Warren's Spirited Kitchen might feel like an early English pub when you walk in, but ask owner Craig Bednarek to talk about the ingredients used…
Warren’s Spirited Kitchen might feel like an early English pub when you walk in, but ask owner Craig Bednarek to talk about the ingredients used in their food and it tastes distinctly of “Burton, Ohio.”
Between local fresh produce, Amish-made cheese, maple syrup and spirits, Warren’s, 14614 East Park Street, Burton, should fit right into the area.
“I wanted to do an early American pub, English pub kind of feel a little bit upscale, more of a higher-end bar feel, with high tops in the bar area,” said Bednarek, who recently opened the restaurant on Burton Village Square with his wife, Lana Volk.
“The spot for us was Burton. We weren’t married to Burton, but this was where we wanted to be,” Bednarek said.
The Newbury Township couple desired a location close to where they lived and where Volk has a 20-stall horse barn in Middlefield.
Her love of the equestrian life can be seen throughout the restaurant in framed prints depicting horseback riding and fox hunting as well as fox-hunting paraphernalia and stirrup candle holders strewn around the rooms.
Whereas Bednarek’s background is showcased heavily in Warren’s menu, which includes a variety of dishes, all made in-house using local ingredients as well as vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options.
“(I’ve) been in restaurants forever. I started when I was 17,” Bednarek said, adding his first job was Turkey Ridge Tavern and Eatery in Cleveland Heights. He then worked at TGI Fridays in Mayfield Heights for 12 years, moving his way up the scale from a busser, eventually to a head server, head bartender, manager and then kitchen manager,
Bednarek has also worked at Bass Lake Tavern & Inn in Chardon and Sara’s Place in Gates Mills.
“A couple years ago, I got the opportunity to do my own thing, so we spent a couple years in the planning and development of our project to do this,” he said. “Basically, you set the concept to your location.”
So Bednarek and Volk wanted to do something upscale yet comfortable, which they pull off with warm lighting, a rustic-looking, wide plank wood floor design, concrete bar top and slate walls.
“(We wanted to create) the kind of a place to take a date, relax upscale as in casual and elegant a wine bar feel to it,” Bednarek said. “The rest of the design goes with the location.”
But perhaps one of the biggest draws for the restaurant is head chef Vince Thomascik, 30, who worked at Baricelli Inn on Cleveland’s Murray Hill as well as the Greenhouse Tavern on E. 4th Street in downtown Cleveland.
“He’s very talented, very creative, ” Bednarek said. “My management style is very hands on. I lead by example. I work as hard as anybody around. I work the bar a lot of nights. If I’m not working the bar, I’ll work the kitchen some nights. I’ll do whatever needs to be done. He’s the same way. His creative ability is just off the charts. It’s a perfect match for both of us.”
Bednarek is all about embracing the trends.
“Being here in Burton, we wanted to use as many local products as we can because there’s great stuff going on there’s so much great stuff around here to use to incorporate, it just makes it a little bit better,” he said. “I love going to different and unusual places and it seems the trend in the industry is going to local products. Going back many moons ago to the 70s, 80s, everything was made in house. In the 90s, early 2000s, nothing was made in house. Now it seems to be trending back.”
Warren’s uses local products, meats, wines and Ohio beers.
“We won’t just do any local ingredient. We do local ingredients that are really well made because, of course, quality is our first concern,” Bednarek said. “All of our beans are fresh. We have fresh Ohio chicken, fresh Ohio-proud certified angus beef, fresh Ohio ribeye. Our fish is always whole and always fresh. Whenever we can, we’ll use a whole animal as opposed to ordering chicken breasts or chicken thighs.”
Bednarek said he wants Warren’s to be a truly enjoyable and warm experience for customers.
“My goal is for everyone who comes in here to feel like they are part of the family when they walk in here and when they leave, to go, “That was way better than I expected it to be and we had a great time and I can’t wait to come back.”
So far, the popular menu items include a vegetarian Walnut soup with sage, miso and walnut gremolata; fried brussel sprouts with local maple syrup, red onion and mint leaves; the vanilla roasted beets; lobster bisque; and the chicken and funnel cake.
“All of our sauces are made in house,” Bednarek said. “The only thing we really don’t make is the ketchup. Even our mayonnaise is in house.”
Bednarek’s personal favorite dish — the chicken and funnel cake.
“It’s Burton’s take on chicken and waffles,” he said with a laugh, adding they also run daily specials.
“Whatever the chef wants to try, different or unusual, that you’re not going to find anywhere else around here, we want to do,” he said.
Some other upcoming specials include a Superbowl Sunday package with slow-roasted wings served with maple BBQ and Warren’s hot sauces on the side, ranch and blue cheese dressing and house made fries that serves four to six people; or a larger package of wings and fries that serves eight to 10 people and includes braised beef cheek chili.
The restaurant will also have a Valentine’s Day brunch on Feb. 14 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and a dinner service starting at 4 p.m. as well as a Valentine’s Day three-course tasting.
“I would say 90 percent of the people who walk into the door are blown away by our atmosphere, product, quality of product that we brought here and they absolutely love it,” Bednarek said. “And to see people walking out the door really satisfied, I think, wow, I didn’t know I had it in me.”
Warren’s Spirited Kitchen is open 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday (the bar is open until midnight), and 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday (breakfast items are served until 2:30 p.m. and a full bar is offered all day). Visit www.warrensspiritedkitchen.com or call 440-273-8100 for more information.
