L’OTUS Cake Boutique – Earl Grey, Uji Matcha & Fresh Strawberry Mille Crepe
If you’re a big foodie in Vancouver, you probably have noticed that the latest trend coming from NYC/Asia is the ever-so-delicate, mille crepe. It started with Lady M Confections, a boutique cafe that started in NYC, then spread to Singapore and Hong Kong with wild success. When I was in Hong Kong, every time I wanted to step foot inside a Lady M boutique, I always got deterred from the hour long line ups for a slice of cake.
For the longest time I think L’Opera Patisserie was the only place in the Lower Mainland where you can get mille crepe. Now, L’OTUS Cake Boutique has emerged on Cambie Road in Richmond and not only do they serve mille crepe, that’s what they specialize in. They opened up three weeks ago, hence all the flowers and bouquets from neighbour businesses.
The interior is a pristine white and has a very modern, Instagram-able look with it’s marble tables, white floors, walls, and counter. For those that want to come and study, they also have comfy seats, wall plugs, and Wi-Fi (their own, Shaw Open, and TELUS).
It’s all in the details! 🙂
They don’t have an extensive drink menu, with these being the only coffee/espresso options. But they also have a tea list on the counter so overall whatever you’re in the mood for, they can most likely satisfy it.
Their mille crepes range from $8 – $13 in price per slice. I know it sounds pretty ridiculous to think about paying close to ten bucks for a slice of cake when you can almost get a full lunch for the same amount. But if you think about the time and effort it takes to make one mille crepe, it puts things into perspective. Each mille crepe has about 16-20 layers of individual crepe, alternated with a spread of cream.
I didn’t get a chance to try their Uji Matcha mille crepe but that’s definitely on my list next time I visit!
In addition to mille crepe, they also serve a few different varieties of dessert.
For my drink, I got a Regular Matcha Latte ($5.25). It was served in a traditional matcha bowl instead of a cup and the latte was completely unsweetened. Just like it should be when prepared the authentic way. Two thumbs up for this drink!
My friend got the Regular Latte ($4.25) and it was also smooth and velvety as well. Even without sugar, the latte held its own and the quality is comparable to all of the other well known cafes like 49th Parallel, Revolver…etc.
The Blue Earl Grey ($8.50/slice) was topped with a sprinkle of earl grey tea leaves, gold flakes (fancy!), and a coating of gelatinous syrup to hold everything together.
The earl grey flavour was subtle throughout and surprisingly there was more cream in the mille crepe than I expected. Depending on what you prefer, you may like the mille crepes that have more crepe and less cream in between, which then L’Opera might be more to your liking.
The filling was soft, fluffy, and makes you feel like a king (or queen) when eating it. Definitely worth a try for tea lovers.
My friend ordered a pot of tea afterwards and this was called something like Rose Fairy. It had berries, rose tea, and sugar to enhance the flavour. This beautiful floral tea tasted incredibly well with the following mille crepe.
This was one of their specials, the Fresh Strawberry Mille Crepe ($8.50/slice). As you can see, there are slices of fresh strawberries throughout the cake and these fresh fruit varieties are always seasonal.
The cream tasted like it was whipped by hand with barely any sugar (just the way I like it). And when you taste it with the strawberries, it’s like you’re literally eating ‘strawberries & cream’.
All in all, L’OTUS Cake Boutique is a great addition to the Richmond/Vancouver food scene and I’m so happy I can now get my fix of mille crepe whenever I want. It’s a great place to study and do some work (so you might see me hang around here all the time) but just know, it’s not for everyone as the prices can get steep very quickly.
Service Rating: 4/5
Food Rating: 4/5
Price: $-$$
Overall Rating: 4/5
Happy Eating!
