As you shall see a little later, the restaurant I’ll be talking about today is not a secret among the people of Northwest Arkansas, which is the best place to live in America. However, the restaurant is easy to miss for a person unfamiliar with Northwest Arkansas.
The restaurant I’m talking about is Heirloom at the 1907. I mentioned it briefly in a video I uploaded about the weird and exciting restaurants in Northwest Arkansas but didn’t go into detail about the restaurant because I hadn’t eaten there yet.
Now that I have experienced the food and ambiance at the Heirloom, I’ll delve deeper into this fascinating restaurant.
Video:
The Restaurant Has a Crazy Long Waitlist
It’s taken me a while to upload content about Heirloom because booking the Heirloom has a crazy long waitlist. The super-exclusive restaurant is located in Rogers above the Onyx coffee shop.
After taking my place on the waitlist, I had to wait months before booking a reservation. I got many requests from people eager to learn about the experience of dining at the Heirloom, but I could do nothing to expedite my request to dine at the mysterious restaurant.
I expected to wait a while, considering the restaurant’s website tells potential customers that good things are hard to find. Furthermore, given the Heirloom opens for three nights a week and only holds twenty people, the waitlist was bound to be long.
Thankfully, I finally visited the Heirloom. The restaurant caters to between 14 and 16 people per night.
The Heirloom is as tricky to find as it is to book. It’s easy to miss the door on the restaurant’s wooden wall.
The wall leading up to the Heirloom’s door is lined with drinks, so you can easily assume there’s nothing beyond the wall. A not-so-conspicuous bulb/lantern guides you to the Heirloom’s door. It’s very secluded.
Inside, you find this gorgeous and intimate room that contains the eating area and the kitchen. The branding of it is super interesting and very exclusive–kind of a dark vibe that’s really interesting.
NWA is a very exciting place! Here are WEIRD and Exciting Restaurants in Northwest Arkansas
The Servings Change Daily As There’s No Menu
You are guaranteed a unique experience at the Heirloom as there’s no menu per se. You’re not going to go there and order something from a standard menu.
The hostess, a co-owner, asks you about your dietary needs. For example, if you have allergies to certain foods, they can accommodate that. It allows them to create custom meals based on the day’s offerings that conform to your dietary needs.
The other co-owner is the main chef. He and two other chefs prepare meals for the night’s guests.
The Heirloom is a restaurant and an experience simultaneously–and the most complicated restaurant to get into in Northwest Arkansas.
So, the first course was excellent. We had a total of eight courses–each course is so unique and different.
The Heirloom doesn’t provide consistent offerings, so you never know what to expect. I didn’t know what to expect: it changes so drastically.
The owners guaranteed that the meat and vegetables were fresh and locally sourced. Sitting down and having this long and exciting menu for the whole night was fascinating. It was like a two-and-a-half-hour experience.
There was a story behind every dish. They steer you through the entire process of where this came from, why they did this, and where they came from. It was a fantastic side story, and the owners were elegant.
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It doesn’t matter if you’re a foodie, a sports person, a sightseer, or want to spend quality time with your kids; I have something for you. Check out the link below to learn more:
https://www.allthingsnwa.com/3-day-itinerary-northwest-arkansas
It’s Sort of a Michelin Star Restaurant
The Heirloom owners drew inspiration from a bunch of Michelin star restaurants in Chicago. Therefore, they are within that realm of high-quality, high-experience restaurants in America and especially in Europe. They do a great job.
Michelin stars are given to restaurants in certain areas–California, New York City, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Westchester County, New York–as rewards for excellence. The stars are difficult to obtain and are only given to restaurants of the highest standard.
They are trying to bring that Michelin star-esque restaurant to northwest Arkansas, which I appreciate because I moved from Chicago, so I have a different experience with restaurants out there.
Therefore, bringing some of that Chicago Michelin star restaurant experience down to northwest Arkansas is really interesting. And they did an exceptional job capturing that menu and that whole experience.
The Heirloom was definitely in the higher price range. On top of that, they had more of a sampling menu, although it was a little bit bigger than a traditional sampling menu, to say the least.
If you are used to visiting Michelin star restaurants in the likes of Chicago and New York City, the Heirloom is the place for you. The chances are that it would have at least one star if it was located in a city with Michelin Guides.
The Heirloom is challenging to review because they offer something different every night. I can, however, confirm that it is one of the most challenging places to book, find, and get into.
It’s very challenging because there’s such a long waitlist because of high demand and limited space. The owners aren’t looking to expand the place so they can provide the best culinary experience for the few visitors that arrive every night.
Since the restaurant offers different servings every night and people have different dietary needs, it would be difficult for the limited staff to tender to a large crowd. Therefore, the Heirloom is unlikely to increase its capacity for the foreseeable future.
Big update!! Find out 5 BIG Things Happening In Northwest Arkansas
Conclusion
The mysterious Heirloom is one of the best restaurants in north Arkansas. The secrecy, ambiance, and food quality combine to offer a wonderful and unique experience. I highly recommend you visit the Heirloom.
If you are searching for a uniquely custom, high-end experience that you feel in larger cities, the Heirloom is the place to be.
Side note: If you are planning to move from a city to northwest Arkansas like I did, I’ve compiled a guide to help you buy the perfect home in Northwest Arkansas.
There you have it, the most unique restaurant in Arkansas: Heirloom at the 1907.