Hearth Restaurant in Peoria Heights is known for their locally-sourced farm fresh lunch and dinner entrees and their extensive whiskey and wine selection, but it’s not the first place that you think of when you want to go out for a steak dinner. Well, after you read today’s post, I think all that is going to change! Let’s head over to Hearth for the seventh week of this mighty and meaty seven month steak journey!
Here we are at Hearth, tonight’s special is chicken pot pie, which sounds delicious, but we’re here for steak! We’ll try that on our next stop in here.
They’ve remodeled the front section of the restaurant, but first let’s make a beeline for the bar, where Chris the bartender is at the ready with a nice cold beer.
That’s the owner of Hearth, Hugh Higgins with his son Seth who’s the Executive Chef and he suggested that I try the Ribeye and so that’s the cut of steak we’ll be dining on this week. And how ironic that I ran into Steve Shaw, the owner of Alexander’s Steakhouse on our steak journey! Alexander’s is a classic steakhouse here in Peoria and we’ll be stopping in there soon on this seven month tour, so stay tuned!
That’s my view of the back of the bar and the one lone beer on tap is Stella Artois.
Hearth has the most extensive whiskey selection in Peoria. There’s top-shelf whiskey on the bar, on the wall and on the...top shelf!
Here’s a shot of the bar from the other end. Very impressive!
As I mentioned when we walked in here, they’ve remodeled the front room and it’s a cozy, wood-paneled dining area that looks out on Prospect Road.
In addition to a huge whiskey selection, they have an entire wall of wine! There’s Hugh and Steve sampling a glass, cheers guys!
The dining room is back behind the bar and it’s where I took possibly the most elegant obligatory mirror shot of my blogging career! Quite a moment!
The backroom is very nice and would be a perfect spot to reserve for a holiday party!
Meanwhile, back at the bar, it looks like it’s that magical time for...
This week’s steak dinner, served up by Larry!
As I said, I took Seth’s suggestion of the Ribeye steak dinner and it looks fantastic! But before we dive into the beef...
I sampled the potatoes and they were nothing short of amazing! They are Gratin Dauphinois potatoes and they're rich and decadent in a way I never knew potatoes could be! The potatoes are cut thinly and are swimming in a delightful cream sauce and topped off with a layer of melted cheese. I’ve never seen these on any menu in Peoria and it’s worth a trip here just to sample this wonderful French potato dish!
Okay, now it’s time for the star of the evening, the Ribeye Steak! I’ve put a little A-1 sauce on it and it’s time to take a bite and see if it tastes as good as it looks here on the plate!
Wow! This is such an amazing tasting steak! It’s cooked perfectly and so tender and juicy! Hugh told me that the steaks here are cooked over an open flame with oak and hickory wood instead of charcoal to enhance the flavor of the steak. Hugh told me that people that come here for chicken or seafood and try the steak and that’s all they order after that! I agree and I don’t know if I’ll ever order that chicken pot pie after eating this amazing Ribeye! Thanks Hugh, Seth and everyone at Hearth for a fantastic evening and steak dinner!
Steak Rating
Steak Rating Four Elsie The Cows—One thing I want to do on this steak tour is discover restaurants that you might not think of when you are going out for a steak dinner. Hearth Restaurant is definitely one of them, go for the whiskey and then stay for the steak!
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4604 N. Prospect Road
Peoria Heights
309-686-0234
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Related Posts: Seven Months Of Steak @: Los Jimadores, Jim’s Steakhouse, Mona’s Italian Restaurant, The Packinghouse Dining Company, Fresco and The Fish House.