Crepe Cafe is one of those places in Warsaw’s Powisle district that you may or may not miss. Practically at the descent of PKP Powisle (the local train stop), it may or may not be easy to miss if it weren’t for the statue standing outside. The first time we ended up there was when arriving in Warsaw a year ago, in response to the question, “what would you like to do first after touching down,” and the somewhat sardonic reply of  “eat somewhere.” Somehow in that exchange pancakes may or may not have been evoked, but that’s now a thing of the past. 

We ended up there again after visiting a craft and design fair at Elektrownia Powisle, the urban experiment that saw a power plant turned into a mall, which in this case also masks as catwalk for fashionistas and other hip dressers who like to stand out (in Poland that’s still more of a rare thing). 

It’s a small, unassuming place with only a stone statue under a sign stating its name giving any indication of its existence. Inside it’s a whole other thing. Somehow we ended up there in the winter on both occasions, so that made it even more special. But the interior summer cottage vibe would have delighted us just as much in the summer. Two rooms provide intimate seating amidst the seahorses and starfish scattered around the room in various incarnations. 

The food is divine. We ordered the chili con carne crepe, which was actually made with  beef instead of the customary Polish pork and a salmon belgian waffle concoction we’d eat every day if we didn’t fear getting bored with it sooner than we might bargain for. Then topped all that off with coffee. It was the perfect meal to feed two tired souls and worked great as a shared pairing (because what’s a meal between friends if you can’t go halfsies). Best of all, the lady taking our order and serving the goods was truly amazing, joking around with us like the owner of a French B&B who truly wants to get to know her guests. A rare occurrence in Poland and especially in Warsaw. 

And because one of us is an inquisitive little spy that would make Harriet M. Welsh beam with pride, we can provide you with a quick anecdotal demographic breakdown, or rather the people who stuck out: A lady in her early forties who seemed in a hurry and enjoyed a quick savory crepe before she rushed out the door, two female friends in their late twenties or early thirties  taking a break and catching each other up on their lives, two men of the same  age who did not know the ladies sitting nearby with the same goal, a family with their elementary school kids and – again unrelated – a father with a son of the same age enjoying a Saturday treat. And a couple on what looked to be a first or even second date, she most likely English, he Polish. 

It’s the perfect place to eat something really good, enjoy your coffee to prolong the moment, get a good talk in and most of all do some top notch people watching. 

Their sites (Facebook and Instagram) seem to be mainly in Polish but they have no problems speaking English or witnessing someone switch back and forth, as some of us are wont to do.