A beloved and historic business in downtown Clarkston has reinvented itself and is again open for business.

Rudy’s Prime Steakhouse at 9 S. Main St. opened its doors again Tuesday where Rudy’s Market had stood 70 years. The market first opened in 1933 in downtown before moving to South Main Street in 1954 into the building originally built in 1915 and opened as a Ford dealership. Robert Esshaki and Chris Thomas bought the market in 1989 and later bought the old Clarkston News building at 5 S. Main St. and the adjacent parking lot in March 2020.

The market closed on Labor Day 2022, but the owners had plans for the building.

“We closed knowing it was going to be a restaurant, but selling was not an option,” said Esshaki.

The market had been a shopping destination for decades, but online shopping and big outlet stores made the small store obsolete.

“Smaller neighborhood markets are going away, but restaurants are the opposite,” said Esshaki. “There is always demand for a good downtown restaurant.”

“A lot of people have a lot of great memories of that market,” said Mayor Sue Wylie.

Working with Birmingham architect Victor Saroki, Esshaki and Thomas redesigned and renovated the space.

“The building … needed to be torn down and rebuilt,” said Esshaki. “Plumbing, heating, electrical, structural; all of it had to be redone and updated since nothing had really been done in years.”

They worked with the city and the Clarkston Historical Commission as renovations began.

“The plans they brought to us were pretty much what the finished product looked like,” said Commission Chairman Rob Hauxwell. “It was a very smooth process working with them.”

“I was on the planning commission when they came to us with the idea of the restaurant and they have been really easy to work with,” said Wylie. “They were always interested in keeping the historic integrity of the building intact.”

Part of the history was the neon sign, which had hung over the front door for years.

“They had plans for a new sign that fit with what they were doing on the inside, but someone asked at one of our meetings if they still had the old sign somewhere,” said Historic Commission member Lisa Patercsak. “They went and found it and changed their plans for the sign on the outside of the building.”

Two years and $4 million later, Rudy’s held a “soft opening” recently serving 300 customers over three days.

“It was a grand slam home run,” Esshaki said of the opening. “We have a great staff and a great team and everything went great.”

The steakhouse is only the beginning of changes for the corner property.

A Mediterranean restaurant is planned to open next to the steakhouse sometime in 2026.

After purchasing the old Clarkston News building, a 3,000-square-foot basement was uncovered, which will be developed into a wine cellar.

Esshaki has understood the history of the building since taking over three decades ago and is looking to enhance it in the coming years

“The buildings were there long before we got there and they are going to be there long after we are gone.” he said. “We are temporary stewards of those historical treasures and we understand our role in that. We wanted the restaurant to be fun and cool, but we also wanted it to be timeless and we felt like we accomplished that.”

The North End Market Candle bar is currently leasing the Clarkston News space, but Esshari and his partners are not looking to move them out anytime soon.

“They are a great tenant and we are going to try to help find another great spot downtown,” said Esshaki. “They have been great and we are going to help them anyway we can.”