GOOD EATS AT NEW LIBRARY
Lukes is not ‘just a normal cafe’
The food at public institutions is usually acceptable but boring: we’ve all had soups, sandwiches and salads designed to meet, but not exceed, the most basic of expectations. When it came to formulating the menu at Lukes, the restaurant in the new Central Public Library, chef Eric Hendry knew that he could do better than that.
You won’t see panini sandwiches or chicken fingers at Lukes — after winning the bid to provide food and coffee to library goers, Hendry and his fellow co-owner Gareth Lukes decided to go with a small menu that centres around a well-known but unconventional foodstuff: porridge. It’s a risky move and one that they didn’t really reveal until the cafe opened last month, but so far, it seems to be working.
Lukes sits at the northwest corner of the library, just where the CTrain tunnel starts, and it has its own external entrance that can’t be accessed from within the library. Lukes and Hendry had free rein when it came to the look of the place and local design firm Frank Architecture and Interiors put together a 46-seat restaurant that complements the main building with its clean lines and a minimalist mix of wood and concrete. The place rumbles ohso-slightly when the train passes by, but customers ordering coffee and food from the counter barely even notice.
But let’s get back to that porridge.
To be clear, Hendry’s definition of “porridge” is not restricted to hot breakfast cereal — though he does serve that for $8 a bowl with a variety of available toppings like Icelandic yogurt, almond butter and freeze-dried berries (for $2 each). Hendry, who has previously helmed the kitchens at renowned restaurants such as Model Milk and Bar Von Der Fels, used his much-celebrated creativity to develop flavourpacked savoury bowls that are not porridge in the strictest sense, but could be described as “porridge-adjacent.” At press time, at least, the menu features a red lentil daal served with coconut yogurt, almonds and warm spices ($12), a brown rice congee with chicken, roasted peanuts, coriander and mushrooms ($12) and a brilliant green kale risotto with pomegranate, Parmesan, parsley and black pepper ($14), but Hendry warns that selections will change regularly.
“I didn’t just want to do a normal cafe, because I thought that was pretty boring,” Hendry says. “We could have done macaroni and cheese and those kinds of things, but why repeat something that’s been done in the city a million times?”
As committed as both Hendry and Lukes are to the porridge, they’re also realists and know that some customers will want something they can sink their teeth into. Bucking the trend toward artisanal sourdough sandwiches (“It cuts up the roof of your mouth and leaves you in pain for days,” Hendry grumbles), Lukes’ menu also features three “overstuffed” sandwiches, all served on soft bread. At $10 each, they’re big enough to share, with no need for a side dish. For something lighter, Lukes also sells doughnuts and pastries provided by local bakeries Pretty Sweet and Manuel Latruwe and pours Bow x Arrows coffee from Victoria, B.C. The coffee and treats are also available inside the library at the second-floor cafe that the Lukes team also oversees.
This all may seem unconventional, but it’s what the library wanted — officials were impressed by the new life that Lukes (the man, not the restaurant) has breathed into his hip Lukes Drug Mart Stores, a business that was originally established by his grandfather in 1951. He and Hendry (who he has worked with previously on the Drug Mart’s soft serve ice cream) were basically given free licence to make the restaurant into whatever they wanted and were encouraged to defy expectations.
Lukes recently acquired its liquor licence and is developing a natural wine program as well as pop-up cocktail events with Sugar Water and it’s also about to launch a new dinner menu to better serve the evening crowd. Lukes is located at 802 3rd St. S.E.
Calgary just stepped up its doughnut game. In late November, the team behind the Phil and Sebastian coffee shops opened the first Hoopla Donuts location downtown in Calgary Place. Chef Leslie Morrow has created a number of flavours ranging from the simple (honey glazed) to the less so (root beer float, London Fog) with a number of vegan and gluten-free options.
The downtown crowd has more than embraced Hoopla’s doughnuts and the shop has been selling out, but the Hoopla folks are working hard to keep up with the demand and fine-tune production. Open weekdays from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., Hoopla also serves a full range of Phil and Sebastian coffee drinks.
Hoopla is located on the second level of Calgary Place at 414 3rd St. S.W. and can be reached at 403-453-2162. See the full menu at hoopladonuts.ca.