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Categories: Creperies, Coffee & Tea, Sandwiches
Neighborhood: Sherman OaksWent to this place on a whim this morning for breakfast (noon-time) and am now in love with the place.
1. Service was great. Employees were friendly, helpful, and food and drinks came out insanely fast.
2. Food was delicious. I had the lox crepe- which had a very generous portion of lox inside, as well as other delicious things like mushrooms, onions, and some other things I don't remember.
3. Prices were ultra reasonable. under $11 bucks for a chai latte (which I rate: YUM) AND my lox crepe (which I only was able to finish half and am eagerly awaiting to eat it for lunch tomorrow).
4. The cashier informed us that they're now open 24hrs a day (minus Sundays when they close at midnight, and reopen at 8am on Monday)!! So excited to have a new place to go not only for yummy and not greasy breakfasts as well as filling late night cravings (can't wait to have a dessert crepe there).
There was ample seating both inside and outside which was also a plus. Can't wait to go back!
Small cute place right on the corner of Ventura Blvd. and Van Nuys Blvd. in Sherman Oaks.
Big salad bowls, tasty and refreshing. Mixed greens like spinach, arugula, red beans, sprouts, other greens and balsamic dressing. HUGE portion!
Don't come here with big group of people, maximum 3. Have outside seating, which is fun, you see some retard drivers fancying with their 100K cars, like we really care, since this part of the city is kinda snobbish you'll see lots of fashion victims as well, for trying too hard to look like a cover of Nylon.
Crowd was mixed, youngsters and middle age. The service was decent, didn't wait for long time, and I might go back to check out other stuff from their menu.
The photos will be uploaded soon...
besos
Crave is a regular haunt of the young adult group at my church. We've closed the place down on many a Tuesday night, and even though we pretty much take over their limited seating when we come, they've always been very accommodating.
Their dessert crepes of Nutella and your choice of banana or strawberry or both are practically a meal, and if you want salty instead of sweet, the paninis are tasty too.
UPDATE: I went in yesterday for a quick sandwich and they informed me that they're now open 24HOURS! Honestly, this place gets 5 stars in my book. You can't find quality food of this kind (that won't give you a heart attack) open 24. Thank's Crave you made my 24 hour day!
CINCO Estrellas for You!
PREVIOUS: I recently moved a few blocks from Crave and I now come here daily. Honestly, this place makes some pretty tasty food and drink ad they open early and close late.
Their coffee is really good because its ILLY not that watered down Starbucks stuff.
My usual consists of 2 Eggs, Side of Tomato, 2 Slices of Toast and a Medium Latte or when in the mood for a switch the breakfast panini with feta cheese (HIGHLY Recommended!)
The service is spectacular and after a few times of coming in they already knew what I ordered. The staff is uber friendly and the perfect people to wake up to and be around for breakfast (no attitude, just good mornings and good service/food)
I've also been here for lunch and their salads are amazingly fresh and MASSIVE (so don't be put off by the price).
Overall, GREAT service, food and prices. I will continue to be a loyal customer as long as I live around the area.
Try it out...
UPDATE: We've gone a few more times since opening and the place is solid. The salads are fresh, the breakfast grub is really hearty (the pancakes in particular are quite good), and the service is quick, friendly and attentive.
It is definitely earning my business as a dependable local joint -- open late, too! Finally, Sherman Oaks has a late-night haunt for snacking, caffeine, and conversation. Kudos, guys, keep it up! :)
A new crepe & sandwich place that I've really been looking forward to visiting, ever since I saw the… Read more »
i live around the corner from Crave and went for the first time when they opened. Obviously the service was terrible and the food was ok, but it was week 1. i just went last weekend and really enjoyed the breakfast panini. The service was still so-so but the ambiance and food made up for it.
I've known Abe, the owner, quite a while now through his business around the corner called Pita Kitchen. I remember when he was planning this place, he went thru hell and highwater to get it off the ground, leaving no stone unturned. If there is one thing I can say, his passion for great food and fresh ingredients is a foodie's delight.
As far as the food is concerned, it is wonderful to see a spot on Ventura Bl offering comfortable seating, free wifi, Fro Yo, and Nutella Crepes all in one. I have noshed here on Savory Crepes filled with Chicken and Mushrooms, and followed them up with Nutella and Strawberry Crepes while going home a big smile. I am glad this place is accessible, friendly, and offers the personal touch of an owner who checks on each and every table to make sure everyone is 100% satisfied.
