I love crêpes. Crêpes in
Paris. Crêpes in New York. Crêpes on restaurants. Crêpes from street vendors. But
most of all, crêpes in Brittany, their true home. I love buckwheat crêpes,
known as gallettes, used for savory,
main-course crêpes. And I love dessert crêpes filled with fruit, or Nutella,
topped with nuts. So, how to choose a crêpe from among the tempting options at
Le Billig? I wanted a dinner crêpe AND a dessert crêpe. I choose a crêpe that
mixed elements of both – sliced ripe black figs, mozzarella cheese, basil, pecans,
and a drizzle of a balsamic reduction. Sincerely, it was one of the best I have
ever had. My husband had the classic smoked salmon crêpe, finished with crème
fraîche, capers, and lemon. I wasn’t surprised to learn that the chef was
Breton. These crêpes were simply excellent and the price was extremely
reasonable.
So my advice to you is that,
if you are in Quebec City, venture a few blocks outside the encircling arms of
the stone wall when it comes to meal times. The best meals we had were just
outside of the highly frequented tourist zone. Within the walls, there were
even crêperies where the staff was forced to wear embarrassing faux-Breton
outfits. Why settle for faux when you can have a real Breton cook for you just a
few steps away?
One question remains: what
is a billig? It’s the name in the
Breton language for the heavy, round cooking surface where the humble crêpe is born. In more traditional
French, it’s a galétière, galettoire, or crêpière.
Traditionally, the billig was placed
on a metal tripod that allowed it to be placed right in the fire. And for
another essential crêpe word, un rozell is the wooden blade that
evenly spreads the batter across le billig for that perfect, crisp crêpe. And now I’m hungry for a crêpe. If only Le Billig was always around the corner!
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- Le Cochon Dingue (onequalitythefinest.com)
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