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2012-11-05
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"Fleur de Sel" doesn't only sound beautiful to non-French speakers; it actually means "flower of salt". Fleur de Sel is a type of hand-harvested sea salt which is traditionally collected off the Coast of Brittany, and given that crêpe is originated from Brittany (northwest of France), I cannot help to applaud the linkage. It was a fine afternoon. Having met up my old friend K, we followed the openrice map and made it to an old building in the overcrowded Causeway Bay. Up we went taking the old l
It was a fine afternoon. Having met up my old friend K, we followed the openrice map and made it to an old building in the overcrowded Causeway Bay. Up we went taking the old lift, then through passageway with the whitewashed brick wall; we entered into a different world, a very different part of Causeway Bay. Unconsciously, I took an extra breath to soak up the atmosphere.
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We were greeted by a young French waiter and I responded naturally "Bonjour".
The restaurant is not very big; or perhaps I should call it a cafe. The main dinning area consists only around 10 tables. What caught my eyes immediately was the balcony area with some wicker chairs and coffee tables. We requested to enjoy the sun at the balcony and were swiftly seated.
A simple menu with a long list of savoury crêpes (made with buckwheat flour and unsweetened) and sweet crêpes (made with wheat flour and slightly sweetened) - happily spoilt with so many options, it took us a while to make our final decisions (at the end, we decided to order a savoury and a sweet one to share!)..
There were a few types of Cider to choose from (on top of wine and, of course, other common drinks). Cider is traditionally known as a fermented alcoholic beverage made from apple juice exclusively; nevertheless, there is a pear variation on their drinks menu (!!!). I have an inclination to go for what the "traditional" is, and so we ordered a bottle of "dry cider". (I will go back for the pear one sometime soon ) Cider is generally served in traditional ceramic bowls rather than glasses in crêperies in France. And (omg!) yes, Fleur de Sel does it in the CORRECT way. First up, the savory crêpe "la truffe" - in a nice brown, served skin-thin, and delicately crisp. It looked super inviting and tasty, and it smelled amazingly delicious and mouth-watering. The crêpe was filled generously with ham, emmental cheese, black truffle paste and wrapped up neatly with an egg sitting in the middle. It was a moist and hearty combination - the distinctive earthy fragrance of the black truffle mixed with the creamy and aromatic emmental cheese (you see.. i have always loved emmental cheese - traditional cow cheese, with a hint of sweetness coupled with fresh-cut hay; goes super well with a good glass of wine ). This is what I would call "a perfect marriage"; neither component overpowered the other; they blended, they complemented, they made each other better. You have a choice of adding camenbert cheese with a small additional charge; we did, and I would highly, highly recommend everyone doing it!! The delicate salty taste of camenbert certainly brought the experience to a whole new level. I was satisfied, very satisfied. Then our sweet crêpe arrived "L'After Eight". Yes, not too difficult to guess - a crêpe resembling the classic "After Eight chocolate". I thought that it was a good dessert choice; afterall "After Eights" are "after-dinner mints" . Again, a successful presentation - it was something which made me smile when I merely looked at it. I found this crêpe in a pretty homey gold, even thinner than the savory one; but interestingly (and I actually loved it), it was chewier! Topped with elegant stripes of warm chocolate sauce, a scoop of cacao ice cream (aka: chocolate ice-cream) with a piece of After Eight inserted in the scoop (not to forget a blob of cream and a berry as decoration ). The mint element, besides the minty bit sandwiched in the After Eight chocolate, was represented and brought to us by the jade-green shot of "Get 27" (a liquor with mint, typically 21% alcohol). A fun take on traditional crêpes. Instead of taking the shot in the "correct way", I gently poured some "Get 27" over the creamy and flavourful cacao ice cream. Each mouthful was divine. It was nice that the cacao ice cream was so creamy and boldly-chocolatey-flavoured; hence "Get 27" did NOT take over the scene, only hints of it lingered around and pushed our senses to a high-end. Heaven on a plate.
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Flash backs then came with memories of two summers back... the crêperie that we visited in St Malo, Brittany after our oyster feast by the sea... I breathed in deeply looking up the sky as K continued telling me about her "struggle" whether to date "Guy A" or "Guy B". I thought to myself.. if there is really such a struggle, one should date neither - there is not enough love..
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Definitely somewhere I will return - for a relaxing lunch or to have a leisurely "afternoon tea". I will be back for sure for an awesome slice of Brittany!
张贴