DINE OUT REVIEWS:

Breizh Bistrot

when I told my co-workers that I wanted to check out Breizh Bistrot, a new creperie, they gleefully signed up to accompany me, even the colleague who, amazingly, had never eaten a crepe. That person was young and had never seen “The English Patient” episode of Seinfeld in which Jerry and his dad visit Izzy Mandelbaum’s well-appointed condo: Morty: The Mandelbaums own the Magic Pan restaurants. Jerry: The crepe place?

Morty: Yeah. This is all big crepe money.

Indeed, crepes, the ramen of the ’80s, were big money back in the day, but then all but disappeared. Of late they seem to be having something of a renaissance, at least in Calgary. First there was Suzette Bistro, which now has two locations, then, in March, Breizh opened on 17th Avenue S.W.

Unlike Suzette, which has a broader French menu, Breizh serves only crepes and galettes. It’s run by a couple, who hail from Brittany but moved to Calgary after a 10-year stint working in restaurants in London. (Clemence, our server, had an accent that was hard to place.) The space is clean and open, with pale grey walls and black and white furniture, and simple, uncluttered decor: a Bretagne flag, a few photographs and Bretagne blue fishing nets. There’s a long bar along one side which looks over the open kitchen, where you can watch the galettes and crepes being made.

We all started with savoury galettes for dinner. The special was a taco version, $20, with ground beef, peppers and Mexican spices, but we wanted to go the authentic route. Two in the group ordered the raclette, $20, of potatoes, salami and raclette cheese. My colleague Nicole is cooking her way through The Art of French Cooking and noted the French belief that the way to eat raclette was with salami and potatoes. Another ordered the Complete, $19, with ham, egg and Gruyère (an additional loonie gets you the Super Complete, which includes mushrooms). The vegetarian in our group opted for the Veggie Complete, $20. All were simple and simply delicious; “I wish there was more cheese” was the only complaint. For something heartier, try the rolled galette saucisse, $20, a sausage with Gruyère and onions caramelized in cider, rolled up in the galette like a sophisticated pig in a blanket. All were accompanied by a green salad punctuated with slices of red onion and cherry tomatoes and dressed with a tangy oil-and-vinegar dressing.

To make your meal even more authentic, have a glass of dry Le Brun cider, $8. Breizh also offers a small selection of wine and local ales on tap, including selections from Village and Banded Peak.

One galette was enough for most of our party, but in the interest of research (and at Stephane’s suggestion) two of us shared the Aumoniere, $15, a sweet crepe made with caramelized apple, caramel and salted butter, and served with a scoop of ice cream.

With the greatest hits of the ’70s and ’80s playlist that accompanied our dinner (Stevie Wonder, the Rolling Stones), we left that evening wanting to get up and dance.

Breizh Bistrot’s lunch special includes a galette (Complete, saucisse or vegetarian), a soft drink and a dessert crepe for $15. For an extra dollar, the crepe can be swapped out for a Kouign Amann, the traditional Breton caramelized layer cake.