I am a semi-regular, (along with Solar, my fave cafe hangout / crepe spot), and will continue to frequent Crave.
Came back to Crave as promised. Very friendly girl working this time along with usual friendly owner and bussers. I ordered the "Chicken Grill" crepe with a passion fruit iced tea. To say this crepe was huge would be an understatement. It was stuffed full of delicious grilled chicken breast, mushrooms, onions and cheese. It was paired next to a miniature side salad which had a REALLY good balsamic dressing which they serve on the side(Nice!) The passion iced tea hit the spot perfectly on a hot LA day and I was also offered refills.
As I was leaving I could not stop eyeballing the bread pudding they had on display up by the cash register and after leaving I realized I had to go grab one of those to take home with me. I ran back in ordered one and was instructed by the nice girl working the register to stick it in the microwave for a minute to melt the chocolate on the inside. I almost died when she handed me the box. This delicious little $5 treat also probably weighed about a full pound.(no joke!) I'm not gonna fully disclose how good the bread pudding was but lets just say it's worth the trip all in itself. Next time I'm trying red velvet cookies!
Came here for lunch on a weekday afternoon after hearing good things about their pastries and… Read more »
Live and learn....
If you are a veggie head, skip along, don't bother... Their overpriced pannini's are not worth it, even when your STARVING...
We were greeted by the rushy cashier, and told we could build our own samich... We wanted no cheese, so the veggies meant EVERYTHING to us... Add-olives, carrots, spinach,onions, pesto on one. Simple really..
We got: 2 of the soggiest panninis on the nastiest bread I have ever had, with about 3 leaves (I swear) of spinach, one slice of tomato about 4 olives, no carrots, pesto on neither and enough onions for a new born. oh! we also got stomach aches! -We didn't even have to pay extra for those either!!
Sorry to break the cycle kids, but this experience was awesome enough to promise we will never come back...
I'll admit upfront...my 5 star rating was bought with a free crepe from, who I assume was, the owner of Crave Cafe.
For years my friends and I used to go to a place called Headlines down the street from Crave. The food was just OK, but to us it was home. It was the perfect place to come and just sit down, have some food, and talk. Since Headlines closed, we've tried to find a replacement for it and today we decided that Crave Cafe would be our new home
Once again, I had another delicious panini and one of these days I'll have the courage to order an omelet. Get the grilled chicken, it's amazing.
Food choices aside, the reason I've giving Crave the 5th star now is because after our meal the owner came up to us and asked if it was our first time there. Happy to hear we were mostly first-timers, he said he would be back with a treat for us. A few minutes later he came back with a strawberry and banana crepe saying that customers like us are the backbone of their business.
So yes, I'm giving Crave Cafe 5 stars now because I got a free crepe. That's how you win over customers. No, you don't bribe them. You show them that they are valued and we, in return, will return.
Compliment that sentiment with good food and quality service and 5 stars will always be deserved.
Let's get the cheesiness out of the way now. Crave Cafe will have you craving for more.
Now that we…
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Im in between on this one. Found this place from Yelp while on the way home from SOCAL. Few things good and bad.
Good, crepes were all very, very good. Had the mediteranean crepe, strawberries and cream crepe, and a plain crepe w/ powdered sugar. No biggie right, how can you screw up a crepe? They didnt, they were all very good!
Not so good... had the breakfast Panini. This has turkey bacon which is a plus since I rarely eat red meat. Also has black olive, cheese, tomatoe, egg. Well, this thing was just bland. Dont know what it was but it was in dire need of salt and pepper. Im one to clean my plate but I left half of the panini behind. Sorry guys but this things needs a revamp. Maybe butter the panini up a bit?
Staff was as nice as can be and the atmosphere was good. Restroom was on the 1 star side but I think its more because they share it w/ the Pizza place next door. Still should have been some what clean this early in the mornin.
So I couldn't find french toast or waffles on the menu, and I was "craving" the above mentioned one morning. Nevertheless, I like this cafe, the service is quick and efficient. If you like omelets and crepes, you should try this place. I thoroughly enjoy the omelet breakfast here and love coming on a sat/sun morning, eating a good breakfast outside and people watch on Ventura Blvd.
