On my way back from the Electronic Frontier Foundation office (I’m a new volunteer there) yesterday evening, I wandered through the heart of the Mission looking for a place to eat. There was no shortage of taquerias and fast-food Chinese places, but I was in the mood for something different.

I found myself on 16th Street and Valencia, with dozens of trendy restaurants and cafes to choose from. I must’ve walked past Restaurant YoYo 3-4 times wondering if I was in the mood for sushi. I also walked up and down 16th several times, wondering if I was in the mood for tapas, sandwiches, or something else (I’m notoriously indecisive). Since I tend to judge restaurants by the number of clientele (which is somewhat unfair, I realize), I decided to pop into Ti Couz, a crepe restaurant that had a fair number of people out on its patio. Besides, I haven’t had crepes in awhile.

The decor of the restaurant appeared to mimic an authentic French crepery of sorts with its white-washed walls and rustic wooden furniture. There’s a small swarm of bugs when you first enter the restaurant — I think it had something to do with the still air — but once you get past that, the restaurant is pretty cozy.

The menu, sprinkled with French words aplenty, dazzled me with that strange, odd feeling I often get when visiting a foreign place. The first fold of the menu described the origins of the crepes served in the restaurant (described as “Krampouz,” from Brittany); buckwheat flour is used in their savory crepes, and wheat flour is used in their sweet crepes. There’s also a rather large disclaimer warning you that Ti Couz firmly believes in the freshness of their crepes and therefore refuses to pack your food to-go. That sounded rather odd to me, but I’ve had leftover crepes before and it was not a pleasant thing, so I understand where they’re coming from with that.

They had a wide variety of filling choices, which you can mix and match to create your own crepe. I had a hard time choosing between a cheesy filling, or something with scallops and shrimp. I finally went with a smoked salmon and caramelized onion crepe, which was topped with creme fraiche. It was delicious, though definitely for the onion lover. I also would’ve preferred a thicker creme fraiche, but it was pretty good all the same. The buckwheat crepe was done to perfection — nice and golden brown, with that slight crispiness around the edges. If I had been hungrier, I would’ve also gone for a dessert crepe (with fruits, chocolate, oh my!), but one was enough for me.

All in all, it was a pretty pleasant experience. I’ll definitely come back here again, and maybe try the scallop and shrimp combo next time.