Lüke
An Authentic Brasserie
The Facts
Owners:
John Besh and Octavio Mantilla
Location:
333 St. Charles Avenue
New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
Telephone:
504.378.2840
Fax:
504.585.0971
Website:
Executive Chef:
Matt Regan
General Manager:
James Brantley
Interior Designer:
Shea Berault
Media & Public Relations Consultant:
Simone Rathlé
Date of Opening:
May 1, 2007
Menu:
Lüke’s cuisine is unaffectedly Old World, using slow and traditional cooking techniques. Among the Germanic specialtiés de maison are Choucroûte Maison, Housemade Sausages and Slow-Cooked Berkshire Pork Belly and Knuckles; and Slow-cooked Beef Brisket with Horseradish Ravigote Sauce. These are balanced by an equally tempting range of French bistro classics, from the Croque Monsieur to the Louisiana Speckled Trout, prepared either Meunière or Almandine. House-made pâtés and refreshing plates of greens like the Salad of Chicory, Lardons of Alan Benton’s Bacon, Croutons, and Soft Poached Yard Egg, with Creole Mustard and Tarragon make for a thoroughly satisfying meal, and abundant plateaux of cold fresh seafood will showcase the local Louisiana oysters and shrimp.
Wine:
The wine list features reds and whites from the Loire, Alsace, and Savoie regions, as well as Badischerwiens of Germany. Befitting the brasserie atmosphere, none of the bottles will be over $45, save those on a special reserve list.
Bar:
Full-service bar featuring an extensive French, German, and Belgian beer selection, plus three exclusive house brews [custom-brewed in locally]: Lüke Fru (a very young beer, perfectly suited for the raw bar,) Lüke Export (a golden pilsner with a nose of Austrian hops,) and Lüke Alt (an aged pilsner in the Düsseldorf style, best for the menu’s meatiest dishes.)
Dress Code:
Casual
Reservations:
Encouraged
Dining Room:
7 days/week, 7:00 am – 11:00 pm, continuous service
Private Parties:
Semi-private dining room available with seating for up to 14
Accommodations:
Main dining room - 100 seats
Semi-private dining - 14 seats
Venue:
Located adjacent to the Hilton St. Charles in the heart of the Central Business District on St. Charles Avenue, Lüke’s space is as warm and nostalgic as the menu. The new interior gleams with cherry and cyprus paneling, antique floor boards, a salvaged pressed tin ceiling, and stained glass windows providing a glimpse through to the wine room, which doubles as a cozy semi-private dining
room. Brasserie features include rattan bistro chairs, blackboard specials, and newspaper racks. Patrons of Kolb’s will recognize the elaborate pulley-and-belt driven ceiling fans, an early air-conditioning system first admired by visitors in the 1880s that has been re-created at Lüke. A sweeping fruits de mer display and handsome mirror-backed bar likewise recall the grand brasseries of the century-before-last.
Credit Cards:
All major credit cards accepted