I met with a friend to explore the street art in her neighborhood of Oylmpiades (Chinatown) in the 13th arrondissement. Before starting the tour, we stopped at one of her favorite local restaurants, "La Petite Creperie". The unique themed crepes were wonderful. We sat by large windows in the front of the restaurant where I could observe the bustling street life and beautiful architecture.
It's a colorful, warm, and inviting space. The restaurant features artwork by local artists selected by the owner, up to the ceiling with a beautiful hanging lamp carved into a calabash and guitars on the walls. Chef Junior Francisque is an artist himself, very charming and fashionable. He paints (mostly on canvases) and designs art pieces inspired by his former life as an architect and his Haitian roots. No wonder his menu broadcasting traditional French cuisine was thought around arts and cultures, with all pancakes/crepes being named after Junior's favourite artists (e.g. Dali, Santana, Frida, Clapton, Kandinsky...). Caribbean and soul music fills the space, adding to the cheerful and upbeat mood. You can immediately sense that Junior is involved in every detail that goes into making his restaurant not only a place to eat but a special experience for his guests.
The food was served quickly after we ordered and was absolutely delicious! I'm a vegetarian so I appreciated the menu which has a wide range of meatless selections. If there's a crepe that you want but it has meat in it, you can substitute it with other ingredients. I ordered the Galette Dali, which has marinated eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes confit, and onion confit, goat cheese and pesto sauce. The crepe was amazing! The fresh eggplant was cooked to perfection and the marinated vegetables were juicy and full of flavor, seasoned perfectly. For drinks, my friend and I had apple cider. I chose the aged cider while my friend opted for the sweet cider, both very complimentary to the crepes, a classic combination in the region of Bretagne.
After the savory crepe, it was time to try a sweet one. Note that you can ask for buckwheat pancakes (same paste as the one used for savoury crepes) if you want a dairy free meal. I chose the homemade salted butter caramel crepe, one of their signature classic crepes. It was absolutely delightful! It wasn't too salty like I'd imagined and the caramel was rich but not too sweet. A perfect balance of flavors. My friend ordered the homemade dark chocolate crepe. She enjoyed every bite and we both felt totally fulfilled afterward. After such a great food experience, the owner gave us some small but delicious cinamon cookies (speculos) to send us on our way. My experience at La Petite Creperie was fantastic and I can't wait to visit again. read more