Please note, L'Ami Malo has now closed. Time Out Food editors, September 2019.
Not all creperies are created equal. Some are mere Nutella-toting street-side carts. Others, like L’Ami Malo, serve inventive, comforting dishes that you could call culinary triumphs.
Here, the aim of the game is all in the name—L’Ami ( ‘friend’ in French) and Malo, part of the name of a town in Brittany (Saint-Malo) famous for all things crêpes/galettes—together represent what this mod eatery is all about.
Located just off of the Spitalfields main drag, L’Ami Malo merges its contemporary spin on French cuisine with a friendly dining atmosphere. The waiters were indeed so welcoming that I felt like I’d been ushered into someone’s home, albeit one with very deliberate lighting and aesthetics. Squeeze in to one of the cosy tables huddled around the large windows – prime people-watching territory indeed – or grab a spot overlooking the open kitchen for a first-hand view (and sniff) of the dishes being whipped into shape.
Heavy on buckwheat—a traditional ingredient favoured for its gluten-free properties—the Asian-cum-French menu boasts dishes that range from the innocent to the indulgent. The zingy cheesiness of buckwheat goat‘s cheese croquettes was perfectly complemented by roasted beetroot. But the interesting-sounding avocado galette ‘maki rolls’ were underwhelming.
For mains, you can’t go wrong with the classic galette (savoury pancake) combo of duck egg with rich cheese and crisp bacon, or flip the script and get the duck leg with braised red cabbage.
To end, there are of course sweet crêpes. The highlight of which was a deconstructed cheesecake number served with poached rhubarb and crisp shards of just-cooked pancake—almost as beautiful to look at, or photograph, as to eat.