Crave is a café and wine bar at the Xinle Lu and Donghu Lu nexus. Fresh baked pastries and coffee, photogenic sandwiches and breakfast plates, and wines by the glass. And they have a coveted corner lot terrace.
What To Order at Crave
On the lunch menu are sandwiches and breakfast plates from ¥58 to ¥108, supplemented by a display of freshly baked pastries.
A good starting point is the Kouign Amann (¥18), mini versions of the crispy, buttery, sweet treat. Follow up with a slice of Coffee Walnut Tart (¥48). It’s heavy on the coffee (as it should be), and has a nice crust.
The sandwiches are rather petit — the portions are small enough for you to try other dishes but still fulfilling. Go for the Mortadella Ham Sandwich (¥68), loaded with mortadella, mozzarella, mascarpone cream, spinach, garlic oil, vinaigrette, nuts and raisins.
They also make use baked goods from their pastry case. The Steak Sandwich (¥78) takes their croissant and stacks it with sliced steak, confit potatoes, cornichons, caramelized onion and garlic mayo. This one was pretty tasty.
For something brunchier, there’s the Sausage Brunch Plate (¥98). It comes with side salad, avocado, eggs, bacon, vegetables, and bread. There’s a lot going on here. Not a fan of the bacon, but the sausages are good.
Drinks situation: Espresso/Americano (¥26); wines by the glass from ¥50-100, beer from ¥35, cocktails from ¥60.
It’s good for a quick lunch if you’re in the area. The pastries are great. (Get that Kouign Amann!) The outdoor seating will definitely draw a crowd.
