I've had a place on my "Restaurants to Eat" list for quite sometime after I'd read about their burgers being some of the best in the Midwest. I came to find that their steaks are also pretty popular with the people who have gone there for over 60 years. On a late day trip from Fort Wayne to South Bend, I drove through Elkhart and stopped off for dinner at Heinnies.
Even though the place opened in 1951, the legacy behind Heinnies goes back even further - into the days of Prohibition. That's when Tom DeShone opened a little speakeasy as part of his hotel in the downtown Elkhart. DeShone would ferry illegal booze from Chicago and offer entertainment and gambling in his little place near the tracks in Elkhart.
His son Henry - a.k.a. Heinnie (pronounced HI-nee) - worked for his dad helping run the hotel and what later became a licensed bar after Prohibition. Around 1950, the U.S. Postal Service wanted the land that the bar stood on to build a new post office. Looking around for land to purchase to build a new place, Heinnie found a small tract of land on Lusher Ave. which, at the time, was pretty much on the outskirts of Elkhart. It's still the spot where Heinnies sits today. (see map) People thought he was nuts to build a bar that far out of town, but he went ahead and did so. Heinnie ran the front of the small place while his wife, Maxine, ran the kitchen making sandwiches (hot beef or cold ham) and soup (bean or chili).
20 years after opening on Lusher Ave., Heinnie's son Harry joined the family business. After Heinnie died in 1979, Harry expanded the bar area. In 1985, he added a restaurant in the back of the place - the Back Barn. Harry DeShone's son, Troy, was already working at the place, and after building the restaurant in the back he convinced his other son, Bill, to quit his electronics job in Albuquerque and move back to help run the family business. Harry sold the business to his boys in 1987 and they continue to run Heinnies today. Bill and Troy's children are now also working in the bar/restaurant making it five generations of the DeShone family working in the family business.
It was around 7:30 when I pulled into the parking lot on the side of Heinnie's. I went through a side door under an awning that had "Heinnies Back Barn" printed on the canopy. I was met at the hostess stand by a young woman who directed me to a high-walled booth in the dining area. All of the eating areas were surrounded by high barn-board walls so there wasn't a good photo opportunity of the dining room.
The tables were covered with a vinyl faux-cowhide print. The dining room was well-lit and featured some antique items on a landing above the dining area. My server for the evening - Sharon - came by to take my drink order. I ordered a Sam Adams beer while I looked through the menu.
Their signature burger at Heinnies is the Claybaugh, two seasoned beef patties topped with American, Swiss, mozzarella and cheddar cheese, then they throw on bacon, mushrooms, grilled onions, lettuce and a tomato slice. That actually sounded pretty good, but I thought it would have been too much for me. While I did want to try a burger, I'd had one earlier in the day and didn't feel like having another that evening. (Photo courtesy South Bend Tribune.)
Other featured items on Heinnies menu included a 1/3 lb. pork loin sandwich that you can get either grilled or breaded and deep-fried, seafood such as baked or battered and fried orange roughy, and prime rib that is served Monday, Friday and Saturday. They have a 20 ounce "Clydesdale" cut in addition to a 16 ounce and a 10 ounce cut of prime rib.
I decided upon getting a steak, but the only size of filet they had on the menu was a 6 ounce cut. I was more hungry than that, so I ended up getting the New York strip, the 10 ounce size. Sharon, who seemed rather indifferent as a server, casually asked me if I wanted any sautéed mushrooms with the steak. Sure! I love sautéed mushrooms! I got a side of rice rather than a potato side. I figured between the steak and the mushrooms, that would be enough food.
I started out with a basic dinner salad with blue cheese dressing that was served in a small plastic container. I thought, "How Midwestern!" The salad featured fresh greens with thick cut onion slices, cherry tomatoes and shaved cabbage. The blue cheese dressing was thick and didn't go very far. I could have used a second tub of dressing.
I was still working on my salad when Sharon brought out my steak and wordlessly set it down in front of me. The small sautéed button mushrooms were loaded on the New York strip, almost covering the piece of beef. A piece of grilled garlic bread was served with the steak.
The steak was, well, all right. It wasn't anything that was extraordinary, nor was it sub-par. It was a little overcooked from the medium-rare that I'd asked for, but it wasn't that bad. It had a nice juiciness to the cut and had a nice steak flavor.
The mushrooms, however, I wish I would have gotten them on the side. The earthiness of the mushrooms was prevalent and detracted from the taste of the beef. They were also very salty and for someone who doesn't eat a lot of salt, they were almost too salty.
But I will say that what struck me the most about the meal was how good the grilled bread was. It had a succinct taste and full of flavor. I sopped up some of the juice from the steak with the bread and it made it taste even better.
Before I left, I took a look around at the bar area of Heinnies. It looks like someone is a big race car fan at the restaurant as there were loads of race car pictures and memorabilia on the walls in the bar area. I took a couple pictures of the bar area, but they were too blurry to put on here. It looked like it would be a nice place to belly up to the bar.
My experience at Heinnies was fine. The New York strip was all right, albeit a tad overcooked for my tastes. My server seemed a little disinterested and very neutral in her demeanor. The atmosphere was fine, even down to the vinyl faux-cowhide table covers. I am going back at some point to get a burger from Heinnies. I have feeling that it will be even better than the steak.
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