Who doesn’t love a crêpe? It doesn’t get much better than a thin pancake filled with creamy chicken or ham and cheese. Yes, Nutella and strawberries are lovely, but my heart belongs to the savory crêpe in all its iterations. And I’m not just talking about French buckwheat flour specimens. One of my favorite restaurants as a child was a Hungarian spot specializing in meaty palacsinta. As an adult visiting Poland, I became enchanted with naleśniki. But when I’ve tried jianbing in New York City and Houston alike, I haven’t really been a fan of the crisp Chinese equivalent.
It took a visit to Bing & Bao in Falls Church to change my mind on the matter. In fact, it’s nearly impossible not to like the Tianjin-style jianbing at Bing & Bao because they’re made to the diner’s specifications. At a touchscreen at the counter, I selected exactly what I wanted inside my mung bean and millet flour jianbing.
Forthwith, the staffer who took my order assembled my jianbing right at the counter. He smoothed out the batter on the round griddle, showering it with scallions. He lined it with fluffy egg, then began adding my filling choices. First, a few slices of soy-marinated steak. Crunchy cucumbers, funky pickled radish, bright cilantro and a slap of chile oil gave each bite variety and I loved the crunch of the final feature, a large wonton crisp.
The jianbing at Bing & Bao is an extra-large lunch, like an overstuffed burrito, so I didn’t have room for any of the fluffy steamed buns that give the restaurant the other half of its name. And it may be a while. Who has time for bao when you’re craving one of your new favorite crêpes? // 7505D Leesburg Pike, Falls Church
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