Tourism News
Take a Trip Back in Time at Lulu’s Cafe
A visit to LuLu’s Cafe in Myrtle Beach is a lot like a culinary version of the movie “Back to the Future” – it’s a trip back in time to home cooking with a modernistic twist.
The decor of the recently opened restaurant on Ocean Boulevard in the heart of downtown Myrtle Beach says it all – retro-cool but with a futuristic feel. The ’50’s diner-style sign with bright, contrasting colors on the inside looks like a place the “Happy Days” gang might have hanged, but the menu is like something straight out of “Top Chefs.”
The theme matches the extensive menu – Southern comfort food prepared with creative curveballs. You can get eggs benedict on biscuit or toast instead of just an English muffin, or peanut butter and jelly on pancakes as well as bread. Even the basic grilled cheese sandwich gets a makeover by adding bacon and tomato to the mix.
“These are the things I cook at my house and my family likes to eat,” said owner Misty Pate-Coan, who opened her dream establishment last month at 1903 Ocean Boulevard. “The whole idea was to make things that are comfortable and familiar, things that make you feel like you’re at home. Myrtle Beach needed a place like that.”
Coan, along with husband Tripp, wisely introduced their new restaurant to locals several months before it opened by taking part in the 30th annual Taste of the Town in October. Teasing future customers’ tastebuds with egg rolls filled with collard greens and frozen coffee filled with bacon, adventurous diners were awaiting its opening.
“We hadn’t planned on doing it but a friend told me we needed to be a part of it and you wouldn’t believe the response we’ve gotten,” Coan said. “It was great exposure.”
The place has been packed ever since, hosting a steady breakfast, lunch and dinner crowd and preparing to keep their doors open 24 hours a day starting in the summer.
Breakfast is served anytime and makes up a sizeable portion of the menu, so although I went on a sunny afternoon I decided to order as if it was my first meal of the day.
Sitting on the spacious front deck in the stylish silver chairs and tables with an excellent view of the ocean, I chose the Philly cheese steak scramble, featuring filet, green peppers and onions amid a sea of scrambled eggs, over the green eggs and ham, a spin on the Dr. Suess classic featuring pesto, ham, tomatoes and mozzarella cheese.
The eggs were hot and perfectly prepared served with a side order of grits and toast for $7.95. The “scrambles,” which Coan prefers over omelets because they are free of the crusty exteriors, range from $5.95 to $8.95 and include such ingredients as smoked salmon with cream cheese and capers, or shrimp with spinch and goat cheese.
“I’ve been making them for years at my house, and we call them omelets gone astray,” Coan said. “I don’t like omelets because of the skin, so I make a big plate of fluffly eggs with a lot of different ingredients. My kids love them and so do our customers.”
Of course, you can still get the basic breakfast if you prefer to keep it real first thing in the morning. Two eggs any style with ham, bacon or sausage and grits and toast runs $3.95, and there are standard breakfast sandwiches on biscuits or toast, plus pancakes, waffles, bagels and French toast like you’ll find at any pancake house in town. But it’s the unique dishes that set LuLu’s apart from others – the Charleston Benedict with a crab cake or the Horry County Benedict with fried bologna on toast.
There’s waffles with chicken fingers (an update on a soul food classic), the Elvis (peanut butter and “naners” on French toast) and oatmeal brule, and that’s just breakfast.
Lulu’s also thinks outside the lunch box for the later meals, starting with Lowcountry egg rolls (collard greens and country ham), fried pickles and pub chips among the appetizers. There are some unique soup and salad creations, including Lulu’s Salad, with grilled chicken piled on a bed of spinach with pecans, apples and goat cheese.
Sandwiches range in style (PB&Js with fruit and nutella), grilled palmetto (not pimento) cheese, fried bologna, crab cake and shrimp BLT and price, from $5.95 to $7.95.
Burgers get an upgrade (the Wayward Winds is topped with chili, cheese, mustard and onions) and crab cakes ($11.95) and tenderloin medallions ($13.95) top the menu.
Now patrons can wash it all down with an eclectic array of mixed drinks and flavored coffees, and coming soon is an ice cream parlor so Coan can create her own flavors.
“We’re expanding the bar and we’re getting the equipment to make our own ice cream in house,” Coan said. “I’m excited about it because I can make any flavor I want.”
It all adds up to a trip back in time, and a giant leap forward for the tastebuds.
