Lunch at Allen's offers up a smorsgasbord at the Fraser

It was 2003, and a group of Toronto-area musicians were in the habit of gathering at Allen's restaurant on the Danforth to grouse about the music business.

One of this gang was Murray McLauchlan, who'd recently had a health scare involving open heart surgery.

He'd pretty much given up on trying to make a living as a musician, but his recent experiences made him realize he needed to use the gifts God had given him.

Over lunch at Allen's (where else?), McLauchlan invited his friends Ian Thomas and Marc Jordan to join him and form a new band for a one-off tour.

Cindy Church was later called upon to round out the group, later dubbed Lunch at Allen's after the band's favourite watering hole.

Twelve years later, Lunch at Allen's is still together, and tours regularly. The group is set to play at Laurentian University's Fraser Auditorium starting at 7:30 p.m. June 7.

“I get together to sing with these people in the kitchen, and that's kind of what our shows are like,” said Thomas in a recent phone interview.

“They're pretty informal and conversational and irreverent. We take the music pretty seriously, but boy, it's just so much fun for the lot of us.”

Lunch at Allen's features some serious experience.

As individuals, the band members have written for or sung on over 25 million CDs, penning hits for the likes of Josh Groban, Bonnie Raitt and Santana. They've won Junos for their own material too.

It's hard to describe the band's sound, as they tend to back each other up on songs they've written as individual artists, which range from pop to folk to country.

“I would have to say it sounds like Lunch at Allen's,” Thomas said.

Tickets to the Sudbury show, which cost $40 each, are available through the Sudbury Theatre Centre box office at 705-674-8381.