Let the good crepes roll at The Crepery
The Pin-Up and the Rushmore crepes at The Crepery.
The Pin-Up, Rushmore and Scout Camp crepes at The Crepery.
The Athena salad at The Crepery.
A piece of art hangs on a wall at The Crepery.
The Mac Daddy crepe served at The Crepery.
The Polly Anna crepe at The Crepery.
I have never felt like one to actually pay money for a crepe.
Crepes are, quite frankly, really easy to make. They consist mostly of milk, eggs, butter and flour, and most recipes make about a dozen in just a few minutes. And as said in the classic comedy, “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby,” they’re just really thin pancakes.
But despite my reticence at paying money for a fancy, paper-thin pancake, The Crepery, which opened a few months ago in The Shops at Riverwoods in Provo, turned around my thinking and demonstrated what a superior crepe is.
Immediately upon entering The Crepery, I was smacked with a strong arthouse, café aesthetic, with chic art decorating the walls, many depicting motherhood. It was welcoming and urged me to go further into the store to appreciate the paintings. Smart play.
My wife and I decided to order three crepes each, which we wish we knew was a tremendous undertaking and was impossible to finish in one meal. It did afford us the opportunity to sample many of the unique savory and sweet flavors The Crepery had to offer.
Regardless of the fillings, each crepe was perfectly soft, but sturdy; keeping all of the fillings wrapped tightly inside. We watched with wonder as the cooks poured the batter over the tremendous pans, scraping the batter across the entire pan to make one large crepe, which is then folded over itself several times to be eaten with one hand. Though that is the goal, some were certainly too sweetly sloppy for that to happen.
I chose the Mac Daddy — a savory crepe — with a Polly Anna and Nutie Fruitie for my sweet crepes.
Coming into this review, I had never enjoyed savory crepes. To me, crepes were to be enjoyed with a dollop of whipped cream and syrup, not a slice of mozzarella. But the Mac Daddy, which was recommended by our cashier, was hands down the best crepe I had in that meal. The Mac Daddy crepe was stuffed with chicken, bacon, avocado, mozzarella cheese and a special dill and cream cheese sauce. The crunch of the bacon paired perfectly with the creamy avocado. Combine that with the mild yet smooth dill sauce, and I easily downed this crepe.
The Polly Anna was a simple, no-nonsense crepe, coated in sugar, butter and a choice of strawberries or bananas. I opted for strawberries, as it reminded me of a simple dessert my mother would make when I was a kid: strawberries with just a touch of sugar on top.
The simplistic fillings made it easier to focus on the sweet flavor of the crepe itself, which is often difficult when it’s overflowing with fillings.
The fillings of the Nutie Fruitie were classic: Nutella and bananas. You can’t go wrong with Nutella and bananas, though it did force me to pronounce Nutella like new-tella, which is on par with one of the Unforgivable Curses, in my opinion.
My wife’s savory crepe was the Rushmore, filled with ham, cheese and egg. It was a perfect breakfast meal that fit comfortably in one hand. And to be candid, breakfast food is acceptable at any time of day.
Her first sweet crepe was the Pin-Up, filled with a spread of cheesecake filling, slices of strawberries and a drizzle of chocolate sauce. It was like a slice of cake wrapped in a crepe and was very filling.
Among all these hits, we did have one miss: the Scout Camp. This crepe was filled marshmallow creme, chocolate sauce and graham cracker crumbles; akin to a s’more. However, the crepe was overly dense and really hard to get through. Though the Pin-Up also had chocolate sauce, it was excessive in the Scout Camp, and with that excess, it was obvious the sauce was inferior, like Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup. My wife struggled to find any graham cracker crumbs in the crepe, because the marshmallow and chocolate overpowered any graham cracker crumbs that may have been in the crepe. It remained mostly unfinished by the time we cleared our table.
One notable, classic crepe filling was also missing from the menu: Biscoff. Biscoff is a sweet, creamy spread with a hint of nutmeg — otherwise known as Cookie Butter to Trader Joe’s aficionados. The menu was fine without it, but it could easily be taken to the next level with a Biscoff offering on certain crepe combinations.
The Crepery offered many cafe and bistro staples, like coffee, frappuccinos, steamers and salads. We ordered an Athenian salad to attempt to offset the inflow of blatant, yet delicious, empty carbs and calories. It was the restaurant’s take on a Greek salad, topped with feta, balsamic vinaigrette and kalamata olives. It was flavorful, but as is expected with the typical salty taste of the feta paired with the bitter punch of the vinaigrette.
The Crepery was a delight from the moment we walked in the doors to the last forkful of crepe. We clearly had leftovers and felt only slightly judged by other diners who had just two crepes. But with most items even less than $7, it’s an affordable, satisfying way to grab a bite without taking a chunk out of your wallet.
THE CREPERY
Where: 4801 N. University Ave., Suite 690, Provo
Hours: 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday-Thursday, and 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday
Price: $2.15-$7.15
Info: (385) 236-5850, www.the-crepery.com/
Dining
