photograph by michael donahue
Darya and Patrick Koplin serve cinnamon pancakes with the “Mama Lil” special.
Brother Juniper’s is famous for its breakfasts. And large portions.
That harkens back to the restaurant’s namesake, Brother Juniper, says Patrick Koplin. He and his wife, Darya, own and operate the iconic restaurant near the University of Memphis. Patrick’s sister, Sarah Elliott, another owner, also has operated the restaurant. And founder Jonathan Koplin and his wife, Pauline, are still owners as well.
“Brother Juniper was the cook for St. Francis of Assisi, the Italian monk from the thirteenth century,” Patrick says. “He was very generous. He had a reputation for being able to make delicious meals. The Franciscan monks didn’t have a lot. They were poor. But he was always able to make a delicious meal out of what they had.”
Brother Juniper became the namesake for a missionary outreach program that opened in several cities (such as Boston, Denver, and Atlanta) in the U.S during the 1960s and ’70s. Patrick’s dad, Jonathan, ran a Brother Juniper’s at the Raphael House family homeless shelter in San Francisco in the 1980s. They served five-cent cups of coffee and inexpensive sandwiches. Jonathan did the cooking and his mother was a caseworker in the family shelter.
Many of the original recipes were developed by the various Brother Juniper’s owners around the country. “All these guys came up with them some 40 years ago,” says Patrick, “when they started these Brother Juniper’s. I think there were six at one time.”
Father Jonas Worsham, a Russian Orthodox priest, opened the Memphis Brother Juniper’s at its current location on Walker, just east of Highland. He took over the old College Inn and renamed it “Brother Juniper’s College Inn.”
“It had all the same menu items that are still on there today,” says Patrick. “Like the spanakopita omelet.”
In 1999, Worsham asked Jonathan to take over the Memphis Brother Juniper’s. “[Worsham] knew he ran the one in San Francisco and that he cooked. He was going to close down the one in Memphis.”
Jonathan packed up his family and moved to Memphis. “This was the last Brother Juniper’s open. All the others had closed. He wanted to keep this alive and going.”
Photograph by patrick koplin
Mr. Donahue digs into the "Mama Lil" before tackling the pancakes.
His father shortened the name to “Brother Juniper’s,” but he kept just about everything else the same. Many of the original recipes were developed by the various Brother Juniper’s owners around the country. “All these guys came up with them some 40 years ago,” says Patrick, “when they started these Brother Juniper’s. I think there were six at one time.”
The Koplin family contributed two-thirds of the new recipes. “Each family member added its own contributions to the menu.”
The “Mama Lil,” which was dedicated to Patrick’s grandmother, Lillie Koplin, was one of the new items. “She was the best cook in our family,” says Patrick, “and she was the one who taught us that the most important thing you can give someone is a good meal in their tummy.”
The dish, their “true Brother Juniper staple item,” features all his grandmother’s favorite things to eat. “It’s your open-face omelet with home fries, spinach, roasted red peppers, and cold smoked Alderwood salmon,” says Patrick.
In addition to the Mama Lil, other best-sellers include the cinnamon roll pancakes and the San Diegan omelet, which was popularized on TV by Rachael Ray. The latter is a feat: home fries, several cheeses, bacon, portabella mushrooms, green onions, and more.
In 2008, Jonathan expanded Brother Juniper’s. He took over the adjoining space, which had been a music store and a pottery studio. The entrance was moved to the new space.
At one point, Jonathan also rented the old McLaurine’s Bakery on South Highland. “Before they closed that down and demolished it, my dad started an apprenticeship program teaching at-risk youth how to bake bread,” says Patrick. “We called it ‘Juniper Bakery.’ He was able to do it for a few years until the Atkins Diet came out. Everyone stopped eating bread.”
At one time Brother Juniper’s served lunch and dinner, but they decided to concentrate on breakfast, and that was obviously a good decision. Brother Juniper’s, which draws between 350 to 500 customers on Saturdays and Sundays, has consistently won the Memphis Flyer’s “Best Breakfast” award since 1999.
The little restaurant gets involved in local events. “My mom started the Community Spotlight,” says Patrick. “Every month we put a different nonprofit charity on our board and we raise money and awareness for their outreach. And then on Christmas Eve, we open our doors for a full family meal to anyone in need. We do a full Christmas dinner.”
As Jonathan says, the essence of Brother Juniper’s is “food, family, and community.”
“We carry on the spirit of Brother Juniper,” Patrick says. “And that is giving back and generosity.”
Brother Juniper’s is located at 3519 Walker Avenue.
