B is for Brick and Mortar

Melange Creperie

403 Westheimer Road, Houston

There are many momentous firsts in the life of a child -- the first steps, the first words, and, of course, the first time you take your kids to eat at a food truck. On a beautiful, warm Sunday in mid-November, I decided it was time to indoctrinate my children into the ways of urban eating. En route to Melange Creperie, I attempted to prepare my four year old daughter for the experience. I explained the concept of "brick and mortar" versus food truck (and taught her the phrase "brick and mortar" of course). I explained that there would not be seats at this restaurant. She seemed to embrace the concept and maintained she had seen something similar on the PBS show "Wild Krats." Really, pretty much everything my kid's have learned they've learned from Wild Krats.

Melange Creperie is located in the parking lot of Mangos.

We could smell the crepes almost as soon as we exited our car. The smell of butter and melted cheese wafted through the air. This was going to be good.

Melange Creperie is a small food cart located in the parking lot of Mango's in the Montrose neighborhood of Houston. A single chef prepared the crepes and took orders from his tiny stand. We arrived during a bit of a lull. He had about 4 crepe orders in front of us. As soon as we arrived, he asked our order (even though he was in the process of making other crepes). He never wrote it down. He just remembered it, which was quite impressive considering how quickly the crowd started to build. As he assembled the crepes, he engaged in pleasant conversation with all awaiting the crepes, including my kids. He seemed to have a few regular customers. I asked him if he always had a crowd, and he said it was usually pretty steady, except when the Texans were playing.

There were four primary crepe offerings on the menu: Nutella and Banana, Migas, Ham and Cheese, and Pumpkin Pie. As we waited, he also told us that there was a secret "off menu" item called the Wolverine which featured pumpkin pie filling, chocolate chips, bananas, and graham crackers. My kids ordered Nutella and a Nutella and Banana crepe. I ordered the Migas and Hubby ordered Ham and Cheese with spinach and Texas hot salsa. The crepe chef was conscious of his crepe making strategy. Since he could only make two crepes at a time, he wanted to ensure that our kid's orders were ready first. I was very impressed by how considerate he was of all of his customers. His friendly banter made the wait pass quickly.

Migas Crepe

Once my son's order was done, I walked him over to a far corner of the parking lot and sat him down on a curb. He tucked into the Nutella and Banana like he'd been eating crepes his whole life. My daughter was also thrilled to eat her Nutella crepe. Of course, she considers Nutella one of the major food groups and probably eats more Nutella than any non-European kid in the world, so perhaps this wasn't a surprise.

The Migas crepe was amazing. A layer of egg and cheese was tucked between the folded crepe. The center of the crepe was stuffed with a homemade pico style salsa and homemade tortilla chip strips provided the perfect crunch to offset the soft egg and cheese. Even my 3 year old son, loved the Migas despite the slight kick to the salsa. This kid is a Texan. Hubby was also very satisfied with his crepe and finished it quickly -- so quickly that he also had time to help my son finish his Nutella and Banana.

Our crepes finished, we thanked the chef and returned to our car. This was easily one of the best foodie experiences we've had to date in H-town, and I cannot wait to return (maybe as soon as next weekend). My only concern is that when I return to Melange Creperie, I will be craving the heavenly Migas crepe and it may not be on the menu. Oh well. First world problems.

Texas Forever.