By Dathan Kazsuk
Durham’s American Tobacco Campus is about to get a little sweeter—and a lot more buttery.
Lutra Cafe & Bakery, the Durham-based pop-up bakery known for its sweet and savory buns, will open its first brick-and-mortar cafe on June 26. Located in a 2,600-square-foot space on the north side of campus near Ment Beverage Co., Lutra will serve breakfast and lunch seven days a week, giving fans of chef-owner Chris McLaurin’s baked goods a permanent place to grab a bun, sandwich, coffee, or sit-down meal.
For McLaurin, this has always been the plan.
“We did two or three pop-ups a week for two and a half years,” McLaurin says. “The idea was always a brick-and-mortar, but I knew that would take a while to find a space and get ready.”
That patience eventually led him to American Tobacco Campus, a fitting landing spot for a bakery that has grown through farmers’ markets, collaborations, and brunch pop-ups across the Triangle.
“We found American Tobacco, and it definitely felt like the right spot for the bakery,” McLaurin says. “They’re doing some really cool things and already have some great tenants, and I think it’s exciting to be joining the community here.”
McLaurin brings a serious culinary background to what, on the surface, may sound like a casual bun-and-breakfast-sandwich spot. A Chapel Hill native, he trained at L’Academie de Cuisine and worked for James Beard Award-winning chef Johnny Monis at Komi and Little Serow in Washington, D.C. After returning to North Carolina, he held roles in the Triangle before becoming chef de cuisine at Poole’side Pies, part of Ashley Christensen’s restaurant group.
That fine dining experience does not show up here as white tablecloths or precious little bites. It shows up in the details.
“I think it’s attention to detail and really caring about the product we’re putting out, the way we’re putting it out, and the consistency,” McLaurin says. “I always come back to this word, craveable. I want you to take that first bite and say, ‘I chose well. I want to eat this again. I want to tell my friends about it.’”
The menu centers around Lutra’s pastry program, with sweet buns in flavors such as orange, cinnamon vanilla, strawberry lemonade, and chocolate. For McLaurin, the buns have a personal connection.
“For me, sweet buns are really nostalgic,” he says. “It’s like Saturday mornings watching cartoons with my sister. My mom would make Pillsbury buns, and so what we make at Lutra is kind of my version of the feeling I had from eating those buns.”
The opening menu will also include a breakfast sandwich made on a toasted cheddar bun with breakfast sausage, a runny egg, American cheese, and Calabrian aioli; fried French toast bread pudding; deli sandwiches; and 100-layer hash browns, or potato pavé.
McLaurin recommends first-timers start with the orange bun, his personal favorite, along with the breakfast sandwich and hash browns. “They’re super crispy on the outside, and then nice and soft in the center,” he says of the pavé. For lunch, he points to the ice box sandwiches, made ahead, pressed, and chilled so the flavors have time to come together. “It’s kind of the idea of an Italian sandwich the next day, harmonized.
The cafe itself is designed to match the food’s playful spirit. Designed by Kurt West of West Workshop, Lutra will feature 36 indoor seats, 20 patio seats, otter portraits, a neon “Hot Buns” sign, and a colorful mural by Durham artist Samantha Castrovinci featuring dogwood blooms, sweet buns, and cascading water.
The name Lutra means otter in Latin, but for McLaurin, it also carries a more personal meaning.
“It’s a reference to my spouse,” he says. “They’re playful and loving, so it’s kind of a nod to them. But also, I feel like otters are fun, cute, mischievous, playful—all things that I feel like we in a restaurant can try to be, not take ourselves too seriously, and just have a good time.”
Lutra Cafe & Bakery will be open weekdays from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. and weekends from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., with an expanded weekend brunch menu launching in July.
