The venerable bar in Midtown, The Lamplighter, launched its lunch service over the weekend during a festival
“That was nice,” says Laurel Cannito, who is a partner in the business with Chuck “Vicious” Wenzler.
She notes that day Lamplighter is not like night Lamplighter. For one thing, it’s kid-friendly and it’s non-smoking before 8 p.m.
The pair, who took over last spring, say it’s not as much about changing the Lamplighter as making it a little better. The kitchen and floors were redone, the whole place cleaned from top to bottom.
“It’s the same but cleaner,” jokes Cannito.
Cannito says her path was always to where she is now. She and Chuck are longtime friends, and her goal was to open a cafe or a food truck. In fact, she was saving for a food truck, when Ann Bradley, the owner, mentioned she was ready to retire.
Cannito and Wenzler consider the place community-supported.
As for the food, the favorites like the burger and the grilled cheese are still there. The menu isn’t typical bar food, and they are still tweaking it. Cannito hopes to shape something that is vegan by default but doesn’t have to be.
Right now it features the Hangover Helper, a Vegan sausage, egg, and cheese biscuit; sandwiches, tacos, bagels, chicken, and curries.
And, let’s not forget the cheap beer.
Wenzler hopes to eventually add a window to the south, front-facing wall; Cannito a garden out back. “Really?” asks Wenzler to the news of the garden. “You’ll have to water it.”
Curry with tofu
