photograph by samuel x. cicci
Executive Chef Kevin Williams.
Lucy’s
Many folks consider breakfast the most important meal of the day, but Lucy’s wants to make it your favorite as well. In addition to breakfast, the downstairs diner at the Hu. Hotel on Madison recently launched its brunch program, and the menu is designed to catch your attention — and whet your appetite. Forget plain old eggs and pancakes; unique takes on anything from mac and cheese to bananas Foster will have customers returning for a second helping.
The Hu. Hotel shut its doors in early 2020 due to Covid-19, and only decided to reopen for business last fall. That meant, according to hotel leadership, a fresh start for a dining program that needed to make an impact after more than a year out of the public eye. Owners the Aparium Hotel Group brought in Kevin Williams to lead the charge as executive chef, and Lucy’s has flourished during his first couple months at the helm.
With support from hotel leadership to create a menu in his own image, Kevin Williams provided plenty of sweet and savory options at Lucy’s.
“I’m a Southern boy at heart,” laughs Williams, “so that’s a big focus of what I like to cook. I consider the menu here as typical upscale Southern cuisine.” The diner is for the early birds, open for breakfast Monday through Saturday before kicking things up a notch for Sunday brunch. And the menu is a product of Williams’ almost two decades of experience cooking in the restaurant, corporate, and hotel worlds.
photograph by samuel x. cicci
Crab mac & cheese.
Williams has been a chef 16 years, but he’s donned a few other hats in his career other than a toque blanche. He spent eight years as an electric technician in the military, where constant travel exposed him to the breadth of cuisines available around the world. “I’ve been to 15 countries,” he recalls. “I went around tasting food, and that really got me into cooking.”
His first job out of culinary school saw him join up with Ruby Tuesday’s and head back to Memphis. He next found himself in the kitchens of well-regarded establishments like Amerigo and Bounty on Broad before trying his hand in a hotel kitchen (as executive chef at the Hilton Garden Inn) and as a corporate chef (FedEx, International Paper, Smith & Nephew, Wright Medical).
With support from hotel leadership to create a menu in his own image, Williams provided plenty of sweet and savory options at Lucy’s. The regular breakfast menu has the traditional trappings of an early meal: think frittatas, burritos, eggs and bacon, or house-made muffins and scones. But it’s the Sunday brunch menu where his ideas truly shine. He points to the crab mac and cheese as one of his personal favorites. And it’s now one of mine, too. The cavatappi macaroni is doused in a smooth layer of velvety four-cheese sauce that glides across the palate. The soft, rich noodles are gilded with crunchy bread crumbs and shot through with small, toothsome cuts of crab and crawfish (plus a little bit of bacon). All the ingredients mix together seamlessly.
“We’ve got a really cool cafe-style space here at Lucy’s, and I’m excited for what we’re going to have going forward.” — Kevin Williams
For a sweeter dish, Williams debated bananas Foster or French toast before realizing he could combine the two of them. “I just love bananas Foster,” he says. “I think it was some time I spent in New Orleans that did it for me, but I knew I had to include it here.” Sweet, round flavors from the banana bread are met with fresh whipped cream, toasted almonds, powdered sugar, and several brandied bananas. While I’ve had a few helpings of tough French toast in my time, there’s no knife needed here. A fork slips through the soft banana bread with no resistance, making dessert for breakfast easier than ever.
If bananas aren’t for you, consider the pancakes. Williams includes several giant, fluffy flapjacks beneath a dollop of fresh, house-made whipped cream and a spread of warm blueberry compote. I let the dish sit for a minute and watched as the toppings slowly seeped into the pancakes, adding a natural dose of fruity flavor.
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photograph by samuel x. cicci
Bananas Foster French toast.
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photograph by samuel x. cicci
Chicken and waffles with maple syrup and honey sriracha.
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photograph by samuel x. cicci
Pancakes.
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photograph by samuel x. cicci
Shrimp & grits made with andouille sausage,red peppers, sweet onions, and Cajun cream sauce.
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photograph by samuel x. cicci
Avocado toast with fresh tomato, goat cheese, and balsamic.
And Williams doesn’t skimp on the portions, either. Each dish is sizable, with plenty of food to split between two people. Doling out large servings hasn’t stopped him from trying out his own spin on breakfast staples. “I want to come up with some things that not a lot of people are seeing,” he says. “Something Memphis-centric I wanted to do was a pulled pork hash. It’s got poached egg, barbecue, and hollandaise sauce. That’s like fusing barbecue and breakfast, and I want to keep trying out new fusion dishes.”
As executive chef, Williams will have plenty of chances to keep trying out new things. He’s also in charge of the menu for the beautiful Hu. Rooftop, which currently serves small snacks like chili and lime popcorn, Hu. Nuts with wasabi ranch seasoning, or Tennessee lamb meatballs. “Our menu up there [on the roof] is still in development,” he says. “We’re looking at different ideas, but we definitely want it to be handheld dishes so you won’t need a knife and fork. Once the weather warms up, we’ll move forward on that, likely around April or May.” So, stay tuned.
Williams also has his eye on the now-vacant Hu. Diner space facing Main Street. The appeal of opening up something fresh there was part of what convinced him to join the Hu. Hotel team. “We’ve got some really cool ideas for that space, but that’s still a little ways off,” he says. “In the meantime, we’re thinking of leasing out the space to generate a little walk-in traffic there. But that would very much be a temporary thing while we figure out what we want to do with the Hu. Diner.”
For now, Lucy’s continues to attract both hotel guests and Memphians working or visiting Downtown. “As opposed to just serving guests, we’ve been seeing a lot of our customers come in off the street so far,” Williams says of their walk-in business. And he thinks that the space’s relaxed vibe will continue to attract more. “It’s a perfect place to sit and chill with a cup of coffee, or even get some work done. We’ve got a really cool cafe-style space here at Lucy’s, and I’m excited for what we’re going to have going forward.”
Lucy’s is located at the Hu. Hotel at 79 Madison Ave., and is open for breakfast 7-11 a.m. Monday through Saturday; and open for Sunday brunch 7 a.m. -2 p.m. 901-333-1200. huhotelmemphis.com
