front yard on South 7th Street as a playful tribute to Little Italy's family-style dining. Free, always visible and a quick photo stop.
Free entry
Nearest CityLine stays: Blue Oasis: Modern 1-Bed Retreat Apt 1 (2.1 mi), Midtown Home w/ Historic Charm (2.2 mi) · See all rentals by distance
Little Italy's 1908 parish church, a Spanish Colonial Revival landmark designed by Thomas Rogers Kimball that once served as Omaha's cathedral and still holds the Santa Lucia statue.
Free entry
Nearest CityLine stays: Blue Oasis: Modern 1-Bed Retreat Apt 1 (1.9 mi), Midtown Home w/ Historic Charm (2.0 mi) · See all rentals by distance
A nonprofit professional theater at 10th and Pacific in Little Italy staging contemporary, thought-provoking plays in an intimate, general-admission house, with a lobby bar before the show.
Adults $47
Nearest CityLine stays: Blue Oasis: Modern 1-Bed Retreat Apt 1 (1.8 mi), Midtown Home w/ Historic Charm (1.9 mi) · See all rentals by distance
Hours and prices come from Little Italy’s official information and can change, so confirm on their website before you go. Back to all things to do
