La Crêpe Sautée By Allison Pinski

The Jacques-Cartier Plaza in Old Montreal near Old Port offers a variety of small restaurants and activities (especially in the summer), such as caricatures and balloon animals. This plaza is also home to one of the best creperies in the city; La Crêpe Sautée.

La Crêpe Sautée is more of a hole in the wall place than anything else, with a small patio lining its front end and a very tight interior, but I have yet to find a creperie in Montreal that can match its character and flavors. 

La Crêpe Sautée sells both crepes, various drinks, sandwiches, gelato, and other pastries. With both sweet and savory crepes, La Crêpe Sautée has the basics covered. Sweet crepes can include fresh fruits (like strawberry, raspberries, and bananas), Nutella, ice cream, whipped cream, nuts, caramel, brownies, etc. I usually lean toward the strawberry/Nutella/ice cream/whipped cream option, as pictured below.

Savory crepes include eggs, cheeses, vegetables (like tomatoes, peppers, and onions), meats (like ham, pepperoni, and salmon), and hollandaise sauce. While in Montreal, I purchased one with only eggs and cheese, but it was definitely worth writing about.

The interior is small, but welcoming. A counter offers visitors a view of the vividly colored gelato on their way to retrieve the menus from the register counter. Food items are listed as numbers, but there is much flexibility from the workers in customizing your crepes to add or remove any ingredients listed within the number.

While there is no room to eat inside, there is a small patio with several tables outside, which is preferable on a summer day. Flower boxes and the plaza offer a wonderful view, as well as the opportunity to people-watch. 

If the patio is filled, or you simply want a crepe on the go, you can order “to-go." Instead of receiving a paper plate with your crepe, they wrap your crepe for you to help avoid any mess as you walk along to the next location (like the neighboring Notre Dame).

Eating a La Crêpe Sautée crepe is life-changing, and definitely a food highlight for any trip to the city. I almost wish the business were a chain, although I doubt the food would taste as good if it were available in more locations.

If you find yourself anywhere near La Crêpe Sautée, I highly suggest popping in for a quick snack.