One of the best things to come out of the Ohio City Galley is the Tinman Burger, a drippy double smash burger with American cheese, special sauce, and sweet and spicy pickles on a brioche bun. The burger was so good, in fact, that it helped ignite a smash burger goldrush throughout The Land.
After leaving the Galley, chef Michael Schoen took his talents to Lakewood, where he opened Eugene Kitchen at BottleHouse Brewery (13368 Madison Ave., 216-401-9473). Originally, he says, the plan was to open a second shop at the Cleveland Heights BottleHouse as well, but the pandemic threw a monkey wrench in those plans.
Now, three years later, Schoen will follow through with those plans to open a second location on the east side. Eugene Kitchen will open at the Cleveland Heights BottleHouse on November 30. Saroj & Carlos will be departing after nearly a year.
Schoen says that in hindsight, he’s glad to have had the past three years to prepare for expansion.
“We could have opened in both places, we could have had a brick-and-mortar, but we really wanted to make sure that what we were doing was consistent,” he explains. “Now we’re ready. We have an awesome staff that has been with me for a couple years, so the consistency is there – making sure that it’s the same.”
Schoen says that in addition to the “cult-like following” there is for the Tinman burger, Eugene has built a solid reputation in Lakewood for its entire operation. The menu, which will be largely the same as in Lakewood, will offer a vegan burger, fried chicken sandwich, Buffalo chicken sandwich, crispy tenders, hand-cut fries and a few other sides.
Eugene at BottleHouse will be open for dinner seven days a week and lunch on the weekends.
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