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Published on August 5, 2007

You may not realise it but for the past 11 years some very fine dining opportunities have been opened up to Bangkok diners just because chef/owner Serge Bruttin of Crepes and Co has lived in so many countries.

With a father in the oil business, Bruttin and his brothers grew up in Morocco, Spain, Peru - and Greece, all the cuisines featured in Crepes & Co, along with some that Bruttin has created himself.

Just last week, he launched his latest promotion, a "Culinary Journey to Greece", a festival that he plans to offer until the end of October.

On the special menu, he's put all the dishes that have made this tasty cuisine so popular in Bangkok. You can make the mezze (your appetisers) as big or as small as you wish. Let Bruttin choose for you, and you can have a mezze for two (Bt390) or for four (Bt640), with melitzano (aubergine salad), dolmades (vine leaves stuffed with marinated herbs, olive oil and chicken and topped with home-made yoghurt), yoghurt dip, Kalamata olives and keftethes (very light beef meatballs). Feta (Greek curd cheese) and tzatziki (cucumber salad) also play a part in this mezze.

All these dishes can be ordered separately, but you have to be careful. Bruttin is also offering some very lovely Greek main dishes, such as his Greek lamb stew (Bt440), which he makes with thyme and Kalamata olives; and chicken souvlakia wraps (Bt240), a Greek "sandwich" with the chicken, along with bell peppers and yoghurt, wrapped in pita bread.

Lamb-lovers should try Bruttin's moussaka (Bt350). With a pinch of cinnamon added, his aubergine and lamb gratin is very light and tasty.

Also, be sure to save room for a sweet. Bruttin is making baklava (Bt175), flaky layers of light pastry alternating with nuts and syrup. Because the restaurant features crepes, he's also offering his own creation - crepe halva (Bt190), a crispy crepe filled with halva (sweet sesame paste), along with almonds and chocolate sauce.

Although he's not offering Greek wine, he's selected a white wine (Echeverria sauvignon blanc 2005 Chile - Bt830/bottle) and a red (Echeverria cabernet sauvignon 2005 Chile - Bt850), as well as offerings from the wine list.

Besides, for the Greek promotion, ouzo (Bt160), the Greek aniseed digestif) is indeed on the menu.

If you haven't visited lately, do drop by. Bruttin has "enlarged" the garden area with a mirror on one side creating a huge optical illusion that he's added a gate leading into undiscovered gardens beyond.

On the a la carte menu, the popular range of crepes and other fine dishes are still on offer, as is Crepe the Cat, official guest-relations officer.

Laurie Rosenthal

The Nation