As Mr BMB and myself have a few days off work *air punch* we decided we’d do some proper tourist stuff and head down to the Brighton Wheel to see what stuff looks like from way up in the air. AMAZING! You have to do this if you haven’t already.
First we thought we’d have a light lunch so we headed to the The Creperie, somewhere we’ve been meaning to try since the good feedback started to filter through the social media channels. Twitbuzz, if you will. I love a made up word.
First impressions were good; the tables were full of happy eaters, the lady behind the counter was smiley and friendly and the decor had a bright, clean feel to it – tick, tick, tick.
We were directed to the downstairs seating area and told that we’d need to order at the counter when we were ready. It has the same bright airiness as the ground floor, even though there’s no natural light. The area that connects through to the main room has the obligatory bare brick wall on the right, with some well designed, brightly coloured prints showcasing some of the pancake fillings, but the thing that really detracted from those was the handwritten chalkboard sign.
Here’s a tip: if you’re going to get someone to write your special offers, events, etc on of these boards, get someone who has good, clear handwriting and more importantly, someone WHO CAN SPELL.
*twitch*
The main seating area was suffering a bit from ‘waiting-room-itis’, with huge expanses of bare white wall, (which isn’t always a bad thing – I’ve seen some very odd pictures in restaurants), but it did have some fabulous industrial style angle-poise lighting.
It could really use some of the touches that have been applied upstairs though, where there are kitchen implements hung on peg boards; it would definitely help to make the room feel a little more cosy, especially when you’re the only people in the room as we were. It just felt a bit stark. Love the wallpaper and the low tables in the area under the stairs though, the space has been used really well.
OK, I can hear you telling me to stop wittering and get to the important matter of the food. They have a good range of options, both sweet and savoury, including galettes which are made with buckwheat flour and are therefore gluten free, lots of vegetarian options and a kids meal deal.
I ordered a mushroom medley galette – wild mushrooms, crème fraiche, white wine, dill and spinach leaves – and a glass of house red (shut up, I’m on holiday) and Mr BMB chose the crepe de maison – traditional French tartiflette with potato, bacon, onion, reblochon cheese and cream. They arrived quickly and were both served with a small pot of coleslaw and a salad.
Mushroom Medley Galette
Crepe de Maison
(Yes, I know, you can’t see the filling – we ate them pretty fast and I realised too late – sorry)
The galettes were just as they should be – wafer thin, light and lacy. My filling was tasty though I’d have preferred a little more of it….Mr BMB’s was good, but cold in the middle. Also, I got a little surprise in my coleslaw, you can just make it out in the photo; a little paper sticker that had found it’s way from a box of veg or something similar. I didn’t eat it fortunately, I just found it on my plate after I tipped out my coleslaw. It happens, I’m over it. If it had been a hair or a human finger I might have made of an issue of it. The salad had a really tasty dressing on it and the coleslaw was fresh and clearly home-made and wasn’t drowned in mayo. All good. Mr BMB wasn’t too fond of the glass he was given for his beer though. It made him frown.
On the way out, we treated ourselves to a scoop of gelato supplied to The Creperie by local ice-cream heroes Gelato Gusto – I had pistachio and Mr BMB went for his usual salted caramel. MMmmmmmmm.
Service: Fast and friendly and we were told to order at the counter so we weren’t left hanging around waiting for service.
Decor: The counter area, seating and decor has obviously been well thought out, as has the branding. The clean colours, bleached wood and simple,modern graphics are well suited to the seaside location. The paper napkins and crockery had the logo emblazoned proudly on them, it was unfortunate that I was reminded of the Tesco value logo though – just me?
Toilets: Wow – niiiice toilets. A proper loo roll with a holder, a full length mirror, lighting that doesn’t make you look like an extra from Shaun of the Dead and a clean, functional, flushing loo. See? It can be done.
Prices: You can grab a traditional sugar and lemon crepe or even a waffle on a stick to take out, both at £2.95. My mushroom galette was £5.95 (take out price £4.95) and Mr BMBs crepe de maison was £6.95 (take out price £5.95). A scoop of gelato is £2.50. The kids meal deal for under 10s is £6.95 and for that you get a crepe, wrap or waffle with up to two toppings, a scopp of gelato and unlimited drink refills. There’s a great dinner deal for £6.50 too which gets you a savoury galette and a glass of wine. See the full menu on their (beautiful) website for details.
Grrs: More filling (and less paper stickers) for me please! Hotter filling and a proper beer glass for Mr BMB please! And PLEASE sort out your chalkboard – I’m twitching again just thing about it.
Overall, a perfectly located place to pop in and grab a quick bite that won’t break the bank. Kids will love this place just as much as the grown-ups. It has a seasoned chef in Karen Samuel who was at Food for Friends for 25 years, she clearly knows what she’s doing and is going to do extremely well here. I’ll be returning soon to have a sweet crepe and a Small Batch coffee. 7/10
Do visit the website as the photos are much better than mine! I neglected to take photos of the upstairs as I didn’t want to attract attention or disturb the other diners. I’ll re-visit and take some pics and will post them ASAP.
The Creperie, 2 Ship Street, Brighton BN1 1AD Tel: 01273 323830 Email: info@thecreperiebrighton.com
Bite Me, Brighton 
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