Gold Elite Event: Lifestyles of the Yelpy Famous

What a great event! Typhoid Matt was sorely missed, but the rest of us got to live out our champagne wishes at this unique venue, a very lovely castle smack in the middle of Johnson County. The progressive tasting menu was well thought out, and perfectly executed as we toured the different areas — the wine cellar was awesome, as was the beef bacon on brioche — and Chef Kelly & her entire staff could not have been more welcoming or personable. Matt, the swag bags were awesome! I’ve always wanted my own crown :-)

This first Gold Elite event was great! So sorry Matt came down with the crud right before it was scheduled to happen, but Jimmi was the perfect Unilocal host! Renee Kelly was generous with her time and presence — besides being a talented chef she’s amazingly personable and funny!
This was my first time at Heritage, but I can see it’ll be worth returning for an actual meal there. Everything we sampled was excellent — basically a collection of small bites but very well thought out with great flavor combinations. The availability of drinks was generous, too, and the servers very knowledgeable. The sparkling shiraz served during the wine tasting in the basement wine cellar room was a real surprise — I had no idea it even existed and it’s very, very appealing! Excellent flavors and only slightly sweet. Off-​dry is a better description. It’s not like those sweet Italian lambruscos that I really, really don’t like!
The space is terrific: although the building was originally built as a home it’s evidently been used for many other purposes for years so the only remaining original parts are the exterior stone walls and the fanlight over the front entrance. There probably was an entry hall originally, when you enter there is a staircase facing you, with the bar area to the right and a good-​sized dining area to your left, probably where the parlors once were. Up the stairs is a nice mezzanine area, and downstairs the «cellar» like room. I can certainly see how this would be a terrific place for a medium-​sized event or reception. The décor is very warm and inviting and comfortable-​looking, with more than a nod to the past. The food may be modern, but the environment isn’t sterile, at all!
The restaurant is easy to find — it’s about 3 blocks west of Quivira on Johnson Drive, on the south side of the street. There’s a big sign, so it’s hard to miss! Nor is the house, an iconic structure in Shawnee for more than 100 years.
It was also genuinely nice to share an event with a smaller number of people, all of whom are experienced Unilocalers. I’ve certainly enjoyed other Unilocal events, but the smaller numbers at this one (about 30 or so) made it a lot easier to spend time with other folks and have real conversations with them instead of just passing by rapidly like ships in the night! It’s probably just me, but I do better in a smaller crowd like this than in a big mob scene, so I really appreciated this and look forward to attending some more of these! And it’s a good incentive for folks to work towards earning their Gold Elite status!

Ridiculous.
Food…
Rabbit «wings» glazed with a heavenly sauce.
Duck breast on rosemary barley.
Quail egg and beef bacon on brioche toast points.
Etc etc etc
Desserts were equally insane. Sponge cake with sweet cream and candied orange rind. Carrot cake stacks. Smore stacks.
Drinks anyone?
Proseco.
Wines…
A great gin and tonic drink.
Ethiopian single-​origin coffee.
Place…
In a fucking CASTLE. Period!
Hostess…
Renee Kelly. I. Think. I’m. In. Love. Anyone have her number? ;-)
Cool peeps…
Oh yeah. All Gold Elite. That is pretty cool to have Unilocaled that consistently for that long… 5+ years for all of us.

What a fantastic event!
The castle created a beautiful setting for the event. I loved the wood tables and all of the unique touches throughout the space. We traveled to every room to enjoy the different courses (the wine cellar was my favorite space). Chef Renee described everything we enjoyed and also gave us a history of the castle and how it came to be the place it is today.
My favorite tastes of the evening were the smoked trout, prosciutto and fig, beef bacon and egg, and the carrot cake. The beverages were also great, from the proscecco and wines (LOVED the sparkling Shiraz) to the cocktails and coffee we enjoyed at the end of the evening.
The staff were all friendly and Jimmi was a fantastic host in Matt’s absence (being sick is never fun). We are looking forward to returning for brunch soon!

What a quaint little castle here in the middle of Shawnee. Renee and her staff were very gracious and friendly. It was a great, small crowd of Gold elites. We received ‘elite’ badges with our goody bags, and a book called Kiss of Food by Renee Kelly. My favorites were the wines (sparkling and otherwise). The food was varied and definitely farm to table (if you have quail, rabbit, duck on your farm! :)) Most seemed to like the food! We had to leave before dessert, but the text I received sure made it look good!
Jimmi was a good host as a stand-​in for Matt, and Renee and her staff were TOP NOTCH. I love the castle, as well as the enthusiasm Renee shared with us. It was good to see some long-​term elites as well! :)

Hello and welcome to the best day of my life.
The food was so fancy! The castle was really a castle. The people of the castle were so kind.
Dessert was THE BEST! The carrot cake was a fast favorite. I’m not really a coffee drinker but the Ethiopian coffee was delicious!
I felt sad eating the rabbit feet … but I did it (for luck). The wonton pocket thingies were delicious and the quail egg/​beef bacon toastie bites were pretty incredible. Pecan croissants were melty goodnesses. I got to try EVERYTHING!!!
I loved seeing some of the original gang and in such a small group.
Missed ol’ Matt… but thank you to Jimmi for tending to us wily golden elites. Thank you to Renee Kelly for hosting our very first GEE! And as always, thanks to everyone involved. :D

I was very impressed by this place. The exterior of the castle was breathtaking when we arrived. Period. However, the interior was just jaw-​dropping. First thing when we arrived, the service was amazing. just the way that they greeted us we felt warmly welcomed.
Now let’s talk food. Every thing was hands-​down fantastic! From the pastry puff, to the fish, then the beef bacon (that’s right, beef bacon). I must say that I was so impressed that I’m coming again for valentines day. My only issue was the rabbit. I know everyone loved it but I can’t bring myself to eat it. I did have a small taste of it just to make an attempt of it and the initial reaction was good but then my mental dilemma stepped in and slapped me in the face. I’m still overall very impressed and rabbit or not, this place is a big 10 in my book!

Can I just write the word, Amazing, and leave it at that?
First of all, I had no idea this place existed, me from Independence. it’s right off of Johnson Drive. You can see the castle nestled among a couple of trees, so magical!
We walked in, and were greeted, the staff and Renee were so kind. So attentive going above and beyond what I’d ever expect.
The food was really good… I ate the rabbit foot, but before I ate it. I said, «I’d never eat Bugs Bunny.» I had sparkling red shiraz wine… oh heavens…
At the beginning was riscitta wrapped with sweet something, seriously, it’s not anything I would ever eat but it was delicious. There was a phylo dough crescent roll, with filling… OMG…delicious!
We visited room after room, eating and drinking fancy food.
Agreed with other reviewers, the dessert was divine. I’ve never eaten a homemade marshmallow and have always wanted to… oh joy, this was my night!
Then…the cookbooks. I love cookbooks! I had Renee sign the cookbook. Mom, if you ever read this, this is where I am taking you for Mother’s Day.
Thanks Matt (missed you.) Thanks Jimi, who made an excellent host, thanks Renee and the staff. This will be very memorable, and I love my yellow ribbon, and red Unilocal glasses,