Chicago — Super Hidden Gem French Restaurant with Crepe & Escargot

📌 La Crêperie Chicago Restaurant 📍 2845 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60657 Located in Lake View, open weekends 12pm–9pm — perfect for lunch or afternoon tea. 💰 ~$25–30 per person. Arrived at noon, walked into an empty front room — was actually surprised. Then the host led us to the back dining area + garden — already quite a few tables seated. The restaurant feels full of stories: walls covered with French photos, little French flags 🇫🇷, vintage furniture adding to the charm. The backyard is lush green — perfect for summer seating. The focus here is French crepes — both savory and sweet. Plus a short but solid selection of appetizers, mains, and salads. 🐌 Garlic Butter Escargot — $14, and absolutely delicious! Classic combo of olive oil + garlic with toasted bread — opened up my appetite instantly. Unlike The Crepe (another great spot in Chicago), this place does crispy, thin crepes — like French-style jianbing. The thin batter retains that beautiful charred aroma — the golden brown color alone makes you want to dig in. 📜 Crepe menu is split into savory + sweet — you really can’t go wrong. First-timers: highly recommend ordering one of each. 🥩 Boeuf Bourguignon Crepe — classic French red wine-braised beef. Beef is fall-apart tender, with carrots and bay leaf — wonderful spice balance. Gets slightly salty toward the end, but honestly — savory crepes done right hit different. My friend got the mushroom chicken — also fantastic. 🍓 Sweet crepe: I went with strawberry crème anglaise — a French vanilla custard sauce, not too sweet (a huge compliment!). Warm strawberry slices were actually really nice. Downside: sauce is thin, so crepe loses crispiness if you wait too long. Next time I’m just ordering the classic Nutella version. After lunch, we lingered for a while — not crowded, felt like a peaceful escape in the middle of busy Lake View, soaking in the warm sun. Before leaving, I took in the light in the front room — it was beautiful. As I was taking photos, the owner came over — a kind older gentleman. We chatted, and he warmly shook my hand. He’s from France, and the restaurant has been here for over 50 years!! He told me I must visit Paris someday. So that’s why — my instincts were right. This place has real soul and history. A perfect start to a beautiful weekend 🌞 #ChicagoEats #FrenchRestaurant #LakeView #CrepeLover #Escargot #HiddenGem