FOOD & DRINK
therr farst permanent shop rn the crty centre, brrngrng therr qualrty, French- style, fast food to a crty more used to dunkrng edrbles rn bubblrng Orl
It was on a trrp across the channel that the Couple frrst saw the famrlrar Parrsran srght of street-corner crepe vendors raprdly makrng and servrng up therr wares to hungry passers-by They qurckly realrsed that there was no reason why such a scheme couldn’t work rn Scotland
Havrng seCUred fundrng from the Prrnce’s Scottrsh Youth Busrness Trust, they prcked a srte besrde the Gulf 24- hour garage on Woodlands Road, countrng on plenty of starved offrce workers and student customers from the area Takrng the srmple French concept of one man and hrs crepe hotplate servrng up qurck, cheap and tasty food, they added Glasgow style and cannrness, makrng sure that they had brandrng any multrnatronai w0uld be proud of. The logo of the company was matched on everythrng, from the Srgn above the van to the specrally desrgned cardboard crepe holders. Nahar and Sharp knew from the frrst day they went
The van plan
Having started their hot crépes business from a van in the West End of Glasgow, Keshan Nahar and Nicola Sharp hope to take it all over the world.
.'.ords Rory Weller
For many people, crepes mean nothrng more than Shrove Tuesday, some Jrf emon and a sprrnklrng of sugar, but
for young entrepreneurral cocrple Kesnan Nahar and Nrcola Sharp, they mean a chance for world dornrnatron, 'l'te Grasgow couple, both. 26, set up teerr' Crepe a Crorssant van on the edge o" the city's West End rn 93. Four years ater', they have succeeded rn openrng
GLASGOW AND EDINBURGH
10 vaington Road
Edinburgh
0131-662 9020
28 Wmtrninster Terr (on Snuc'lriehull St.)
Glasgow G3 7RU 0141-221 1663
MOW!” India now open in Edinbnrfln
rnto busrness that therr rdea was one they could sell, not lUSI to a hungry clrentele, but as a franchrse too
Frve years of gettrng up at 6am to prepare everythrng for the van, openrng at 10am, servrng untrl 3am at weekends and havrng a Keshan Jr dch nothrng to dull therr ambrtron Step two of therr masterplan has slotted
rnto place as they open therr permanent premises rn St Enoch Souare.
Freshly cooked crepes are the rnarnstay of the busrness wrth around 30 drfferent frllrngs avarlable Carnrvores can munch down on the lrkes of hurrrcane ham, radrc:al roast or trtanrc tuna whrle ravrshrng ratatourlle, bohemran broccolr, supreme sprnach and classy chrckpea keep the veggres happy. None cost more than £3 50 The hot and cold crOrssants have less sexy names but are no less tasty Baguettes, French knot rolls and a
Crepes away at Crepe a Croissant
patlsser're seiec t on cor‘f " and baked potatoes me It arr-ca 'Lch because, ‘.'.ell, the. eat sprcls ' too, surely?
Since Nahar arid S"ar:> "at "art the per'rnar‘ent base, fl‘e‘,".e :‘ee' a::-t- Tc; expand then supp; of ‘ ed ::ar;.rt'ttes and crorssants to ocal cra'ades a' :r 2-". hour shops, a’ o‘ ‘ ‘“ Crepe a (‘r'orssant craart, sea
At f"e e'td o‘ f" s ‘.c-a', '_' ' ,:;c- ‘r: haue the completed so the exponentrallr, Ail the Hard -.'.::'-r already heer‘ dose and t'te‘, .(' that they're on to a I'd r,.-t- ' see our .dea at o‘.e' tr‘e cotrr‘f', ‘sf/ as bro as somet" 'rc; .ke l.lci)<>!vrxrs, muses Nd'idl, that git 'r:'t‘ a lrttle rno'e trrne
(():l."s(‘ '.r' .' 2'
‘raPc'Nse ;:a:>r-'.. shops ca" ’l'f;
Crépe a Croissant, 50 St Enoch Square, Glasgow, 248 7114; Ashley Street (off Woodlands Road), Glasgow, 353 2170.
'n'u ' ll.\ll 5
12 ASHTON LANE
let»: G
25 years of traditional Scottish cooking
1.\‘O.
Tel 0141-334 5007
110 THE lIST 6- 19 Feb l998