Would you like live butterflies, moths with your wine? This Nicholasville cafe has ‘em

Hey, Lexington foodies, looking for something a bit different for lunch? How about a chicken salad croissant or a roast beef and Havarti cheese sandwich served with a side of ... butterflies?

That’s just what diners will find at Luna’s Coffee, Wine and Butterfly Café, a casual eatery off of Harrodsburg Road, just across the Jessamine County line.

Alison Davis, co-owner of Luna’s with her husband Web Barney, said she had been looking for a space to open a coffee/wine bar where Web, an entomologist, could also display his vast collection of moths, caterpillars and butterflies.

“When Jessamine County voted to go wet in November, 2020, I knew I had found my space,” says Davis. Opening in April of this year, Luna’s offers specialty coffees and breakfast, lunch and brunch menu items, as well as a selection of wines and imaginative craft cocktails.

How imaginative? Well, as an homage to the main attraction, from the drink menu they have concocted the Monarch Margarita (El Jimador tequila, triple sec and Blood Orange sour); the Painted Lady (Old Forester bourbon, Painted Lady syrup, peach puree and soda), and the namesake Luna (Wheatley Vodka, Dusk simple syrup and fresh squeezed lemon juice topped with bubbles.)

Restaurant professionals who know the pitfalls of opening a new spot, especially during a pandemic, would no doubt be impressed by the couple’s daring.

Neither Barney nor Davis are food industry professionals, although Davis did briefly manage a Ruby Tuesday’s in Durham, North Carolina. She is currently a professor of agricultural economics at the University of Kentucky and director of CEDIK (Community and Economic Development Initiative of Kentucky.)

Barney, despite having degrees in both entomology (the study of insects) and Occupational Therapy, recently retired after 14 years with UPS for a full-time position at Luna’s where he has ample opportunity to indulge his passion for his fluttering friends.

Dining with butterflies

Currently in residence in the two large cages at the front of the restaurant are eight monarch butterflies and eight Painted Lady butterflies.

The Monarch is known for its annual migration to Mexico and its endangered status due to the loss of milkweed, its only host plant. At the other extreme, the colorful Painted Lady feeds on more than 300 plants including sunflower, sage brush and thistle.

The second cage features six wiggly green caterpillars. Had I been here three weeks ago, Barney explains, I would have seen 20 Luna moths from his own personal collection of several hundred.

While he provides the moths, the butterflies come from Idlewild Butterfly Farm in Louisville. All are native to Kentucky.

On a recent afternoon, three-year-old Asher Gonzalez appeared enthralled with the occupants of both cages, squishing up his face at the caterpillars and “oohing” and “aahing” at the butterflies..

“He loves them,” says his mother Caitlin, “we have to stop in often just to see the butterflies.”

Alltech and future butterflies

Barney explains that Luna will be home to each butterfly from two to four days before being released to flutter freely. They may not need to look too far for another safe place to land. Alltech, whose global headquarters is just a few miles from Luna, is becoming something of a butterfly sanctuary itself.

David Saier, the lead AV Specialist at Alltech, admired Barney’s collection and said that Luna and Alltech are working on an arrangement for Luna’s butterflies to end up at Alltech. The company plans to devote an acre to the planting of milkweed which will establish a habitat where hopefully, the monarchs will return year after year.

Not to worry – butterfly lovers like Asher can continue to admire them at Luna where seasonally (April through October) Barney will have a continuous rotating supply of moths, caterpillars and butterflies. He will also be breaking ground within the next few months for a butterfly garden.

The rest of the year Davis plans to keep interest alive with a series of butterfly-related events such as art installations and seminars. She will also host non-butterfly activities such as wine and bourbon tastings, paint and sip classes and trivia nights.

Luna’s menu

For those who just want to eat and for whom butterflies are an added aesthetic dining alongside, Davis says she is also making strides in adding to her menu “a little bit at a time.

“For example, for Saturday and Sunday brunch, we now offer a smoked salmon board and a Belgian waffle board, but I’ll soon be adding other items such as Eggs Benedict and Avocado Toast,” she says.

Additions to the lunch and dinner menu will also be forthcoming. For now, you can’t go wrong with the Artisan Grilled Cheese (three cheeses on sourdough with sauteed onions and fresh herbs) or the Prosciutto and Kale Salad (finely shaved kale, red onion, cucumber, cherry tomato, prosciutto, goat cheese and sunflower seeds tossed with a light lemon vinaigrette).

At Luna’s Coffee, Wine and Butterfly Café, the coffee and wine are reasonably priced; the butterflies are free.

Luna’s Coffee, Wine and Butterfly Café

Where: 109 Springdale Drive, Nicholasville

Hours: Monday – Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Contact: (859) 309-0113; lunascoffeewine.com

This story was originally published May 30, 2021 at 6:00 AM.