La Créperie is the place to be

Located in the bustling row outside the Pentagon City mall, La Créperie is an unexpectedly charming bistro with lots of flair for its fairly cheap eats. As the name implies, La Créperie serves mostly crépes (although they offer sandwiches and croissants for the unadventurous of stomach and weak of wallet). Entrees range from $6 to $8, and offer tempting vegetarian and non-vegetarian options; the crépes sucrées (sweet crépes), between $5 and $6 each, are inviting by themselves or as a dessert.

The walls are adorned with mustard yellow and crimson vintage advertisements in French, circa 1930s, and the kitchen's right up front, fully viewable to patrons. Sit inside when the weather's cold, where wonderful smells emanate from the kitchen, or at a café table outdoors to watch young couples and families skating on the ice rink in the center of the mall's courtyard.

If the tender mushrooms and cheese in savory sauce that stuff the crépe champignon to chewy perfection sound unappealing, perhaps the satisfying taste of minced bacon and cheese in the crépe Jack will prove more enticing. For the discerning carnivore, fillings include chicken in a mouth-wateringly tangy lemon-dill sauce, as well as shrimp, salmon, sausage and crab, coupled with a variety of sauces and zesty seasonings. Vegetarian options include spinach and brie, as well as about half a dozen different blends of zucchini, eggplant, olives, mushrooms, spinach and brie, blended with savory herbs. The enveloping crépe is doughy and thin, lightly browned and teasingly, almost indiscernibly buttery.

The dessert options are equally as varied as the entrees, a rare and delicious feature. The apple crépe (pommes in French) is a warm wrap of golden caramelized apples and a touch of brandy, a wonderful winter dessert that's soothingly reminiscent of Christmastime. Try a crépe wrapped around chocolate-drizzled fresh banana or the
strawberry, chocolate and whipped cream filling. If you're not a fan of fruit, sample a crépe packed with crunchy, earthy chestnuts and crushed almonds.

The meals are filling; La Créperie's portions are practical (modest by McDonalds' super-size standards), but satisfying. There are at least a dozen varieties of wines and crépes, and numerous soups and sandwiches to match the varied palates the crépes are geared toward, not to mention the assortment of dessert crépes. Sit down for a meal or just drop in for dessert, but come. Come for a unique meal, for the casual, comfortable setting, or to chat it up with the friendly staff. Or come for all three, because a visit to La Créperie's bound to be a grand time.

Click here for information about La Créperie in Pentagon Row . The restaurant and the rest of Pentagon Row's offerings are accessible via the Pentagon City stop on Metro's Blue or Yellow lines.