Eatery elevates dining experience
Perch Cafe opens on roof of downtown’s Okanagan Centre for Innovation
It’s the hottest, coolest and choicest place to hang out in Kelowna. It’s the new, aptly named Perch Cafe on the roof of the seven-storey Okanagan Centre for Innovation at the corner of Doyle Avenue and Ellis Street downtown.
The address affords views of Kelowna’s skyline to one side and Okanagan Lake to the other.
Pair the setting with local and intentionally sharable food and drink and you have the city’s new must-see and must-try eatery and lounge.
“You just feel so above-it-all here,” said Cody Doerksen, who brought a group of six friends to have lunch at a desirable outdoor corner table on Wednesday.
It was the third day of an unpublicized opening for Perch.
Word is getting out now, and a sandwich board on the sidewalk invites people to step into the innovation centre, take the elevator to Level 7 and check out Perch.
“Of course, people are going to come up because it’s a high-up rooftop with views,” said Perch operator Luigi Coccaro.
“On top of that, we’re created a warm, comfortable, welcoming, open-concept space that really takes advantage of its location. It’s where you can enjoy the Okanagan.”
The rooftop is really divided in two by the protrusion of building in the middle that houses the elevator, stairs and washrooms.
The east side is Perch proper, the cafe with 30 inside seats and 60 alfresco seats at view tables with chairs and umbrellas, contemporary picnic tables and lounging couches and chairs.
The west side is more open, with unobstructed views of the lake and artificial grass underfoot.
There are some picnic tables there and a deli counter where you can order sandwiches, wraps and salads, soft drinks, beer, wine or coolers.
It’s also a 6,000-square-foot special-events space that can accommodate up to 150 for a reception.
In fact, both sides of Perch will be closed on Saturday for a private gathering to watch the B.C. Day fireworks over the lake.
Otherwise, Perch is open to the public 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday and 5-9 p.m. Saturdays. Perch was born of controversy. When the cafe was first proposed for the rooftop, neighbours thought it was going to be a latenight bar with all the associated noise.
Perch has a food-primary licence and will be open no later than 9 p.m.
The lunch menu features tortillas and salsa, three different salads, tuna wrap, croissant and grilled-cheese sandwiches.
The dinner service includes more salads, shareable meet and cheese boards, cabbage rolls, and chicken and chorizo rice bowl.
From the bar, there are a few cocktails, cider, craft beer from two taps and wine, including Okanagan vintages such as Jackson-Triggs rose and Quails’ Gate Gewurztraminer.
Coccaro loves downtown and the restaurant business.
His family also owns and operates nearby La Bussola and The Curious on Ellis Street, and he will also soon open a casual Italian restaurant called Gather on the ground floor of the innovation centre.