Fontaine Caffe & Creperie

It's not easy to make a name for yourself as a restaurant in Old Town Alexandria.  Do you advertise heavily and target the tourists, appeal to the locals, serve the hip crowds, or maybe take a chance on an inconspicuous spot off King Street's beaten path?  

One visit does not a conclusion make, but Fontaine Caffe & Creperie, a one-year old restaurant on Royal Street (half block from the corner of King and South Royal), is doing something right.   Owner/chef/jack-of-all-trades Kyong Yi can be proud of what she has created for Old Town foodies (yeah, I didn't have to say fuddies!) 

Yi's restaurant (she told me she named it after Ayn Rand's Fountainhead) got a nice write up in the Washington Post's Weekend Section so Roberta and I decided to check it out yesterday.   As Beizer notes, the place is small inside, although not as small as we feared.   I counted sixteen tables in the front room, and I think we got the last one.  If you want a quieter spot, ask for the back room, although you'll get a bit of kitchen clang there.  

Fontaine is situated in a classic Old Town house that used to sell British tea and small goods.   The conversion is marked with a French flag and small touches inside.   What it loses by not being on King Street, the main thoroughfare, the restaurant gains with excellent service, pleasing ambience and good food.  I enjoyed the Tuscan crepe, filled with sausage, beans and tomatoes.  Our salads were also an ample portion, but lacked sufficient dressing.   Roberta liked her Alexandrian crepe, but her preference would have been more cheese and less ham.  The half baguette was warmed, a nice touch rarely seen.  Their savory crepes are made of buckwheat flour for a more rustic touch. 

Service was a tad slow but they were friendly and experiencing the Post review bounce.   We enjoyed our first trip and will be back to try the dessert crepes and French cider.     

Why You'll Go

The list of restaurants that make good crepes is a short one.   Across the street are Lavender Moon Cupcakery and Grape and Bean. 

Why You Won't Go

You don't like fancy French places you can't spell.

   

 

Comments

[Toy]

Grape + Bean is really good to.

[Jay]

Toy,

I'm more of a beer drinker so I don't know about their wines. Coffee was good. Do you know of any high end coffee places in the DC area.