The breakfast club: Crepe Cafe Sisters, People’s Waffle and Jeana Pecha serve the most important meal of the day

It’s safe to say that I’ve never gone out for breakfast three consecutive mornings for work, but this uncommon occurrence happened over the weekend – Friday, Saturday and Sunday – for The Spokesman-Review.

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, after all, and who’s going to complain about new breakfast options in Spokane. Coincidentally, I did wish for this recently, and my wish came true. Here is my rundown of Crepe Cafe Sisters, People’s Waffle and Zona Blanca executive chef Jeana Pecha’s breakfast pop-up at Steel Barrel Taproom:

Crepe Cafe Sisters

Sweet. Savory. Simply divine. That is the motto of Crepe Cafe Sisters owners and real-life sisters Jessica Moon and Ashley Sadaoui, and it, ahem, sweetly describes their first brick-and-mortar that opened on May 14 on Nettleton Street near Hello Sugar and Park Lodge.

The sisters, who have lived here most of their lives, have been operating Crepe Cafe Sisters since taking it over in 2015. Their first farmers market as siblings was the nearby Kendall Yards Night Market six years ago, so the location of their first outlet is an apropos and a full-circle moment.

“We love this location and scenery, and our business has always been community- and family-based,” Sadaoui said Friday morning. “Our family is very much involved with Crepe Cafe Sisters. People can get their crepes and go to the park and picnic tables. That really drew us to this location. This really fits what we wanted to achieve.”

The sisters had planned to open nearly a year ago, but the pandemic struck. “It ended up being a blessing in disguise because our opening was perfect with the weather and around Mother’s Day,” said Moon, who was seated next to her sister on the cafe’s patio. Crepe Cafe Sisters is also at the farmers markets in Spokane Valley and Liberty Lake. And next up: A Crepe Cafe Sisters in Leavenworth with their mother.

“We just want this place to be a place for families and community,” Moon said. “There is actually a table inside that is the dining table from our childhood. This place is about nostalgia and brought back memories of our childhood and family. A lot of the crepes are named after family members, and our slogan is from our Auntie Mo, who encouraged us to be strong. We are excited to share this space with the community.”

My party of three arrived at 8:30 a.m. Friday, and it was love at first sight and bite. We ordered savory and sweet crepes: Berry Nutty (berries and Nutella), Razzle Dazzle (raspberries), Kickin’ Chicken (a staff favorite) and Hammilicious (ham and strawberries). The crepes were terrific, service was fast, the space is beautiful, and it was a perfect way to start the day and weekend.

If you go: Crepe Cafe Sisters, 441 N. Nettleton St., crepecafesisters.com.

People’s Waffle

The People’s Waffle story by Amy Edelen in Business last week attracted a lot of interest, so I immediately added it to my must-dine list. At 8 a.m. Saturday, my family and I, a party of five, arrived at the brick-and-mortar when it opened at 8 a.m. and got the last table (there are seven inside and two on the sidewalk).

Our breakfast waffles: lemon blueberry, duck confit, the London Fog (Earl Grey buttercream, Swiss meringue and honeycomb), strawberries and cream and a hot buttered rum latte. The plating is artsy, the location is cute and bright, and the service was good. My sister raved about the London Fog, and my niece devoured her strawberries and cream.

Pro tip: I overheard the table next to me say that they were disappointed that the vegan and gluten-free menu items weren’t available, contrary to what had been reported in media and on social media, and, to his credit, co-owner Aaron Hein fessed up to the error and apologized, as the items are still in development. Stay tuned, and it couldn’t hurt to call ahead and ask.

If you go: People’s Waffle, 15 S. Howard St., (509) 270-1052, peopleswaffle.com.

Chef Jeana Pecha

On Sunday at 9 a.m., our group of four arrived at Pecha’s pop-up at Peter McArthur’s Steel Barrel Taproom downtown, and we were the first customers (by the time we left about 90 minutes later, there was a good-sized crowd). Steel Barrel is now a family-friendly establishment after a recent relicensing.

Our food + cocktails: English pub breakfast, breakfast pie, bananas Foster Dutch Baby, breakfast sando, grand mimosa with grapefruit juice, Bloody Mary and sangri-mosa. My nephew, 10, now loves Dutch Babies (it is a dessert, after all). Pecha, a recent transplant from Los Angeles who worked the night before at Zona Blanca, served the dishes at each table.

This was a pop-up, so there is no set breakfast menu at Steel Barrel. The silver lining, however, is that you should always be on the lookout for pop-up meals, and you can experience Pecha’s talent for flavorful and spicy cuisine at chef Chad White’s newly reopened and relocated Zona Blanca.

If you go: Zona Blanca, 157 S. Howard St., (509) 241-3385, limefishsalt.com.

509 Dine

And speaking of pop-ups, 509 Dine is back postpandemic at the Garland Drinkery (828 W. Garland Ave.) from 5-8 p.m. Thursday for pickup or dine-in. The menu, which includes 509 barbecue ribs and Thai peanut butter sticky ribs, is at 509dine.com/thursday-take-out-dinner.

To order, email 509dine@gmail.com or text (509) 220-1681 with the number of people/dinners, sides, your name and the pick-up time. I’ve already made my reservation and can’t wait to check out the Garland Drinkery on Thursday afternoon.

It may take a little effort, but you’re certain to unearth unexpected treasures when you explore Spokane’s vibrant and growing culinary scene. Dig in!