Lumiere Cafe quietly opened on Broadway and Cambie at the end of February.
There was little fanfare considering the roastery and coffee shop had been in the works since pre-pandemic days.
"We're finally here," says Crystal Cao, a member of Lumiere's marketing team, inside the bright and airy new space that took over the former Blenz location at 521 West Broadway. It has been redecorated with large white marble tiles making the intimate room feel larger than it is and dark wood tables for a modern feel.
The cafe was feeling out their new neighbourhood and getting to know the community Cao explains, they are still getting the word out that they're here.
The location is perfect for foot traffic and most of the tables were full at 4 p.m. on a sunny Wednesday afternoon.
What to expect from Lumiere Cafe
Lumiere Cafe roasts five different kinds of imported coffee beans in-house every morning which Cao says allows them to serve coffee within the window where it tastes best.
The massive roaster is one of the first things people see when they walk in the door and the coffee is stronger for it. Though non-coffee drinkers are well-represented on the menu with beverages like matcha or the Red Tea Latte, made with a blend of rooibos tea and steamed milk.
Being a roastery through the pour-over coffees are the star of the show, with the choice of Rwandan, Ethiopian, Costa Rican, Guatemalan, or the lesser-known Indonesian Sumatra beans which are also available for purchase by the bag.
In addition to coffee, the cafe serves up a limited selection of unique bakery items and sandwiches that fuse typical coffee shop fare with flavours people might be more accustomed to seeing in a Japanese restaurant.
For instance, the Masago croissant is imitation crab and fish roe wrapped up in flaky pastry and served warm. Other croissant flavours include salted egg yolk, strawberry, and classics like almond and pain au chocolat which are all baked fresh daily for the cafe.
For lunch, various baguette and croissant sandwiches, garlic and cheese buns, and BLTs are on the menu.
The cafe is getting ready to launch its own app, according to Cao who says that soon customers will be able to pre-order their food and drinks for pick-up.
