The village of Oingt, with its yellow stone buildings and high tower set at the top of a hill, is…read morepicturesque to the extreme. But walking around taking photos, shopping in little boutiques, and admiring the views can work up an appetite.
If you're looking for good, comforting food at a moderate price, this place is a good choice. Next door to the more expensive Donjon restaurant, the crêperie offers various salads, some Lyonnaise dishes like andouillette, and a selection of savory and sweet crêpes.
A table on the patio/terrace/terasse was extremely pleasant on a sunny afternoon. The Donjon view might be less obstructed by bushes, but this view was lovely too.
The savory crêpes are served galette-style, laid flat, spread with filling, then folded into an open square to make a kind of tart and crisped lightly under a broiler. The crêpe batter is some kind of whole wheat, dark brown, with a lovely tenderness in the middle and lacy, delicate edges. The Suprême (leeks, smoked chicken, and cream) is flavorful and savory, though the chicken is only small bits rather than big slices. The champignons de Paris crêpe came stuffed with tiny mushrooms. Each crêpe is very filling, perfect for lunch or even a snack if split between two people. The charcuterie plate with onion jam was fine; the chèvre chaud salad was refreshing, the goat cheese so soft and melty it was almost liquid. The house rosé was great, I thought, but I'm not well-versed in wine. Nevertheless, you can't go wrong in this part of rural France where a square kilometer holds untold numbers of wineries.
The service was neither fast nor slow. I wouldn't recommend stopping by for a hurried bite, but the French frown on fast food, and why not linger in such a pretty place? The restaurant was mostly empty, and the hip young server did not neglect our party even while he periodically chatted with some dreadlocked, tattooed, and pierced friends at a nearby table. One member of my party found a long hair in part of a dish, which the waiter removed without comment and replaced promptly.
Between the atmosphere and the food, we had a wonderful lunch. Stop by if you're in Oingt but don't need or want a pricey three-course meal.
