French crepes, Indo roti come together at Bartlett's D^Licious
Crepes are a specialty at a number of neighborhood restaurants just as unleavened Indian flatbread known as roti inevitably shows up on many Indian menus. Now diners can find both under the same roof at the recently opened D^Licious Crêpes & Roti in downtown Bartlett.
Housed in Town Center across from the village hall and Metra station, the tidy 25-seat café works well as the venue for chef-owner Rakesh Chopra to give reign to culinary inventiveness.
Chopra grew up in Chandigarh and emigrated to the United States some 30 years ago. His cooking is influenced by an appetite for the medium to mildly spicy street food of northern India, like the roti made from stone-ground wholemeal flour, and the sweet and savory crepes beloved in France.
On a recent midday visit, I cobbled a fusion-type meal by ordering from both sides of the menu.
First, let me steer you to the samosa chole chat. This lovely shareable appetizer featured a crushed samosa — a pastry filled with chickpeas, potato and green peas accompanied by a tamarind chutney and side of raita, a mild mint and yogurt-based dipping sauce.
A popular vegetarian dish is the rumali roti, crushed samosa filled with cumin basmati rice, fresh onions, spicy garbanzo beans, and tamarind and cilantro mint chutneys. Others include various preparations of chicken or beef.
The ham-and-cheese crepe dish, a delectable entree, featured two large examples of the chef's art, each generously filled with ham, Gruyere cheese and a creamy bechamel sauce. The Mediterranean crepes also were pleasing and came with aioli, mozzarella, tomatoes, onions, green peppers, black olives, feta, baby spinach and balsamic vinegar.
Other crepe options included shrimp scampi, chicken cordon bleu and “veggie-licious.”
Of the 10 dessert crepes populating the menu, I needed to look no further than La Noix de Coco — a large crepe filled with a chocolate-hazelnut spread, toasted coconut and walnuts with a dollop of whipped cream on the side. Definitely ample enough to share. Heartier appetites can further enhance this dish with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for a nominal upcharge.
Alcohol isn't served, but an excellent, full-bodied Dutch coffee is available and works well with the food. The beverage service also includes fruit juices, soft drinks, iced tea, fruit smoothies and mango- and salted-masala-ginger-flavored lassis.
The café is decorated in bright colors, and on its walls hang a number of travel photos of landmarks in Paris, London, Venice and Agra, India.
D^Licious is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and can accommodate takeout orders from outbound and inbound commuters. The place offers table service or customers also can order from a take-out menu. Everything on its menu is available during business hours.
• Restaurant reviews are based on one anonymous visit. The Daily Herald does not review restaurants it cannot recommend.
D^Licious Crêpes & Roti
225 S. Main St., Bartlett, (630) 855-5373, <a href="http://deliciouscrepesandroti.com/">deliciouscrepesandroti.com</a>
<b>Cuisine:</b> Indo-French street cafe
<b>Setting:</b> Casual storefront eatery
<b>Entrees:</b> $6-$11; desserts: $5-$6
<b>Hours:</b> 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday; 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday; 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday