(smartshanghai.com)
Updated: 2007-07-24 10:38

At home in the French Concession La Creperie is the first restaurant in Shanghai to be based solely on the crepe. From the stripey waiter's uniforms to the light house salt and pepper shakers, everything is in honour of the French province Brittany. Brittany crepes are made with buckwheat which is darker in colour and not as sweet as flour crepes, complementing the wide choice of savory fillings available. Many of these are traditional to Brittany, including ham, cheese and egg fillings, which would actually be perfect for a reasonable sized breakfast; unfortunately the restaurant does not open until 11:30am, you may chose to go one weekday for lunch.

However, the portions are not huge and some of my male colleagues did leave with their stomachs rumbling, so steer clear if you are looking for a substantial meal. The relaxed atmosphere and French cafe style decor do suggest this as a lighter option; however, the prices do not. Although you can get a basic crepe for RMB30 most are around RMB60, and the set lunch offering one crepe, an apple cider and jam is RMB88. The imported apple cider is the traditional complement to French crepes.

All the options looked delicious. If you like the traditional menu, curried chicken is worth your try. There were also some intriguing combinations from the non-traditional menu, including scallops and asparagus or even a salad of crepes, where the crepe is torn up and tossed into a salad. However, if you are fussy or cannot decide from the options available you can design your own crepe starting from RMB28 for one filling. And if you strongly feel your crepe should be sweet there is a massive selection of crepes filled with just about any combination of fruits, spreads and ice-creams available. You can also combine your desert with a French dining experience and opt for a flambe.

This is a novel idea in Shanghai and could work extremely well if the prices were lowered a little and La Creperie was a more traditional French cafe rather than a themed restaurant.