The Leisure Center Café launched with a mid-day event where Co-Owner Mason Wu and Scott McKeown, Senior Event Manager, introduced the concept and, once again, apologized for no coffee being served (yet)!
Yu’s explanation (for the lack of coffee) is that the vision for Leisure Center is to curate the best of the best product offerings, styles, ideas, and tastes from around the world and showcase them in a unique environment, so until the best coffee is found, it will not be offered to patrons. The explanation was well received and everyone’s attention was turned to the delicious nibbles being offered about.
The Leisure Center Café is a collaboration of talented vendors, both local and international. The lunch menu, created by Chef Jefferson Alvarez, is inspired by his interpretation of local, seasonal, and sustainable cuisine. With specialty ingredients, the lunch menu will include freshly made sandwiches and salads. “Chef Alvarez has been involved in the Vancouver restaurant community for the last decade, and his knowledge and experience through travel and working in the best kitchens in Europe and Latin America have given him an international flare to his cuisine, which fits very well within our concept” says MuYun Li, Co-Owner.
The dessert offering, currently featuring two local Vancouver-based vendors, Butter • Mere Patisserie and Off On Wednesdays, will encourage guests to leave room for dessert. Jamie Tung, Owner and Pastry Chef of Butter • Mere Patisserie has created a beautiful and delicious menu using traditional French techniques while infusing Asian flavours. Emily Shih, Owner & Chef of Off On Wednesdays uses fresh milled whole grains in her baked goods to create unique flavours and textures and a healthier dessert options.
The beverage menu consists of juice from UPJUS and six tonic elixirs by The Alchemist’s Kitchen, a New York-based botanical dispensary. This is the Alchemist’s Kitchen’s first expansion outside of New York. The lineup, featuring Joy Juice, Love Potion, Kava Nectar, Spirit Elixir, Brain Tonic and Kombucha Revitalizer, each offers health benefits and are intended to create a physical reaction, some creating energy and others calming.
Botanical vendors Celsia Florist and Kermodi Living Art added an abundance of greenery to the space, creating a calm botanical sanctuary in the front corner of the 22,000-square-foot store. The renovated café that seats 16 guests, has a lustrous, silver finish that matches the dividers between Leisure Center’s homewares, literary section, and luxury products.
French brand Omy’s black and white wallpaper with joyful graphics adds a unique, friendly and interactive element to the space. “We are very excited to partner with Omy” says Li. “The beautiful Omy wallpaper becomes an oversized colouring board offering our customers the opportunity to create and share together.”
“We know that our customers have many choices with what to do with their leisure time” says Li, “We hope the new Leisure Center Café will offer our clients and community the opportunity to enjoy a refined café experience set in a beautiful and relaxed environment or convenient take out.”
Location & Hours: Leisure Center 950 Homer Street
Hours of Operation:
Monday – Wednesday 11:00am – 7:00pm
Thursday – Saturday 11:00am – 8:00pm
Sunday 12:00pm – 6:00pm
Lunch menu being offered each day from 11:00am – 5.30pm
Author Profile
- Helen Siwak is the founder of EcoLuxLuv Marketing & Communications Inc and publisher of Folio.YVR Luxury Lifestyle Magazine and digital women's lifestyle magazine EcoLuxLifestyle.co. She is a prolific content creator, consultant, and marketing and media strategist within the ecoluxury lifestyle niche. Post-pandemic, she has worked with many small to mid-sized plant-based/vegan brands to build their digital foundations and strategize content creation and business development. Helen is the west coast correspondent to Canada’s top-read industry magazine Retail-Insider, holds a vast freelance portfolio, and consults with many of the world’s luxury heritage brands. Always seeking new opportunities and challenges, you can email her at helen@ecoluxluv.com.
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