Two local favorites - Mrs. Roger's Popcorn and Sweet Lilu's Catering work together to make Court Street sweeter for visitors and locals alike.
For immediate Release
June 19, 2020
Versailles, KY - In response to Covid-19 two local businesses in the heart of historic downtown Versailles - Sweet Lilu’s and Mrs. Roger’s Popcorn and Sweet Shop – are working together to best serve their customers and best of all, support each other through a time of great uncertainty at 148 Court Street.
In response to the pandemic, Sweet Lilu’s, an award-winning caterer and bakery located in downtown Versailles, began offering curbside and home delivery orders in March as weddings and private events were postponed. Coined “Lilu’s Home Pantry”, the new service offers fully cooked, personal chef-style meals along with the fresh garnishes so customers can create gourmet meals at home. “This was a logistical challenge at first,” says Executive Chef and Sweet Lilu’s Founder, Beth Hensley. “Our business was really set up to serve many people at once, so making a meal for a single family was a bit of a culture shock to us, we are used to serving 100+ people at a time!”
For nearly 10 years, Sweet Lilu’s has been an active part of the community supporting a variety of non-profits in Fayette and Woodford Counties. Like many of those in food service, to help support frontline workers, the Lilu’s team was creating and delivering boxed lunches to hospitals and other essential workers around the Bluegrass. “We started getting tons of compliments, and then requests for more boxed lunches and deli-style items,” says Hensley.
“We are getting calls weekly from folks asking to swing by the kitchen and pick up something for lunch. We kind of put the two and two together and thought of creating a lunch spot.”
At the same time on the other end of Court Street a few doors down in Steeplechase Centre, Connie Rogers, Owner and Founder of Mrs. Rogers Popcorn and Sweet Shop, was seeing a transition in her customers’ shopping patterns too, due to Covid. “With the pandemic we had paused our client-facing side of the business due to the uncertainty, and like many other small businesses we started focusing on getting our new e-commerce solution up and running. We’ve been getting more requests for online ordering, window pick up, and clients asking to ship our treats and gift baskets across the US to family or friends to boost spirits while folks are stuck at home,” said the Mrs. Rogers of Mrs. Rogers Popcorn and Sweet Shop.
Then a call to the landlord about a pickup window sparked a eureka moment. Connie and Jordan Kite, Owner and CEO of Kite Riddle Holdings, were having a conversation and realized the businesses could collaborate to make the space at 148 Court Street best serve both businesses and their customers through these uncertain times.
Café Lilu is scheduled to open its doors for the first time on Friday June 19th. While the menu features rotating hand selected items by Chef Beth, there are signature staples on the menu like chicken salad croissants, country ham sandwiches, gluten-free quiche, the Sweet Lilu’s award winning taste of the bluegrass blackened chicken orzo pasta, and classic bakery items like baguettes, chocolate chip cookies, and cupcakes.
“We wanted people to feel really welcomed by this little shop, and for it to be a bright spot in their day,” said Jessica Kite, one of the owners of Sweet Lilu’s, about her vision for the space. “If you look around the shop you see little pieces of our story woven into the décor and menu starting with the counter itself - which was reclaimed from the renovations of The Versailles United Methodist Church - to the mini peach cobblers and linzer tarts, which are personal favorites of Beth and myself, house-made infused teas, and of course, Mrs. Rogers famous popcorn.”
In a nutshell, Café Lilu is a sweet spot where you can grab a quick and delicious lunch or dinner - a fan favorite is a chicken salad croissant, signature mixed greens salad and mint tea.
Chef Beth is the executive Chef and Founder of Sweet Lilu’s one of Kentucky’s best-loved caterers. Sweet Lilu’s catering proudly serves clients all across Kentucky. Bluegrass Fine Arts offers artisanal chocolates that ship across the US.
To inquire about catering or Café Lilu please visit sweetlilus.com or call 859-309-6749.
For more information about Mrs. Roger’s Famous Popcorn, Sweets or Custom Gift Baskets - available for local or national delivery please DM via Facebook or Instagram
@mrsrogerspopcornandsweetshoppe
Sweet Lilu’s contact:
Email: hello@sweetlilus.com
Facebook @sweetlilus
Instagram @sweet_lilus
Phone: 859 – 309-6749
Café Lilu
Facebook @cafelilu
Instagram @cafelilu_
Phone: 859 – 309-6749
Please contact 859-309-6749 for media inquiries.
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