Midtown Lunch

Today, Nick from My Inner Fatty is sharing secrets of campus dining for the general public.

Campus dining?  Yes… I know, repressed memories of vegan ‘ribs’ are all flooding back. Luckily, it’s not always as bad as it sounds. Case in point… the crepe place at Penn. Hidden inside Houston Hall, located on Walnut just West of 34th, there exists a small place called “Pari La Petite Creperie.” It’s a magical corner shop that serves up a dizzying variety of thin crepes, stuffed with your choice of savory or decadent,expected toppings like Nutella and chocolate. It’s a place that most students here know well and hold dear to their hearts. The guy at the counter is about as friendly as they come, the prices are reasonable ($5-7), and the crepes are made fresh and fast. Despite the fact that they’re awesome at what they do, most people don’t know about this place. It’s about time that someone corrected this grave injustice. Penn students should share their secret with the public. It is open to everyone after all.

While they have a full menu to pick from, I ended up going with grilled chicken/bleu cheese crepe. The procedure is this: you go up to the counter and pick your base crepe (there’s 10+ savory e.g. honey dijon turkey, grilled chicken caesar, cheesesteak, etc. and 10+ dessert flavors), and they ask you what toppings you want on it, like onions, peppers, broccoli, basically the works. You take your ticket and go watch patiently as your crepe gets spread on the griddle, folded, and stuffed to oblivion with everything you asked for (and possibly more depending on how the guy making the crepes is feeling).  Then, make your ticket-crepe exchange and you’re good to go.

The crepe fills up a large square delivery box, so for $6 it’s a pretty good meal. Speaking just from the one I chose, I was pleasantly surprised with all the fillings: chicken, bleu cheese, and mozzarella… since the guy was feeling generous. Normally I expect food that comes from inside dining halls and school food courts to be pretty second rate, but this was actually really good. The crepe had the appropriate crunchiness at the edges, but also the fluffy softness you’d expect from a ‘really thin pancake.’ The chicken was nondescript, but certainly passable. The toppings were all cooked properly to  just enough crunch vs. yield. Basically, you have a crepe that’s definitely above average (although not what I’d consider an absolute home run), with more than enough quantity to make you overlook any negatives (like holes in your crepe).

Bottomline is at La Petite Creperie you can get huge servings of above average crepes, so if you’re looking for something different than the food carts or McDonalds, try having a crepe for lunch instead.

THE + (What somebody who likes this place would say)

• Holy serving size, the crepes are big enough for multiple meals (if you’re a small eater)
• Wide variety of different crepes on the menu
• Super friendly staff, who are nice to talk to during the negligible wait for your crepe

THE – (What somebody who doesn’t like this place would say)

• The flavors are all tried and true, with none that are going to ‘wow you’
• Not the biggest fan of cheese/dressing (they drown your crepe thoroughly)
• I’d feel like a creep walking through a college building just for lunch

Pari La Petite Creperie, 3417 Spruce St (@ 34th St), 215 222-6500