Bricks at Cashier’s House, a new American steakhouse, takes downtown Erie upscale
Erie in 1839 was a burgeoning village adjacent to Presque Isle Bay in need of a bank, and the chief banker (cashier) needed a home. The bank built him one adjacent to what is now the State Street-facing side of the Erie Art Museum.
The bank closed in 1840, but, lucky for 21st-century Erie diners, no one knocked down the building in the ensuing 184 years. According to Erie County’s Historic Resources, the Cashier's House, at 417 State St., is chock full of its original Greek revival woodwork and once-again gleaming, albeit creaking, hardwood floors. The street-level rooms are freshly painted, open wide for those who want to try a dry-aged steak or a gourmet burger at the newly minted Bricks at Cashier's House.
"We started (renovations) in 2021," said Mark Inscho, food and beverage manager for the Erie Downtown Development Corp., which acquired the building and fixed untold water damage throughout the structure in hopes a restaurateur might want to try their hand at running an upscale restaurant in the Erie neighborhood.
"We're excited," said Chris Adams, co-owner with Justin Stull, as he demonstrated hand-cutting the dry aged steak the pair hope to make the staple on their menu. "This is Justin's and my dream."
The pair have shared kitchens for 15 years, starting as managers for the food service provider at PennWest (formerly Edinboro University). They each grew up cooking, Adams in the kitchen of the Frog Pond restaurant in Canadohta Lake, which his family owned. Stull has lived in the Erie area for 15 years and also worked briefly at The Cork 1794 in the West Erie Plaza.
"(EDDC) worked with us hand in hand to make (the Cashier's House) was what we wanted and we took over beginning in January," Stull said, adding that he's still in the "nerve-wracking" stage of opening his third eatery. Both Stull and Adams also run the Straw Hat Ice Cream Sundae Shop and North Row Philly, both inside the Flagship City Food Hall, across State Street and not far from the Cashier's House.
Inscho showed off the restaurant, including two sizable dining rooms and the very narrow kitchen, as well as a view of the back yard, which could potentially serve as outdoor seating or a produce garden once the main restaurant finds its sea legs. He also said upper rooms of the house could serve as party locations, but they need quite a bit of work first.
How much does it cost?
The restaurant is upscale by anyone's standards. Sandwiches run $15 to $18, steaks ranging from $33 for a handcut New York Strip to $70 for a bone-in dry-aged ribeye. Other main dinner courses run $26 to $32. At lunch, starters begin at $13, with salads ranging from $9 to $19. Add protein to any salad for $7 for chicken to $12 for shrimp or scallops.
Inscho said he tried a hand-cut strip steak and loved it, and described the difference between that and a dry-aged steak: He said as the cut of beef sits in the dry-aging cooler, some moisture leaves the meat and concentrates its beefy flavor, which also serves to tenderize the meat fibers. A few minutes over honest-to-goodness fire create a delicious brown crust and a steak experience unique to present-day downtown eateries. Don't drop your napkin. You'll need it.
Stull and Adams have been working long hours to get the restaurant into a groove, and as hard and stressful as that has been, they haven't been eating the profits. Adams said that after a long shift at Bricks, all he wants is a Hot Pocket. For Stull, it's a baloney sandwich. After joking around, Stull gets serious. "John (Persinger, CEO of the EDDC) gave us a great opportunity here," he said. "Whatever we've asked, they've done."
With all the pieces in place now, their presumable goal is to last longer than the bank that started it all.
5 things to know about Bricks at the Cashier's House
Open Mondays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Located at 417 State St.
For reservations, call 814-464-0175.
The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 13, 1972, and its boundary was increased on March 9, 1983.
For more information: https://bit.ly/bricksatcashiershouse
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Bricks at Cashier’s House, an American steakhouse, opens in Erie
