It was the summer of 1964, and a young French man named Germain Roignant was spending his summer working as a waiter in Germany. One day, a young American woman and her friend came to the restaurant and were seated in Germain’s section. The woman, named Sara, asked for coffee “right away.” Germain teased her and told her she could not have coffee just yet because she must have food and wine first. The two joked and chatted over the course of the meal. Germain encouraged Sara to return to the restaurant. Sara came back a couple of days later, and, this time, Germain made sure to get her phone number. They moved to the United States and married the next year.

Several years and two children later, in 1972, Germain and Sara Roignant opened La Creperie, a French-inspired restaurant located on 2845 N. Clark St. La Creperie is family owned and operated and serves a variety of sweet and savory crepes, as well as a few other items. Although Sara passed away several years ago, Germain continues to be active in running the restaurant.

The road to opening La Creperie involved Germain working at several different restaurants. The year after he and Sara married, in 1966, the couple moved to San Francisco, where Sara was a teacher. Germain took cooking lessons and also worked at the Drake Hotel as a waiter. “It was a good time to be in San Francisco,” said Germain with a laugh. “Very psychedelic!”

When Sara and Germain had their first child, they decided to move to the Chicago area, were Sara’s family lived. Germain worked at the Westin Hotel in Chicago as a waiter, until he decided to go into business for himself. There weren’t any other creperies in Chicago at the time, and Germain and Sara had the enthusiastic idea of opening their own.

Germain created his own crepe recipe before opening the establishment. He said that he got the main idea for the recipe from Brittany, the region in France where he grew up. The three main crepe ingredients — eggs, flour, and milk — are standard in recipes. But Germain was determined to make his recipe special. “He was working for a long time; he was a perfectionist,” said Germain’s daughter-in-law Yasmina Ksikes. “Every chef wants to have his own touch. Germain grew up eating crepes, and he knew exactly what he wanted.”

Germain’s recipe has many fans, including one couple who have been coming to La Creperie for over 30 years. There are many other returning patrons, three of which have a personal relationship with Germain. Sara’s college roommate, Kathy Haider, maintains contact with Germain, and she, her son, and his friend are very familiar with La Creperie. Kathy’s son, Ted Haider, founder of the dog care business Camp K9 & Co., pointed out the group’s favorite dishes. “The Assiette de Pate is good, and we always get escargot,” he said. “Everything here is awesome.”

Kathy spoke fondly of Germain and Sara. “The young people that have worked here have felt that Germain and Sara have been surrogate parents,” she said. “They have mentored many young people, and most of the people who work here stay as long as they can until their paths change.” Waitress Sarah Costello echoed this sentiment. “It’s a really laid-back atmosphere, and Germain enjoys interacting with the staff. Most employees have worked here for around three to five years. People love working here.”

Germain, with his silver hair, tan knit sweater, and white sneakers, was constantly mobile as he made his way through the circuit of visiting with old friends, checking on patrons, and chatting with the wait staff. In a moment of downtime, Germain reflected on his experiences as a business owner. “You get to know people, lots of people, people who have been coming 30, 37 years. You make a lot of connections. That’s the best part.”

La Creperie is a short walk from the Brown line’s Diversey stop. The menu is affordably priced and the restaurant provides an intimate date setting and a great place to catch up with friends. Visit the website to check out the menu and restaurant hours.

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