Both Oak Park and Forest Park have lost notable restaurants in recent weeks.
Barclay’s American Grille, 1120 Pleasant St., closed quietly in early July. Located in the Carleton Hotel in Oak Park, the restaurant was known for prime rib, burgers and steaks. A brief message on the restaurant’s website simply states, “CLOSED. It has been a pleasure to serve you since 2009.”
Wednesday Journal reached out to Carleton owner, Mike Fox, who said, “We are not ready to make a comment on this yet.”
Forest Park restaurant, The Heritage, 7403 Madison St, announced via social media it had permanently closed on July 18 over safety concerns related to COVID-19.
“No one knows exactly what the future looks like for restaurants, but we believe that things won’t go back to normal for quite some time. Because of this, we have decided that we will not be reopening, and unfortunately will remain closed permanently,” said Heritage personnel on Facebook.
News of the closure came after the restaurant temporarily closed after suspending delivery and carry-out services on April 4. The Heritage assured followers they would reopen when they felt it was safe to do so, but three months later still did not feel comfortable inviting employees and guests back to the restaurant and opted to close their doors.
The farm-to-table establishment opened in 2016 and made a name for itself focusing on seasonal interpretations of American classics.
Forest Park Review has reached out to The Heritage owner, Jacob Dehart, for comment and is awaiting a response.
