"There are more and more young entrepreneurs coming into downtown Whitby, and Lloyd’s is proud to be part of the burgeoning business community that’s trying to do new things in familiar places."
Lloyd’s Lunchbox has a menu for sandwich lovers in a space that makes you feel at home.
Located just east of the Four Corners intersection at Brock and Dundas in Whitby, owner Kyle Farnum spent a year restoring the building to its former glory before he opened its doors to what is now a well-loved local lunch spot.
“This place has a lot of history. It was an old sewing machine repair shop in its most recent years, but before that it was the office of the Whitby Gazette,” notes Kyle, proudly showing off an old copy of the Gazette that’s now displayed on the restaurant’s wall.
“I had a vision for this place,” he says, “and today it looks better than I could have even imagined.”
A Whitby native, Kyle comes to Lloyd’s from a long career in and around the food industry.
Trained as a fine dining chef, he left the stress of the kitchen to become a butcher working several years at various locations in downtown Toronto. He subsequently tried to pursue a career in warehousing but quickly realized that he missed the joy that comes from feeding others.
Source: @lloydslunchboxwhitby
His journey back into the food world led him back home to Whitby. “I just didn’t see enough lunch options in the area here,” says Kyle, noting that while there are some great local restaurants, he saw the opening for a simple sandwich shop.
Along with his homemade soups, Lloyd’s winter menu features some declared fan favourites such as his turkey bacon and Swiss, a Reuben, and a fried provolone and mortadella in tribute to Anthony Bourdain.
“We’ll only serve a sandwich until we run out of the ingredients for the day,” Kyle explains, adding “I’m not going to do anything half-way. If a sandwich is supposed to come with a certain ingredient, and we’ve sold out, I’m not going to short-change anyone.”
That commitment to quality has quickly made Lloyd’s Lunchbox a local favourite. Visitors are regularly walking in from all around downtown Whitby, but also driving in from Ajax, Oshawa and beyond to grab a bite.
“It’s so important to support local,” says Kyle. There are more and more young entrepreneurs coming into downtown Whitby, and Lloyd’s is proud to be part of the burgeoning business community that’s trying to do new things in familiar places.
As for the space, Lloyd’s makes it feel as though you’ve entered a friend’s rec room and they’ve invited you to stay for lunch. The space took a year of transformation that’s been a labour of love for Kyle and his whole family. His father who is highly skilled in construction, helped him tear down the aging finishes from the sewing shop, and restore the exposed brick and hardwood floors to their original charm.
The restaurant is crafted to honour the space and its history, but also to create a relaxed and comfortable vibe.
The first thing you’ll notice walking into Lloyd’s is a small TV/VCR on the lunch counter. Kyle himself is a VHS collector, with a library of roughly three thousand titles at home. He usually supplies the restaurant with a rotating selection of about two dozen tapes.
“We have one rule for our customers,” he notes. “Whoever is sitting at the counter when the movie ends gets to pick the next one.”
The rest of the decor matches what you might expect from a restaurant proudly playing VHS tapes. Above the television is a collection of old TV-themed lunchboxes and paraphernalia. They’re the sort of pieces you haven’t seen in decades but instantly bring back a flood of happy memories.
The food does much the same. Lloyd’s is committed to offering delicious comfort fare soups and sandwiches, all made with his exceptional chef’s touch.
When the TV show “The Bear” made Italian beef sandwiches a rage far beyond Chicago, Lloyd’s was the first restaurant in Durham to get an Italian beef sandwich on their menu, complete with a homemade Giardiniera.
As for Lloyd himself? That was Kyle’s bulldog, named after Jim Carrey’s character in the 90s classic Dumb and Dumber. Lloyd has passed on, but his caricature is the centrepiece of Lloyd’s Lunchbox’s logo, and his legacy lives on with every satisfied customer.
Source: @lloydslunchboxwhitby
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