Jake Rosmarin has never set foot inside an Omaha restaurant.
And yet, in the past month, he has eaten Reuben egg rolls from Paddy McGown’s, a burrito bowl from Bomb Taco, a box of candy from Chocolat Abielle, buffalo chicken pizza from Mama’s and, of course, a Runza. These and many other Omaha takeout standouts have been delivered directly to his address: A door located inside the University of Nebraska Medical Center National Quarantine Unit.
Rosmarin, an Instagram-famous travel blogger from Boston, is one of 10 people being monitored in Omaha after he and fellow passengers on an Atlantic Ocean cruise were exposed to the rare Andes strain of the hantavirus.
The outbreak killed three people who were aboard the cruise ship, and at least eight more are confirmed or suspected to have contracted the virus.
Rosmarin appears to have eluded hantavirus. Instead he’s battling through 42 days of quarantined boredom.
He’s doing it by eating his way through Omaha.
This odd Omaha food journey started about a week into his stay, after he’d mentioned to the staff a few times how much he wanted a Starbucks coffee.
On May 12, his third day at UNMC, they brought him an iced horchata espresso topped with vanilla cold foam from the Starbucks inside the hospital. He posted it on his social media accounts, a familiar pursuit that helps him keep busy during the day.
“It just brought me so much joy,” he said of that first coffee.
The first meal he tried from a local spot came a week later, from the Paddy Wagon, the food truck arm of Paddy McGown’s, which was serving lunch at the hospital. The highlight was the Reuben egg rolls the restaurant is known for.
“This food looks insanely good,” he said, right before double-dipping his egg rolls in Thousand Island. “This might be one of the best things I have ever had. Ten out of ten.”
Then his monotonous days began to look very different.
During the next week, he tried more food truck cuisine. He ate that chocolate. He snarfed a burrito. He devoured a pizza.
Mama’s Pizza sent a pizza along with chicken wings with blue cheese for one Saturday night dinner. A group of med students from UNMC sent all the quarantine residents care packages full of lots of Nebraska goods: soap, granola, coffee, books and cookies, all donated by local businesses.
And then, on May 26: Runza. The lunch was organized, in part, by Gov. Jim Pillen’s office.
Rosmarin said he’d never tried a bierock.
He got a new barbecue bacon version of a Runza, plus ranch dressing, frings – that’s a mix of fries and onion rings, for the uninitiated – and a prickly pear lemonade.
“This is nice,” he said one bite in. “I could mess with a Runza.”
Runza spokeswoman Becky Perrett said in an email that the order for the unit came in through the restaurant’s location at 50th and Center streets.
She said lots of Runza employees are enjoying watching Rosmarin’s social media posts.
“We were honored to share a taste of Nebraska with those in quarantine,” she said. “Jake is a fan favorite around our office. His positivity in such a unique situation makes for a fun watch.”
Rosmarin said some businesses have reached out to him directly to arrange a delivery, but most are organized through the quarantine unit staff.
And he’s often not the only one who gets the food. All 10 current residents are eating in their rooms along with him, and oftentimes, the doctors and nurses do, too.
The only time staff comes into his room is for bloodwork, he said, and then only wearing masks, face shields and other protective gear.
For meal deliveries, nursing staff stay on their side of the door and Rosmarin on his, and the food is handed through on a tray or in a bag.
Rosmain is doing more than just eating to pass the time. He has received many care packages from both loved ones and strangers. The packages usually include things to help him stay busy.
He has read books and watched movies, of course. He also has posted about his morning flavored iced latte routine and his nightly skincare routine. He has crocheted a toy penguin and put together Lego kits. For the past few days, he has tried his hand at “diamond painting,” where he affixes small stones to a picture, in this case a world map.
But, yes, the delivered Omaha meals are the highlights.
“I’m so grateful for all the businesses that have been kind to us here,” he said. “I’ve really learned a lot about ‘Nebraska nice’ since being here. It’s a real thing.”
He has now tried Casey’s pizza and brunched on bagels from the Omaha Bagel Company. He has received three pints of eCreamery ice cream in personalized packaging, the pints reading “Jake’s scoops of support,” “Rosmarin quarantine therapy” and “Dig in Jake, you deserve it!”
He has had a latte from Hardy Coffee, Indian from Astoria Biryana House, a sandwich from Little King, a burger from Stella’s, which he described as “unreal,” and much more.
Autumn Pruitt, who co-owns Hardy Coffee, said her team had been following Rosmarin’s story on social media and saw him make coffee with cookie butter flavoring in his room.
They then desperately wanted him to try the Biscoff cafe au lait from Hardy’s spring menu.
They sent him a direct message, but it didn’t make it to him, she said, so they doubled down, finding the right connection at UNMC through a friend and taking orders for everyone in the unit.
By the time the delivery happened, Hardy had gone to its summer menu, so Jake ordered a White Chocolate Basil Shaken Espresso with lemon cold foam on top. The drink is inspired by an ice cream flavor at Coneflower Creamery, Pruitt said.
“It was our hope that Jake, and everyone else in the quarantine unit, felt cared for and that their taste buds were comforted in a way that only good food and drink can manage,” she said.
Becky App, who co-owns eCreamery in Dundee, has also been following Rosmarin’s story. The shop made special flavors for Rosmarin and every other patient in quarantine.
“When it was announced they would be quarantining in Omaha, we were proud of our little flyover city and wanted to give the patients so far from home a little Omaha TLC,” App said. “No surprise that in our opinion, ice cream always says it best.”
ECreamery sent Rosmarin three personalized flavors: peanut butter caramel with chocolate- covered pretzels, peanut butter cups and a caramel swirl; coffee caramel ice cream with chocolate chunks and toffee pieces; and chocolate cake ice cream featuring a fudge swirl and brownie bites.
“Honestly, I don’t know how I am supposed to pick a favorite,” he said.
As Rosmarin nears his final week in quarantine, he said he has food deliveries scheduled for every day. After his 42 days are complete, Rosmarin plans to head straight home — he has been away for three months, between his time on the ship and his time in Omaha.
But he says he can envision returning to the city in a year or two, this time actually entering restaurants with his fiancée Alex.
“Maybe we can do a little food tour of Omaha,” he said.
In case you are worried about Rosmarin’s waistline, another thing he has been doing to keep himself busy is regularly working out. He has a treadmill in his room. He rides an exercise bike, tracking miles and sharing how many calories he has burned via the Orangetheory app – Rosmarin is a member of the national fitness studio in Boston.
So, has he managed to keep off the Omaha 15 during his stay?
“Uh, I probably gained a little bit,” he texted with a laughing emoji. “But overall nothing crazy. In the final stretch and very excited to be going home soon.”
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