Dessert restaurants really are the gift that keeps on giving to anyone with a sweet tooth, myself included.
The very idea that you can have a huge pancake or waffle covered in sickly sweet toppings and served with ice cream is an absolutely childhood dream come true.
This was what I was looking forward to when I visited the latest edition to Summertown’s high street on the morning of November 7.
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Crêpeaffaire opened in Summertown at the end of October and its located beneath the new £15million, 180-room easyHotel.
As the name might suggest, Crêpeaffaire is all about crêpes.
Unlike American-style pancakes, which are thick and fluffy, French crêpes are thin and light. They can be eaten for breakfast, lunch or dinner and can be either savoury or sweet, meaning there is no limit to the toppings you can enjoy.
Like in most dessert restaurants, at Crêpeaffaire I was met with a huge, and I mean huge, choice of crêpes to pick from. In typical me fashion, it meant I wanted to consume my body weight in crêpe batter and eat all of them.
In the end, I decided to go for the Oreo cookie crêpe (just one I might add) which was served with Belgian chocolate sauce, Oreo cookies and soft serve ice cream. At a whopping 903 calories it was exactly the indulgent start to the day I was looking for.
I ordered at the counter and the service was polite and exceptionally quick, with both the crêpe and breakfast tea I order in front of me within about five minutes.
As the restaurant has an ‘open kitchen’ design it meant I could watch my crêpe being made from scratch.
Unlike other dessert restaurants that use an American-ised malt-shop-come-nightclub branding style, Crêpeaffaire has a simple, modern and open café feel to it.
My crêpe was light, fresh and cooked nicely. I could also tell the batter had been made from scratch rather than pre-made from a bottle. The mix of crumbly Oreos, smooth chocolate sauce and creamy vanilla soft serve which topped it made the meal an eclectic mix of sweet tastes.
However, the initial lightness of the crêpe was deceptive, as three quarters of the way through I was starting to struggle. Not one to be defeated, I pushed on and felt fully satisfied when I took my last bite of crêpe.
While I was at the restaurant, owner Huei Liao told me to me how she only moved to Oxford last year wanted to open up venue which enabled her to connect with people in the local area.
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She said: “I want this to be a community space where people of all ages can come together. I want them to be able to share their happiness and positive experiences.”
In one example, Huei explained how the restaurant’s play area for young children is bigger than a normal Crêpeaffaire because she is keen to make families feel comfortable.
She added: “I do not do this for the money, I do this to keep myself engaged and get involved in the community.”
Crêpeaffaire Summertown is open now on Banbury Road.
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