Kevin Williams at Lucy’s Diner wants to have you over for breakfast. The Hu. Hotel’s new executive chef has been at the helm for a couple of months, and his Southern roots and creative brunch concepts have reinvigorated the Downtown dining spot after a two-year hiatus. And when you walk through the doors into Lucy’s chic lobby, expect more than just traditional bacon and eggs.
The Hu. Hotel closed in early 2020 due to Covid-19 but decided to reopen for business last fall. That meant taking another look at the hotel’s dining concepts, which needed a refresh. Enter Williams, whose dishes have been pulling in customers from off the street since he took over.
“I’m a Southern boy at heart,” says Williams, “so that’s a big focus of what I like to cook. I consider the menu here as typical upscale Southern cuisine.” At Lucy’s, hotel ownership gave Williams the creative freedom to come up with a menu in his own image. And his recipes have been crafted over almost two decades of culinary work in restaurant, hotel, and corporate kitchens.
“When I came back to Memphis after culinary school, I was at Ruby Tuesday’s for a little bit,” he recalls. “I also worked at Amerigo, Bounty on Broad. I was executive chef at DoubleTree Hotel and helped open the Hilton Garden Inn. I’ve done business dining, too. I ran a cafe and food trucks for FedEx and also worked for Smith & Nephew, Wright Medical, and International Paper.”
That variety of experiences has allowed Williams to hone in on what people want for breakfast. For the those who want something recognizable to start the day, there is, of course, the more standard fare on the regular breakfast menu: frittatas, burritos, eggs and bacon, or house-made muffins and scones. But it’s the Sunday brunch menu where Williams is really able to cut loose. One of his personal favorites is the crab macaroni and cheese: cavatappi macaroni noodles doused in a layer of velvety four-cheese sauce and crunchy bread crumbs, all shot through with both crab and crawfish (plus a little bit of bacon).
On the sweeter side, Williams debated whether to include bananas Foster or French toast. Then he decided to have the best of both worlds and combine them for a perfect dessert for breakfast. “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.” Soft slices of banana bread are met with fresh whipped cream, toasted almonds, powdered sugar, and brandied bananas.
Don’t overlook the giant stack of pancakes, either. Williams includes several large flapjacks beneath a helping of house-made whipped cream and a spread of warm blueberry compote that seeps into the pancakes, adding a natural dose of fruity flavor.
Williams’ creations can easily be described as large, in addition to delicious. Each dish is sizable, with plenty to split between two people. But slinging hefty 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. And I’m going to keep trying out things to keep it fresh.”
But don’t just take it from me; hop on over to Lucy’s and load up on Williams’ breakfast twists. And if this all sounds great, he’s also got some ideas for the rooftop and the hotel’s vacant dining space facing Main Street, so stay tuned.
Lucy’s is in the Hu. Hotel at 79 Madison and is open for breakfast 7 to 11 a.m. Monday through Saturday and for Sunday brunch 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.; (901) 333-1200; huhotelmemphis.com.