Fresh-Faced Fare With complementary crêpes and crèmes, a husband and wife make a business of beauty and beautiful food at The Perch
by Carrington Fox
It has become a hallmark of the recent economy for restaurateurs to specialize in niche foods and deliver them extremely well. It's a low-overhead strategy that has introduced an array of exciting new flavors and fare to the local landscape—from cupcakes and snowballs to artisanal cocktails and mobile Mexican food.
Launched this spring, The Perch in Brentwood is no exception. The twee eatery has seized upon traditional French crêpes as its core competency and has built a focused business that excels in that single versatile product.
It's hard to say which aspect of the restaurant its name more aptly reflects—whether it's the way the tiny cottage is perched on the bank of the busy Franklin Pike thoroughfare, or the way diners perch on the tall chairs at the handful of bar tables in the snug dining room. Either way, it was a stroke of understated genius to refrain from calling the place "Le" This or "La" That—be it Le Café du Sud or La Crêperie de La Vielle Hickorie. By avoiding la tentation française, husband-and-wife team Heather Chandler and John Kressaty have managed to establish an endearing local identity rather than an overly self-conscious European reference.
A two-sided bookmark of a menu lists coffees on one side, crêpes on the other. Veteran baristas Troy Akers and Robert Thaneus are quick to point out that The Perch is the only local purveyor of Leopard Forest Coffee from Zimbabwe, which is used in the roster of hot and cold coffee drinks. "Off the branch" iced concoctions include combinations such as the Best Chocolate Bar Ever (chocolate, caramel and toffee), Orange Creamsicle (candied orange and white chocolate), and White Lightning (vanilla and four shots of espresso). Hot drinks include mocha, chai latte, hot chocolate and various steamers.
But while The Perch makes a cozy caffeinated launching pad for anyone starting the day near the busy crossroads of Franklin Pike and Old Hickory Boulevard (the coffee shop opens for business at 6:30 a.m. on weekdays), the defining draw is the list of crêpes. Handwritten chalkboards over the counter list sweet and savory options, with the most expensive item clocking in at $7, plus a dollar up-charge to add ham.
Brandon Dennis and Joelle Quandt man the 15-inch round cast-iron griddles where the thin batter transforms into crêpes as supple as French silk scarves. Technically, though, the Perch's crêpes aren't French, but Belgian, inspired by a secret family recipe from a Belgian friend of Chandler's.
Using a T-shaped tool, like a rake without teeth, Dennis and Quandt deftly spread the batter on the sizzling drums, swirling the liquid in a circular motion to distribute it thinly and evenly until it reaches a light blond color. The crêpe is lifted off the drum and folded in half. The ingredients are piled on and allowed to continue warming until the cheese melts, the marshmallows soften or the chocolate oozes, at which point the semicircle is folded again and the delicate triangle is served upon a plastic plate.
With an array of meats, cheeses, fruits and vegetables that can be mixed and matched, The Perch is an unusually satisfying middle ground for carnivores and vegetarians dining together. In fact, in our experience, the crêpe loaded with sun-dried tomatoes, sweet molten eggplant and roasted red peppers—melded with warm mozzarella and a rich unifying drizzle of balsamic vinaigrette—topped the list, followed closely by plump artichoke hearts with wilted baby spinach and havarti.
For meat-eaters, there's an ample assortment of combinations with thinly sliced ham, bacon and chicken. We particularly enjoyed the medley of thinly sliced Granny Smith apples with brie and ham. On one visit, we couldn't narrow down our choices, so we compromised by ordering a crêpe with Anjou pears, whole walnuts and brie—which was listed among the savory items—for dessert.
If there is one shortcoming in this endearingly simple roster, it is the lack of non-crêpe items, such as side salads or fruit. Under normal circumstances, following a crêpe entrée with a crêpe dessert is too much of a good thing. Nonetheless, we soldiered bravely on to a second round, choosing among sweet fillings such as Nutella chocolate-hazelnut spread, apple butter, and sugar with butter and cinnamon.
Thanks to the superior quality of The Perch's light and fluffy crêpes, the elegantly simple jam crêpe was lovely in and of itself and would make a delicate snack with a cup of coffee, as would the Nutella version. But in the aftermath of a savory crêpe bulging with meat and cheese, it fell a little flat and bready. Similarly, the decadent crêpes stuffed with peanut butter and banana and all the requisite ingredients for S'mores were far too heavy to follow lunch. (That said, they were good enough to consider replacing the savory lunch altogether.)
If the watchword of the new era is "specialization," then the catchphrase of the bygone go-go days was "synergy," a word that Chandler and Kressaty are also invoking. The Perch is just one side of the couple's multifaceted entrepreneurship. Under the same roof, Chandler operates the 2-year-old Skinbar cosmetics and skincare boutique, and Kressaty, a cosmetic chemist, formulates skin-care products for physicians and companies around the world. A serene corridor leads from the tiny dining room to the posh boutique and treatment rooms.
"When I told people I was going to connect The Perch to the Skinbar, they asked me if I was nuts," Chandler says. Indeed the pairing of dining and skin care is unorthodox. (Aren't we taught from the beginning that chocolate gives us pimples?) But underlying both businesses is a focus on healthy living—from fresh ingredients to clean skin—a connection that creates a whole greater than the sum of the parts.
The Perch is open 6:30 a.m.- 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday.
Email cfox@nashvillescene.com
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