Crepe House Uni - Davis Wiki

crepes await you inside

Type of food	Japanese-style Crepes and Specialties
Location	117 E Street in The Lofts building.
Hours	Sunday: 11:00 AM - 9:00 PM
	Monday: CLOSED
	Tuesday & Wednesday: 11:00AM - 11:00PM
	Thursday, Friday & Saturday: 11:00 AM - 1:00 AM
Phone	(530) 753-5888
Website	English Japanese
Established	2008 (1966 in Japan)
Price range	Under $10
Service speed	5 - 15 minutes
Type of restaurant	Japanese
Payment Methods	Cash, Visa, Mastercard
Non Food Features	Free Wifi (AeONsafe gateway), Outlets, TV, Nintendo Wii, Playstation3, Karaoke
Menu	unimenu_davis.pdf

Crepe House Uni is a restaurant chain from Japan that serves Japanese style crepes and gelato. They also offer meals and Japanese street foods such as curry, Takoyaki, Okonomiyaki, zaru soba, etc. Some have called it a maid cafe, but the place really isn't because there is more to a maid cafe than just the costumes, which are no longer the uniform. They have a Nintendo Wii connected to the television in the back and a Sony Playstation 3 connected to both televisions. Ask at the counter if you want to play. Karaoke Night on Thursdays at 9:00 PM.

Their decor is very modern with curved-line architecture, clean lighting from the drop-down ceiling lamps, and the walls and ceiling are bright and bold pastel colors, cream green for the booths and counters, strawberry red for the support columns, fluorescent white for the ceilings. This modern sense is also reflected in the tables (stainless steel, either round or square with no hard corners) and soft, pliable plastic chairs (pale, fluorescent white — like they were made from recycled iPod cases, or the character "Eve" from the Pixar movie "Wall-E"). There was a mix of J-Pop tunes pumped over the speakers (e.g., Sowelu's "I Will"), but it could barely be heard over the chatter of customers at the tables and booths.

Their food stations are arranged in a long curved "L"-shaped booth that allows standing customers to watch their order being made. Although I did not watch my order being made, my companions did note the following stations: (Going from left to right when you first walk in the door):

There is what I will call a "crepe-making" station: a server has to clean the griddle, pour on the batter, spread it around, wait for it to cook on one side, then gingerly flip it over to finish cooking on the other side, then finally transfer it to a cooling rack.
The cooled crepe shell is taken to what I will call a "hot-grill station" (with what appears to be a clamshell hood that can close) where the crepe is filled with either savory or sweet fillings. Once completed, it appears that the same server folds up the completed crepe and slips it into one of two packaging sheathes (either transparent plastic for cold crepes or a wax-lined paper cone for hot crepes). They then match up the crepe with their copy of the receipt and call out the order number (see SERVICE below).
There is an frozen Gelato station with at least two rows of five flavors each. Here, customers can interact directly with the servers to ask for samples (which, on opening day, can cause a bit of confusion and congestion as a server who is trying to finish up a crepe is flagged down by a customer who wants to try a sample of Green Tea Gelato).
There is a display case that is filled with at least 3 levels of racks that (I assume) might be filled with pre-made products that customers are welcome to buy. When we were there, the case was empty and was being used as a temporary storage space for stacks of empty packing cones.
There is the cash register, where customers can place and pay for their orders (see SERVICE below), menus are stacked, and napkins are dispensed from a tall self-dispensing unit (similar to the kind found in the movie theaters on F and G Street).

The ordering process is very much like that used at Old Teahouse. Because there are no menus posted up above the cash registers, customers can grab a double-sided, plastic laminated menu from the stack at the cashier's register. They place their order (Cash, Visa and Mastercard accepted) and are handed a receipt with an order number on it. They wait (either at their tables, or stand along the curved ice-cream/crepe assembly-line display) for their number to be called.

History

The original uniform

Originally all the working staff were (1) female; (2) Asian; (3) appeared to be under the age of 20; and (4) dressed in black, iconoclastic "cafe maid" outfits from top to bottom (hair ties and headbands with frilly lace; black blouses with shoulder trim; knee-high skirts; and black stockings). The overall appearance very much resembled a Japanese maid cafe. They were established in 1966 by Uni Public Relations Corporation in Tokyo, Japan. United States locations are/will be owned and managed by Crepe House Uni Corporation, USA or qualified franchisees.

Media

Read a story with photos of the food, the restaurant and Sagat in Davis Life Magazine.

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Older Reviews

Reviews from 2008

Current Reviews

2009-01-15 23:14:27 It's cool that they serve the crepes in paper cones, and they are pretty good. I had the potato butter which was fine for what it is, and I tasted my friends who had ordered the Jumbo and Ham and Cheese - much more tasty (next time I'll know to order something more savory so that I'm better satisfied). It was rather empty when I came in a little after dinner, and I'm not sure that the location is the greatest for the quick eat type of food they serve. It seems like a great place for a quick lunch - just super far from campus. The decor is kind of fun, I like the drawings on the walls. I just don't know how successful this place will be. Good crepe, sure, but I won't go out of my way to come back unless it's for a quick eat or late. Good luck! —ChristyMarsden

2009-01-16 05:08:06 Well it seems as though the comments about having no male employees can be put to rest finally. —ThUn

2009-01-19 13:18:46 My kids loved it. A great place to take a toddler and perfect portions for families trying to eat a more normal portion. And very tasty! —Lasan

