“Bringing a piece of Paris to the East Village” – Review of Tripie Crepe Cart

4th Ave. and E. 8th St., East Village, NYC

BY HOLLY HAGAN

Crepe with pesto, tomato, turkey and cheese. Photo by Holly Hagan

Last month, my coworkers all began raving about a crepe cart that had set up shop near our office, serving lunch and dessert crepes for $4.99, including your choice of bottled water or lemonade.

It had been years since I’d had a crepe. The most memorable experiences were with my high school French class when we had “food day.”  Each one of us was assigned a different French treat to make and share with the class.  Someone would always bring in crepes with a generous sprinkling of powdered sugar to cover up how bland they really were.  I didn’t understand how wonderful they really were until I tried a fresh crepe during my first trip to Paris when I was twenty.

These were the memories I relived as I waited for my crepe to be prepared on the corner of 4^th Avenue and 8^th Street, at a cart called Tripie. The cart sits on the sidewalk outside of Cooper Union’s engineering building.

Brian Fogel, in front of the cart. Photo courtesy of Brian Fogel.

The owner, Brian Fogel, made small talk as I waited for my crepe stuffed with pesto, turkey, tomato and cheese.  It was one of eight choices on their menu, the most popular combination being Nutella, strawberry, blueberry, banana and coconut on a warm buttery crepe.

Brian told me there was an interesting, intercontinental story about how his business began.  After serving his stint in the Israeli army, Brian moved to London, but visited Paris quite often, where he noticed the popularity of street vendors who sold crepes.  Upon moving to New York, Brian noticed the conditions and unhealthy food sold by vendors on the streets of Manhattan.  He remembered the crepe vendors in Paris, and how nothing like that existed neither in London nor New York City.  That’s when he got the idea to open a crepe cart, serving good food with fresh ingredients.  After getting an investor, conducting market research and navigating through city requirements, Tripie, which is the word for chocolate in Hebrew if read from right to left, made it’s debut in the East Village on June 3^rd.  Brian chose the location to reach a young, sophisticated clientele, and I have seen the line form in the afternoon.

Besides the fantastic price point, the ingredients are all fresh.  The crepe itself is sweet, but not overpowering, so it strikes the perfect balance whether you choose meat, egg or fruit and Nutella.

What makes Brian proud is the relationship he has with his employees, who are all Arab.  He hopes to become a role model for Israeli and Arab communities and businesses.  In the future, he hopes to open more carts and maybe trucks in locations through the city.

Tripie is open seven days a week from noon until 3:00am.  You can follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

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