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What are Crêpes?
Crêpes are a French culinary treat. Made of a thin batter of flour, eggs, milk (or water), butter, sugar and salt and whisked until no lumps nor air bubbles remain (Vachon, 2020). Then, it's ladled over a hot griddle, swirled into a thin circular shape, and cooked until slightly crisp before flipped for further cooking. Crêpes can be stuffed or topped with fruits, chocolate, whipped cream, custard, or filled with savory flavors such as ham and cheese, mushrooms, meats, even smoked salmon! (Fleming, n.d.). In fact, if you're interested in cooking up some perfect brunch crêpes, Grace Lynne Fleming's article on 25 Savory Crepes is for you!
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Banana chocolate crêpes
(Free to use under the Unsplash License) |
Photo by Delaney Van on Unsplash
How Exactly Were Crêpes Born?
There is a story in French history that speaks to how crêpes first appeared. Writer Pamela Vachon (2020) describes it as a "happy accident" when buckwheat porridge spilled "onto a flat cooking stone" in a 13-century kitchen (
paragraph 6). However, some historians believe crêpes may have been created as early as 472 A.D., when they "were offered to French Catholic pilgrims visiting Rome for Candlemas by Pope Gelasio I" (
Vachon, 2020, paragraph 6).
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What I image the first crêpe may have been.
(Free to use under the Unsplash License) |
What's most interesting is that crêpes have grown in various forms in many countries. For example, crêpes are called "
offertjes" in Holland, "
dosas" in India, "
blini" in Russia, "
hirayachi" in Japanese, etc. (
Vachon, 2020, paragraph 4). In Canada, I know them as crêpes, and their thicker, fluffier cousins as pancakes. While living in Bangkok, Thailand,
I even wrote about a German friend who celebrated her birthday at Crêpes & Co., a restaurant that specializes in crepes (Cutenekko, 2011). Bottom line: crêpes are adored the world over.
Why are Crêpes Famous in Hungary?
Crêpes in Hungary are called
palacsinta (
Renata H., 2019, paragraph 2). A common crêpe iteration throughout the country, and especially in Budapest, is a walnut and chocolate
palacsinta. Pastries in general are plentiful in Hungary; it's not known why crêpes in particular are popular. My best guess would be that these thin pastries are hard to resist and light enough to gain a sweet taste without too much fullness.
While in Budapest on a 10-day tour through Eastern Europe, I was told I must try Hungarian crêpes - and not just any crêpes, but ones made at the posh restaurant,
Gundel.
Budapest's Gundel Restaurant - the Best Crêpes?
Locals will often direct tourists to the
Gundel restaurant in Budapest for dinner or its delicious
palacsinta. Housed in a building completed in 1894,
Kàroly Gundel rented the space and opened
Gundel in 1910 (
Gundel, 2021b, section 3). Today, it hosts events, weddings, and tour groups, and of course, regular diners. Although expensive, it comes highly recommended; apparently, the restaurant has hosted famous celebrities and politicians throughout the years, so it certainly has a reputation for taste.
I visited in July 2018 to taste their walnut and dark chocolate crêpes. Once inside, I felt immediately underdressed. Columns, velvet covered chairs, rich wall fabrics and fancy silverware adorned the interior. There was even a string quartet performing for diners during afternoon tea time.
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Gundel's interior dining space.
(Photo: Cutenekko)
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I sat at a large table with other diners from our tour group and was served Gundel's version of a Hungarian palacsinta alongside a beverage of choice.
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Gundel's walnut & dark chocolate crepe.
(photo: Cutenekko)
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The taste was lovely; it had a slightly nutty flavor and the dark sauce added the proper amount of sweetness without being too rich. As this was part of our bus tour experience, I cannot attest to the cost of this meal.
Can't Travel to Budapest Right Now?
You Can Try it at Home!
If you enjoy baking and are curious to replicate
Gundel's crêpe,
there is a wonderful recipe on the blog Diplomatic Kitchen (Diplomatickitchen, 2011). Leave a comment on Diplomatic Kitchen or here (below) if the recipe worked well for you.
Travel Information
Other Restaurants:
If Gundel is a bit over budget for you, TripAdvisor has curated an extensive list of 16 restaurants that serve good crêpes. See the list
here (
Budapest Crepes, 2021). Prices from $-$$$$. Gundel ranks #6.
How to get there:
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. Its closest airport is the
Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport Official site -
English (bud Budapest Airport, n.d.). Be careful searching for this airport online; there are several fake sites.
Tour Site:
For this trip to Hungary, I booked through
Tour Radar (n.d.). You can input data based on your budget, travel area, and duration. Tour Radar will recommend various tours that fit your itinerary and budget. I had a good experience using this site and would recommend it, especially for those who have limited time travel, enjoy traveling without hassle, or who wish to see specific sights.
Resources cited in this post (in order of appearance in the text):
(1) Vachon, Pamela. (2020, July 29). The history of crêpes: a personal and historical exploration of the famous French pancake's origin. Diced. Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
(2) Van, Delaney. (2020, March 15). Banana chocolate crepes. Unsplash: photos for everyone. Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
(3) Fleming, Grace Lynne. (n.d.). Easy savory crepe recipe - 25 savory crepe fillings for your brunch menu. diys.com. Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
(4) Mockup Graphics. (2020, April 17). High-quality photo of a pancake on a white background. Unsplash: photos for everyone. Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
(5) Cutenekko [screen name]. (2011, May 21). Crepes & Co. birthday. Sanuk Canadian. Blogger. Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
(6) Renata H. (2019, May 5). 12 delicious Hungarian desserts you must try in Budapest. Have Fun Budapest. Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
(7) Gundel. (2021). Gundel kft. Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
(8) Gundel. (2021b). Gundel: about. Gundel kft. Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
(9) Diplomatickitchen. (2011, December 23). Hungarian chocolate crepes - Gundel's style. Diplomatickitchen: creating moveable feasts. Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
(10) Budapest Crepes. (2021). TripAdvisor LLC. Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
(11) bud Budapest Airport. (n.d.). Flight and travel information. Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
(12) TourRadar. (n.d.). Retrieved November 6, 2021 from URL.
Been to Budapest and tried Hungarian crêpes? Or just love crêpes? Tell us your favorite place to enjoy these treats in the comments below.