To be fair, I think this place deserves a 2.5. I feel a little bit bad about doing this but I decided to give it a 2 instead of a 3 just cuz its present rating of a 4 is really much too high. If you're in the neighborhood anyway you really should just head up to Crepe Xpress less than a mile away in the Westfield Fashion Square mall on Hazeltine and Riverside... I know I know, it's technically mall food, but trust me and trust the fifteen other yelpers who've reviewed this place and have all given it 5 stars: Crepe Xpress makes better crepes for a lower price. However, you would be dining in a food court, so it's not exactly a place to bring a date.
If you don't mind driving like, 8 miles, there's a quarky little place you could take a girl/guy called Solar de Cahuenga (yah yah it's in Hollywood, but again, just trust me...). It's one of those hipster-type places with local artists' work on the walls and a little Moroccan-themed nook in the corner... It's also the priciest of the three but we're talking like, what, a buck or two extra? What you get in return is the best tasting food of the three creperies and also the best ambiance.
Back to the food... so imho, crepes can be evaluated based on 1) the crepe itself and 2) the filling. Solar has the best crepes and the best fillings while Crave has pretty good crepes but laaaame savory fillings. Crepe Xpress comes in third with their crepes (a little too eggy and a smidgeon too thick but still good) but their fillings are pretty darn good, especially considering the fact that it's the cheapest AND it resides in a mall food court.
So in short, if you wanna go cheap but tasty, go Crepe Xpress. If you want a nicer crepe place, go SdC. I hate to say it but there really isn't a very good reason to go to Crave Cafe at all...
Also also also I forgot to mention, SdC is open till 1 am, so there *really* is no reason to go to Crave Cafe...
Take my rating with a grain of salt, as I've only tried the Ceasar's Salad and the Red Velvet cookie.
My problem was with the Red Velvet Cookie. I walked in here looking for a dessert, and see this NORMAL cookie size looking thing, which they called Red Velvet Cookie. Nyways, I walk out of there, look at my receipt, and realize that this thing cost me $3.75. I thought it HAD to be a mistake, so I go back in, only to find out that it really was $3.75.
I coulda bought a GINORMOUS chocolate cake for the SAME PRICE. I was mad at myself for not asking how much it was...who knew a cookie could be that expensive.
I'll go back and try something else, I guess.
Awesome!
Open 8-Midnight EVERYDAY!
They have wonderful sandwiches, salads, crepes...and breakfast all day long! Their prices are excellent and the service is super friendly!
They even have self-service pay-by-the-ounce frozen yogurt and toppings....and FREE samples :)
I highly recommend this place for lunch or a late night bite!
Have you every played RollerCoaster Tycoon, and jacked up the prices of umbrellas when it rained? And people still bought them? Yeah, that's how Crave Cafe works. Everything is at least 30% more expensive than it should be, and the portions aren't even proportionately larger. Evidently people still buy food here, though, since it was moderately busy when I was there.
The food is decent, but if I want overpriced food, I certainly won't go here. And don't try the frozen yogurt: It's atrocious.
I just had to say that i am SO EXCITED THERE ARE FRUIT PANCAKES NOW!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh yeah also
They keep getting new desserts and I just love them all!!!!!
I'm addicted to Craves fruit tart! So delicious!
They have amazing crepes, salads, sandwiches,…
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I think this is a great place and the food is really good.. I've been there several times.
With that said...there's a really strange vibe coming from the staff...I think the owner has his friends and if you're not in the group you have to take the second class citizen route. Hopefully if you go, his friends won't happen to be ordering in front of you on line. There's also a girl who works there who couldn;t be anymore cold and unemotional if she tried. I almost wonder if she's a robot.
It's open until MIDNIGHT!
Yes, that is awesome all on its own. Came to this place at 10 pm last night to meet up with some friends. I ordered the chai. It was really good and very sweet. Then, we saw a sign that said 39 cents frozen yogurt per oz. So, yeah, read that carefully...it's per oz. So we ended getting a lot of cups because we thought it was per cup. But yeah, take notice. I'm sure that little sign gets people every time. Or not.
There's plenty of parking on the street. Service is awesome.
It's a great place if you just want to go have coffee and hang out at night. The place closes at midnight, but you can hang out past midnight.
