Beau Monde is a lovely, Parisian-style restaurant that specializes in crêpes. The popular spot is located on a charming corner in the Bella Vista neighborhood of Philadelphia, just a block from the bustle of South Street.
In the main dining room, mahogany panels with etched branches adorn the walls. A mosaic-inlaid gas fireplace keeps the decor cozy, and during the warmer months, there is great outdoor dining on the elevated sidewalk cafe.
As in the Northwest region of France called Brittany, at Beau Monde two kinds of crêpes are offered: ble noire, which is buckwheat flour for savory crêpes, and froment, which is wheat flour for sweet crêpes.
The crêpes are cooked on imported iron griddles called biligs by using the rozell, a wooden crêpe spreader and the spanell, a sharp wooden spatula. The crêpes are then filled with your choice of ingredients and folded into squares.
Some house recommended savory crêpes include one with Andouille sausage, Ratatouille (a roasted vegetable mixture) and caramelized tomato sauce; another with grilled chicken breast, leeks, olives, goat cheese and lemon butter; and one with shrimp, spinach, roasted leeks and seafood sauce.
House recommended sweet crêpes include one with apples, toasted almonds, brown sugar, caramel and vanilla ice cream; another with banana, nutella and hazelnut ice cream; and another with pears, chestnut cream and chocolate.