Le Creperie: A romantic rendez-vous
Despite the controversy surrounding Tilly Mint vs Baker Tom and his vindication of the scone, British revival has been subverted by the utterly charming sister company to Tilly Mint, La Creperie. Owner Maxine and I retreat with cafés aux lait to have a little tete a tete.
Maxine is possibly more French than English giving her crepes a delicious authenticity, ingrained after many years living in France and travelling all over Europe for a natural cosmetics company. Since wanting to move to France in 1988, the dream was to buy a mill and own a little Restaurant-Creperie. The ever familiar‘life happened’. However Maxine came back to the UK two years ago, and at that point there was a quandary between les gateaux or les crepes. “Tilly Mint took off right from the start”; and again the crepes went on the back burner.
Tilly Mint used to be on Green Street just by the bus station, and though it was great in principal in practice it was rather difficult. “Some days we would go in and, because the property is built on the river, the fridge wouldn’t open because the floor was in the way”. The big bakery is in St Georges Road just under the viaduct next to GF2, and Maxine has just taken on the building next door to act as a studio.
She wanted to keep the café element going, and finally after all those years of dreaming about crepes: voila! A bijou, quaint and cosy couples spot for the afternoon, just on the river and very quasi Parisian. Maxine knows a thing or two about creperies, but has also trained to be a chocolatier at Slattery’s (that was the Belgian influence she says). Sieze the crepe!
The food is all locally sourced and made from scratch, most people, Maxine says, know the Breton crepe but La Creperie is a carbon copy of the Parisian creperies like in Montparnasse and Montmartre; Maxine’s favourite La Creperie des Art is in the Latin quarter.
“I like Mish mashes”, ludicrously creative but achingly modest about her charms and talent as an artiste Maxine’s décor reflects her love of traditional Parisian Creperies juxtaposed with a modern retro twist: the chandelier made of wine glasses is an eye-catching favourite of mine. Vintage and gloriously sanguine the petite creperie is the perfect place for an intimate, romantic lunchtime rendez-vous; the epitome of a Parisian creperie with a plat du jour, salads, fabulous coffee and vino – well wine is coming on the 5th October.
La Creperie is on two levels. The ground floor perfect for idling an hour with a coffee and cupcake whilst people watching, whilst the upstairs commands a view of the cathedral and back of town. Jazz music plays throughout the afternoon, and we genuinely are in our own little world in a corner of town that still evokes a nostalgic and old time Truro.
It is true that in Truro town it is rather hard to find a quirky place to lunch – it is a familiar question posed by either JT or I “where shall we go for lunch?” I think we have found our answer. Bon chance Maxine!
What a great write up! Just to note we are open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings as well as every day except Sundays. YES!!! We were given our License on 5th October – Salut!!!! Now we wait for a week or so for the scaffolding to come down and reveal a fresh and light building….hoorah!