Great for coffee. Clean. good pastries. good location (near everything on the very popular Ventura Blvd). Free Wi-Fi...A place I can sit and work for hours. Not very "Boheme", more a local hangout...for grad students/"writers" living in Sherman Oaks among the starlets. Not very scene-y from what I can tell, though this is my first time here.
Stumbled over to this place after our original plans for late night desserts failed. We had driven by a few times and this place looked promising.
Super cute and clean location right on ventura blvd. ( quite possibly my new favorite street ). The staff was very friendly and greeted us right away. Helped us pick out a yummy crepe, even suggested that we should add strawberries to it.
While we sat outside devouring this little goody, the owner ( i think) came out to make sure everything was going well and asked if we were happy with our choice. We were. This crepe was very tasty. Filled with bananas and strawberries and drizzled with nutella and topped with powdered sugar... yay I'm a fan!
I know they have other crepes here that are filled with more savory items such as chicken and lox or veggies, so I will have to come back and try those out. They also have a huge wall of yogurt and an impressive topping bar. Coffee, tea selection looks promising... I will be going back soon :-)
i personally think this place has a lot of friends hence the numerous 5 star reviews. it is a decent place but it just isn't really special. there really isn't anything like it in the valley so i guess that is a plus for it. it is open till midnight.
they have some nice items such as crepes, sandwiches, baked goods, and omelets. they are all just ok. nothing really eye catching. yes the red velvet cookie is pretty good but it better be if i am paying almost $4 for a cookie. the menu has been evolving so some items are tested and will come and go.
Let's get this out of the way right off the bat - I like the people there. A lot. The owner, Abe, is just about the most personable eatery proprietor I've ever come face-to-face with. He always greets us by name (helps that we come there on average three times a week for frozen yogurt, I suppose), always makes conversation and is just extremely polite, helpful and professional. This kind of attitude is what makes me want to come back. The free wi-fi helps as well, so do flat-screen TVs (Laker games are always on during the season).
As far as food is concerned...
Like:
- Sweet crepes. Unlike one of the previous reviewers said, it IS possible to screw up a crepe, but Crave avoids doing so. Could do with a bit more variety, though - as of right now, the topping options are strawberries, bananas, Nutella and powdered sugar.
- Pancakes are good too, but nothing special. Nice to see the buckwheat option.
- Paninis are not bad, but I have yet to find a good chicken breast panini anywhere...so I stick with the other options.
- Soups are pretty decent.
- The frozen yogurt is decent, though could be less watery. Lots of toppings (mochi!) and a decent price. They also mix up the flavors every so often.
- The desserts are very good, if a bit overpriced.
- European coffee = WIN.
Dislikes:
- Salads are huge, but, like in most places (especially Hamburger Hamlet just down Van Nuys), have too much lettuce and too little substance.
- Omelets have gotten progressively worse. Extremely bland and just...not good. Still huge, however. Avoid the turkey bacon like the plague, it looks disgusting. Regular bacon is not available (religious reasons?), but would have been a welcome addition.
- From above, desserts are a bit overpriced and the frozen yogurt tends to be on the watery side.
- The menu could use a little bit more variety.
Still, it definitely replaces Aromi down the street in my book. Actually, their inherent similarities, but Crave's additional accommodations make me wonder how Aromi is retaining customers at all.
I love this place!
The service is great! Everyone is so nice every time I go. They always get my order right.
The food is amazing! I love the banana and nutella crepe. They also have a delicious chai latte. I had their create-your-omelet and it was great and really filling.
The music is really upbeat and just a great place to hang out. I personally like sitting outside.
They also have serve yourself fro-yo! This place can't get any better!
I really love this place. So glad it opened. Great location. Same owner as Pita Kitchen around the corner. Look out, Aromi Cafe, you have some serious competition here.
Crapes are yummy. So is the coffee, which is actually served in a real cup.
Here's where Crave can improve: they should offer more of a variety of seating. A comfy couch or two, coffee tables, and a work table for groups would go a long way to making the place seem more like a hang-out destination. Also, those soft-serve machines are ugly, loud, and take up a lot of space. You might be better off without them, or with two instead of four.
