Lüke
Un Rendez-vous des Amis on the Avenue
When Lüke opened on New Orleans’ St. Charles Avenue in May 2007, it felt like old times – very old times. Chef John Besh, the 2006 James Beard Award winner of Best Chef, Southeast, has expanded his family of restaurant holdings to include an old-fashioned brasserie. An evocation of the traditional French brasserie, and partly as a nod to Gluck’s, Kolb’s, and other Old World New Orleans restaurants that have offered warmth, comfort, good food and good cheer to generations before, Lüke represents the revival of a great New Orleans institution. To do so, Besh has teamed up with Steve McHugh as Executive Chef, and Gino Capriotti serving as General Manager.
‘Alsace meets New Orleans,’ is how Besh characterizes the cuisine, explaining that the old brasseries were the time-honored establishments of late 19th-century German and Jewish immigrants -- whose influence on the food and culture of New Orleans was profound. “This is everyday food,” says Besh, “that is, food I would choose to eat every day, I love it that much. It may not be special occasion fare, per se, but it’s comforting and wholesome - a lot of favorites that were brought over from the old country. It’s perfectly natural to have Matzo Ball Soup on the menu.”
The inspiration for Lüke is beloved but bygone New Orleans landmark restaurants dating back to the 1890’s that combined the best of French, German and Creole cuisine. They have been gone for years now, but the warmth of the atmosphere, the savory aromas, and the old world décor have remained with Besh as an ideal; a sentimental bonus is that Kolb’s was the site of his first date with his wife, Jenifer. Besh explains, “The brasserie as an entity came to Paris through the Franco-Prussian Wars – they were how the French interpreted the beer houses and weinstubs of the Alsace, Prussia, Luxembourg, and Belgium. A few great ones flourished here in New Orleans for most of the last century, but seem to have vanished completely in recent years.”
Not surprisingly, Lüke will offer an extensive French, German, and Belgian beer selection, including three exclusive house brews [custom-brewed 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.) The wine list will feature reds and whites from the Loire, Alsace, and Savoie regions, as well as Badischerwiens of Germany. In a refreshing turn befitting a humble brasserie, none of the bottles will be over $45, save those on a special reserve list.
The 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; Whole Roast “Cochon de Lait” with Cherry Mustard and Whipped Potatoes; 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 and Croque Madame; to the Louisiana Speckled Trout, prepared either Meunière or Almandine; to Steak Frites with your choice of cuts. A smörgasbord of lovingly tended, house-made pâtés includes a Pâté de Campagne of Texas Wild Boar with Watermelon Pickles, Mustard and Gélée and a Pâté of Louisiana Rabbit and Duck Livers perfumed with Truffle with Country Bread Croutons. 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 thoroughly satisfying lunch. Abundant plateaux of cold fresh seafood will showcase the local Louisiana oysters and shrimp.
And the space is just as warm and nostalgic as the menu. The new interior, on the ground floor of the boutique hotel on St. Charles Avenue newly developed by the Hilton Corporation, will gleam 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 will double as a cozy semi-private dining room. Brasserie features will 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; Besh is re-creating it at Lüke. A sweeping fruits de mer display and handsome mirror-backed bar will likewise recall the grand brasseries of the century-before-last.
Located in the heart of the Central Business District, Lüke will serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Not only will Lüke be a rendez-vous amongst friends working together, but the reconnecting of traditions and customs that friends and families celebrated in New Orleans. For those who remember New Orleans’ cozy brasserie-style restaurants of old, it will be a nostalgic treat; and for a whole new generation, it will revive a bit of the Old World and at the same time will be an all new experience – a very good bit.