Studying the quiet, peaceful grounds of the shuttered cafe at the Richards Street YWCA, Lance Kosaka imagined casual, leisurely paced service for a maximum 80 diners inside the restaurant.

The reality, now that Cafe Julia is open for business, is that in a month it’s become such a hot spot for lunch that it’s running at reservations-only capacity. But those lacking reservations will not be deterred and are parking themselves at tables in the open courtyard, fully expecting to be served.

It’s no wonder. The former Cafe Laniakea closed last fall for renovations, and there are only a handful of places for a relaxed, elegant lunch in the downtown area. CEOs, company presidents and pitchmen are not likely to do much business at Ahi & Vegetable, so the reboot is welcome.

"I kept looking at the tickets coming in, saying H1 and H3 and B1, and wondering, ‘What is this?’" said Kosaka, executive chef of the new endeavor. "So many people were coming, we were setting up tables in the hallway, next to the bathroom, even by the registration desk."

That explains why they hadn’t bothered to dress up the nakedness of courtyard tables with white tablecloths. Overnight success is great, but it comes with its particular set of difficulties.

Luckily, Kosaka, a 17-year alumnus of Alan Wong’s The Pineapple Room was trained to deal with — not only kitchen matters — but also whatever crisis might emerge. "The way chef trained us, I was involved in everything, including staffing and hiring. I found that invaluable, and it was the best training I could have had, in addition to what he instilled in us in the kitchen."

Kosaka said he hadn’t been actively looking for a place of his own, but when the opportunity arose, it seemed too good to pass up. While in the past the YWCA ran the kitchen operation, he said his Shinyou Group is the first independent operator to set up in the spot. It’s easy to see the attraction. The building was designed in the 1920s by Julia Morgan, who also designed Hearst Castle, and the cafe, with its vaulted ceilings and walls open to cooling breezes, is a joy to experience. The cafe now bears her name.

Because the new restaurant has been slammed, don’t go if you’re low on your company’s totem pole. It’s geared more toward those with expense accounts, and you’re more likely to get out in two hours than the hour typically alloted for lunch.

You may want to start with the less crowded breakfast, with such offerings as buttermilk pancakes ($8); biscuit-and-sausage sandwiches ($8); corned beef hash and eggs ($12); eggs Benedict with house-made chorizo and polenta ($12.50); and smoked salmon bruschetta ($12).

The menu also runs on the heavy side and certain choices may leave you too drowsy to function in the afternoon.

Starters, for instance, include garlic fries ($4) tossed in a soy-garlic-butter sauce; an upscale five-layer dip ($12) of refried taro, chevre, romaine and tomatoes; a bruschetta platter ($14); and mild-flavored deep-fried ochazuke risotto balls ($6.50) served with Japanese pickled vegetable aioli. There’s asparagus ($8.50) too, but it’s deep-fried and served with truffled mayonnaise. That said, the tempura batter on the asparagus is so light, it’s like biting air. I ended up eating more than I should have.

To satisfy the salad crowd, there is a simple house salad of Ma‘o Farms organic greens ($8), Chinese chicken salad ($12) and a Ho Farms tomato panzanella salad ($9), the last tossed with toasted bread, cucumbers, onions and zucchini in a light red wine vinaigrette.

I could have easily stopped with the salad, asparagus and risotto balls and left happy and sated.

Note that the menu will continue to evolve and change based on the chef’s whims, but for an easy start, he’s reproduced a couple of dishes he initially came up with at The Pineapple Room. These include a rather messy garlic chicken and furikake mac salad sandwich ($11) and king salmon ochazuke ($24). The furikake-crusted New Zealand salmon on ochazuke risotto and drenched in comforting warm green tea was one of my favorites at The Pineapple Room.

I’ve been told businessmen have asked for meat, and the chef has complied, offering grilled kalbi-marinated beef ($17), a petite 6-ounce slice of adobo-style roasted pork belly ($14) topped with a tomato and onion relish with mungo bean puree on the side, grilled Vietnamese-inspired pork chop ($15), and loco moco ($16) that starts with Kuahiwi Ranch ground beef.

On the lighter side, there is pasta primavera ($12), as well as puttanesca ($12) with just a light touch of garlic, anchovy, olive and spicy tomato sauce. The shrimp pasta ($16) is the most robust, with the half-dozen succulent shrimp tossed in anchovy and achiote oil, along with capers, Nicoise olives and tomatoes.

Also for light eaters, there is grilled monchong ($18) and grilled whitefish ($17) topped with macadamia nut pesto, surrounded by a salad of more of the Ho Farms tomatoes and chickpeas with a red wine dressing.

Don’t forget to save room for dessert. I always love a touch of yuzu, this time flavoring creme brulee ($6). But even better was a mango cobbler ($6) with plenty of the warm fruit under a cake layer topped with vanilla bean ice cream. The combination was divine.

The team has applied for a liquor license, so with any luck, we’ll be looking at Cafe Julia as one more dinnertime destination in the not-too-distant future.

———

Nadine Kam’s restaurant reviews are conducted anonymously and paid for by the Star-Advertiser. Reach her at nkam@staradvertiser.com.