I went for a late breakfast/lunch on a Sunday afternoon. I ordered the buckwheat pancakes (only $3.50!) and a side of chicken breast (only $2.50!) and had a FANTASTIC meal for only $6! The staff was very friendly and took obvious pride in the restaurant. I also had an INCREDIBLE bread pudding for dessert, which was served warm with chocolate sauce drizzled on it. It was too much for me to finish, so I took it home, and even when it was cold and straight from the refrigerator, it was still delicious. I will be back to Crave Cafe in the near future.
This place has it all! Paninis, crêpes, frozen yogurt, coffee, and FREE WIFI! When I visited the Crave Café for the first time, I had just eaten lunch at Pita Kitchen around the corner and I noticed that both have the same owner! I ordered a strawberry and Nutella crêpe and an iced tea, both were very good. I then had a coffee which was the best I've had in a while (They use Illy brand coffee and espresso from Italy!) I haven't tried their yogurt, but I saw that it is self-serve with many flavors to choose from. I'm definitely coming here again soon, especially for lunch.
K, i came back today like i said i was going to in my last review. When i came last weekend, i jogged here and back home, so i didn't really have time to sit and enjoy it/look around and observe. I was just in absolute desperate need of a crepe with Nutella.
Anyway, onto my experience today. It was pretty crowded, and disorganized, but that's expected during the first few opening weekends. Although, they definitely need to figure out a more efficient and organized way of taking/delivering orders and i'm sure they will in time. My dad got the greek omelette and i got the lox panini. Came out super fast which was awesome because i was starving. Both orders came with a tiny side salad, which was cool. Although, it was a little odd having a side salad with an omelette, but whatever. My panini was tasty, although definitely could have used some more lox and onions on the inside. It was a bit dry, but really yummy. Prices were really reasonable, about $8 bucks average per panini although the sandwich wasn't big at all. I finished it with ease and i typically never finish my food. However, it was the perfect size if i was going to order a dessert afterwards (which of course i was) and not feel like i was about to explode, so i didn't mind. :)
My crepe this time was way better than last time. PACKED with Nutella. SO good. Not too thick, not too thin, not rubbery, just perfect. And only $4.00!!
I definitely think this is more of a dessert and coffee type of place, because the tables are all pretty small and crammed together. the inside didn't seem like it had AC...yet? Hopefully. So we snatched one last table outside...uncomfortably close to a family with annoying screaming children, haha. But whatever. Our waitress (for lack of a better term) was really sweet, but you could tell she was brand new and this was possibly her first waiting-ish job. (All she does is deliver the food, not take the orders. So i don't know if the appropriate term is a 'waitress') She was kind of overwhelmed and flustered, but she was really nice and you could tell she was trying really hard to make sure we had everything we needed. I'm definitely going to try a salad next time, they looked huge and delicious.
In my opinion, Aromi's sandwiches are definitely better. But this place will definitely have my business when it comes to dessert. :) See you next weekend, Crave.
Yessssssss it's finally open! Haha, i've been counting down the days for this place to open. Figures… Read more »
This place just opened 2 days ago (it used to be LA Color Studio; they moved to Westwood).
Tried them out for lunch today. Great people. Very friendly. Nice open vibe. They've got French windows that open out into the patio and tables along the street. Great place to have brunch and watch the foot traffic on Ventura.
We went all crepe today. Lox Crepe: good. Grilled Chicken Crepe: even better. Strawberries & Bananas Crepe: fabulous.
They serve good coffee too. Will definitely go back.
I've been here two times so far... I'm giving it 3 stars because the chicken panini I had a couple weeks ago was decent... although the create my own omelette for breakfast one day wasn't too hot. I'm not a fan of those thin omelettes that are just stuffed with certain things... and possibly my choice of spinach, tomatoes and mushrooms was a bad one... but what I think made it worse was the fact that they forgot the cheese in it! I'd love to see the option of something else on the side like fries, potatoes, fruit etc.. instead of a salad with a breakfast omelette.
On a positive note.. the iced coffee was really good.. good enough for my $ instead of Starbucks- and I love supporting independent businesses. I'm looking forward to trying the crepes and the yogurt.
I think it's a great lunch place. I've had a couple paninis and a crepe and I've been happy each time. VERY nice people and great service. Filling, delicious lunch for a fair price. Not much more to ask for!
2 for 1 Cold Paninis
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