Flipping for crispy Chinese crêpes
The owners of a popular new Chinese street food restaurant picked an unlikely commercial stretch for their business: Westminster Ave. in Montreal West. Although rarely lacking in foot traffic, the area is less bustling than, say, the food markets in northern China where the aptly named Montreal Chinese Crêpes and Dumplings drew its inspiration. It’s not even as natural a fit as our Chinatown or the Chinese food-filled Concordia ghetto.
Nevertheless, this hole in the wall with two counters and no tables has developed a cult following since opening in mid-March. In addition to serving staples like dumplings, wonton soup and spring rolls, owner Zhen “Lan” Liu specializes in the customarily made-on-the-spot jian bing guo: a savoury white flour batter crêpe with an egg spread over it, filled with soybean paste and fried wonton. It’s then folded together and eaten by hand. It’s not quite the traditional crêpe bretonne Montrealers are used to.
“The original popular one comes from the north part of China, in Tianjin,” explains Zhen. “You never really see crêpes being sold in a store like this one; it’s always on the street or at the market.”
Zhen, who used to own a panini shop near École de technologie supérieure on Notre-Dame St. W., went to Dalian, China to procure a pair of authentic hot plates that heat evenly for the ideal crispy result, but otherwise has adapted her crêpes to more Westernized tastes. Instead of tubed ready-to-eat sausage, a practical filling in China unlikely to whet the appetites of Montreal foodies, Zhen stuffs hers with beer-battered fried chicken, bacon and jerk beef.
More outlandish fusions have been discussed, from fish and chip to bacon cheeseburger.
She knew she had a winning idea because her picky eater of a husband, New York native Yves G. Melançon, became obsessed with the dish during a family trip to China in 2013.
“I remember getting there and her dad, whom I was meeting for the first time, had made this whole spread for us,” Melançon recalls. “I couldn’t eat anything. Her dad was nice enough to get me fried chicken from around the corner. But one day we went to the market and I discovered the crêpes. For the next three weeks, I think I went back to that booth every day.”
Last fall, the couple decided to open a restaurant, with jian bing guo as the signature dish. They eventually settled on a shuttered computer shop on Westminster, because even when scouting locations in the dead of winter, there were always people walking around outside.
“I see Westminster becoming a hub for restaurants in the next few years,” says Melançon. “Places like Burger de Ville and Emma’s (Boutique Gourmande) cupcakes are destinations that bring people from outside of the community.”
Adds Zhen: “Even the customers we’re getting aren’t just from the area, but from all over.”
So far, customers from Laval, the South Shore and even one visiting from Toronto – where the jian bing guo has already gained traction – have made the trip. There’s also a healthy mix of expats longing for a taste from home and curious eaters looking for something new.
And of course, there are the high school students from nearby Royal West Academy. The first week they opened, the kids descended en masse and ate every dumpling in sight, which are handmade in the morning.
“I didn’t sleep that night,” says Zhen. “I kept thinking, ‘What am I going to do without dumplings?’ “
“She made dumplings for 12 hours a day that weekend,” adds Melançon.
It’s partially because of the student population that Zhen and Melançon have kept prices low, with no items above $10 and canned soft drinks at $1. Another reason for keeping the menu inexpensive is that it wouldn’t feel like street food otherwise.
“I don’t want to hear people say, ‘It’s good, but it’s so expensive,’ ” says Zhen.
The jian bing guo is designed to be made fresh and eaten on the run, explains Zhen, so it’s not even necessarily a great fit for the bevy of food delivery apps out there. (Melançon wants to hire a local kid to courier dumplings by bike to nearby customers.)
“When you order the crêpe fresh, it tastes different. It’s crispy. In China, you grab it and eat it right away on the bus or wherever you’re going. It’s not something to save for later.”