First Look: Heritage Steak & Whiskey, Opening at Eton on Friday, November 24

Heritage Steak & Whiskey, opening November 24 at Eton Chagrin Boulevard. Credit: Douglas Trattner

Yes, it’s taken Doug Petkovic approximately two years to get to this point, but the wait appears more than worth it. When Heritage Steak & Whiskey opens on Friday, November 24, the restaurant should quickly earn a spot amongst Northeast Ohio’s most highly regarded steakhouses. Petkovic worked with Richardson Design to rework the former Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse at Eton Chagrin Boulevard into a warm, handsome and contemporary space.

While no surface went untouched, the largest changes can be found up front, where the bulky mahogany bar had formed a barrier to the outside world. With the bar flipped, lounge guests have views of both the dining room and the front patio. In this new lounge area there is seating for 45 in posh leather armchairs, red-velvet soft-seating nooks, communal high-tops and the lengthy quartz bar.

A “wall of whiskies,” stocked with a selection of 400 bottles, separates the bar and dining room. That spacious and grand dining room can accommodate more than the 85 seats that Petkovic has arranged, but the owner didn’t want to shoehorn guests in. As with the lounge, there is a variety of seating options that range from conventional tables to snug booths. What you won’t find is the ubiquitous wall-hugging banquettes that put one diner at a disadvantage in terms of views.

“I wanted to build a place for two people to sit that isn’t like every other restaurant banquette, where one person has to stare at a wall,” Petkovic explains.

These cozy booths for two can be found in each corner of the dining room.

A bustling open kitchen will prepare elevated steakhouse fare, the star of which will be the wood-grilled steaks and chops. Guests can look forward to a mix of cuts, grades and purveyors, with a starting lineup that includes a filet, hangar, strip, bone-in ribeye, center-cut ribeye and spinalis, aka the ribeye cap, aka the best part of the best steak.

While cooking over a mix of charcoal and hardwood adds a layer of complexity in the kitchen, Petkovic believes the results are worth it.

“Firstly, it produces a great deal of heat and secondly, it’s the flavor – the smoke from the fat hitting the flames and coming back up,” he says. “It’s night and day in my opinion.”

In the coming weeks, Petkovic will “roll out” the smoked prime rib, sliced and served tableside from a stainless steel cart.

Executive chef Jeff Gable has created a menu that doesn’t skimp on the non-steak items. There is a double-bone heritage-breed pork chop, duck confit, Dover sole, salmon roulade, linguini with clams, and a burger topped with pork belly.

Diners will see classic steakhouse starters and salads, like oysters on the half shell, baked oysters, shrimp cocktail, crab cakes, beef tartare, and a wedge. Same goes for the sides, but the preparations will be chef-driven and creative.

“It’s a steakhouse, so there are a lot of boxes to check, but everything will have a little bit of a twist, something you’re not going to find everywhere,” says Gable. “We want this to be fun for people. Yes, it’s elevated, but it still needs to be fun; we’re here to entertain people.”

Petkovic says that he wants to revive the tradition of the robust happy hour, when the after-work crowd could find quality food and drink at affordable prices. Heritage will offer $5 beers, wines, cocktails and food items that rise well above the typical fried finger foods, he pledges.

Heritage will serve dinner Tuesday through Sunday to start, with Monday dinner service to join shortly.

This is a solo project for Petkovic, who is a partner in Michael Symon Restaurants.