Over the last few years, travel shows like "Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations" and "Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern" have tried to educate the public that sometimes some of the tastiest food you'll ever have is from a street cart in Singapore, or is served at a small café in Malaysia. It's with that spirit of education through food that Sean Sun opened Crepe N'Go in April at 651 Monroe Avenue.
Sun, a former co-owner of Han Noodle Bar, also on Monroe Avenue, was tired of seeing restaurants open that offered the same version of Chinese food in which everything is stir-fried. He wanted to show that there are many other dishes from China that don't involve a choice between white or fried rice.
Crepe N'Go sells Jianbing, a crepe dish that's a beloved street food in China and is typically sold from a cart. "When I was a kid, most people ate them for breakfast," Sun says.
It's believed that Jianbing originated in the third century when Chinese soldiers would cook the batter on their shields held over a fire. The crepes today are made by spreading dough into a thin layer on a griddle, and then adding egg, sauce, lettuce, and something to give it a nice crunch (typically fried wontons). The crepe is folded into a cone — easy to take on the go.
According to Sun, only recently has it become popular to add other ingredients, like meat. At Crepe N'Go you can add chicken, tofu, bulgogi, pork belly, and lamb to your crepe. The dish ranges from $4 to $9.
Currently Sun is doing all of the cooking, but he hopes to hire and train chefs on how to create the dish. He plans to experiment with other fillings as well, based on what his customers like. "There are so many dishes in China," Sun says. "It's more than just stir-fry."
Crepe N'Go is located at 651 Monroe Avenue, and is open Tuesday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; and Sunday, 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. 417-5543. Crepe N'Go doesn't have a website.
Quick bites
Pucker up: The Old Toad (277 Alexander Street) will host "Cask Competition: 2.0 — Sour Edition" on Friday, June 3, starting at 11:30 a.m. ROC Brewing, Swiftwater, Lost Borough, Stoneyard, Rohrbach, and Three Huskies will all have a sour beer on cask for the event. Participants will blind taste test each beer and decide who makes the best sour. The winner will be revealed at 6 p.m. More information at theoldtoad.com.
The Pittsford Pub and Grille (60 North Main Street, Pittsford) will host a Sunday pork and pils event on Sunday, June 12, at 2 p.m. McCann's Local Meats will be onsite roasting a whole heritage pig from Autumn's Harvest Farm in Romulus. Sunshine Pils from Troegs Independent Brewing will be the beer of choice. Tickets are $35. More info at thepittsfordpub.com.
The Genesee Brew House (25 Cataract Street) will host a beer and bacon dinner in its beer garden on Wednesday, June 15, from 7 to 9 p.m. Four bacon-themed courses will be served with beer pairings. Tickets are $45 (tax and gratuity not included) and can be purchased by calling 353-0201. Seating is limited. More information at geneseebeer.com.
Openings
Ugly Duck Coffee has opened its brick and mortar location at 89 Charlotte Street.
Closings
Another one bites the dust: Saxbys Coffee (1307 Mount Hope Avenue) in College Town has closed.
Brown Hound Bistro has closed its South Bristol location. Brown Hound Downtown at the Memorial Art Gallery is still up and running. The MAG location will accept gift certificates from the South Bristol location until December 31.
Chow Hound is a food and restaurant news column. Do you have a tip? Send it to [email protected].