2009-01-31 19:42:37 I love Uni Crepe house! try the strawberry, banana choco fresh crepe but substitute chocolate syrup with nutella for 50cents (I think.) It's delicious and filling in my opinion :) Not to mention the owner and workers are all very friendly and attentive to their customers. While you wait for your crepes you can play Nintendo Wii games, Rockband, and also use their WiFi. They will be getting their liquor license soon

sake bombs! Great place for a snack, I already come here often and will continue to do so for a long time! —cia0bella10

2009-02-06 19:22:45 Serving alcohol soon. That sounds interesting. I have a couple questions. First, is there any etiquette for playing the games in the shop? It does look fun, but I have yet triied. Do I just ask someone at the counter if I can play or what? Second, any chance at having nutrition facts along side of the menu posted here? Any word on getting the US version of the website up? —CarlosBarahona

Hello Carlos,
1. You just have to be a customer to play the games. Please ask one of the workers and we'll get things set up for you.
2. We are working on the complete nutrition facts booklet that will be available to view in the shop, and also on the website. Currently we have nutrition facts for our two new items, Mixed Berries and Caramel Apple, posted on the window and calories amount of most of the menu items.
3. I apologize for the delay of the US website. The design layout is completed, but we are still working on the contents.

Thank you very much for your time. —Sagat

2009-02-09 03:47:05 I've been here a couple of times. The crepes are very tasty, but can take awhile to prepare. I would only go here for a snack or dessert since the crepe's filling is a bit small. Sophie's Crepes is still my favorite place for quantity, but Uni is great for the taste. —TonyaNN

2009-02-14 18:42:33 TO: CovertProfessor or maybe I should say "Pervert Professor." Maybe you should keep your mind out of the gutter when you're looking at their clothes. Girls here wear miniskirts and are more revealing than those uniforms. The only thing I see is a small portion of their legs on those uniforms, other than that they're covered up everywhere else. I don't think it degrades women, I think they look cute. Maybe you're just afraid of hot girls coming up to you. I've never eaten here, but they should deserve respect. Most of these girls are probably college students and are honest hard workers. Give them some slack! —vietgirlwithappetite

100 bonus points for anyone who can spot the multiple ironies in this comment. —CovertProfessor

*I apologize for my untrained eyes—I was unable to spot any irony in vietgirlwithappetite's comment.
I've been to Crepe House Uni, and seriously, I only see elbows and knees.
the girls are very professional and I don't think a person who's never been to the restaurant would be able to provide an accurate evaluation of the servers who work there.

Anyway, I did spot multiple ironies in most of CovertProfessor's comments.

1) claiming to be an educator, he/she perpetuates misleading stereotypes of the American pop culture about maid uniforms (as he/she frequently relates them to the word "sexy") This is equally offensive to the American stereotypes about Geishas being prostitutes. It would be an irony if this is what they teach in one of the most prestigious colleges in the world.

2) CovertProfessor talks about respect for women while he/she doesn't even know how to respect another country's culture.

3) CovertProfessor thinks that "the view of women as 'servants'" "does not project a positive picture of women" According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the definition of a waitress is "CHIEFLY U.S. A female servant in a private house whose duty is to wait upon those at table (cf. WAITER 7c)" OUCH! I've been a waitress myself and I think I've just been intimidated

Lastly, CovertProfessor's second last comment on this page was "This is my last comment on this page; I will make no further comment." Definitely my favorite irony of the page.

Do I get bonus points for spotting so many ironies?

Thank you, Jewel, for unintentionally committing the same irony that is in vietgirlwithappetite's comment. Sad that it is so hard to spot. But yes, I give you a point for the deep observation that I did indeed break my word. I could not resist. —CovertProfessor

Good job, Jewel, you caught and fixed your irony. There's hope for you yet. —CovertProfessor

Jewel, thanks for your comment it is a good defense. Anyway, do not mind what the "Coverprofessor" says to you. No matter what, it will never understand the cultural aspect of Crepehouse Uni or the maid/cosplay uniforms. I am very fearful that such a close-minded professor may exist on campus. As a student, that makes me wonder how bad of an education I can receive from what may be one of my professors? That's ironic enough to me. Anyways, it did say that it would not comment on our page again, but that was a fail. haha
Again, the uniforms are in no way a degradation of women; they are in no way "sexy". The uniforms add to the theme and the atmosphere of the restaurant. People who do not understand them and refuse to even try to understand them will never see their value.
Thank you again Jewel and Vietgirlwithappetite for helping to upkeep Uni's reputation as a Japanese family crepe restaurant and not some kind of pervert lounge. —ThUn

2009-02-16 23:14:24 Service and food were initially fine; but lately service has been very poor. Servers have been rude; e.g.-unwilling to help when I requested help, even though there were not many people in the shop. Please remind workers that customer service is extremely important!!

Thanks. —lop

Hello lop,

Thank you very much for taking your time to comment and I am sorry about your bad experiences. I shall address this problem with my employees so that it won't happen again. —Sagat

2009-02-17 15:04:17 I come in here expecting to wait a little longer for my crepe, but it's definitely worth it. It's a cute little place, and it's nice to be able to try something new each time. The crepes are scrumptious, but not quite filling. Quality over quantity, for sure. —MichellePalmer

2009-02-20 21:44:50 I love Crepe House!!!! The desserts crepes are so much than at crepeville. I love the texture of the crepe and how it kind of melts in your mouth. I'll definitely be going back for another one soon. Oh! love the uniforms too, super cute —Tiffee

2009-02-24 20:04:47 The food was good and I'd go back there if not for the uniforms and weird halloween decorations all over the interior. Shame that an otherwise good place has to be turned into something so weird. —Fidelity

2009-03-05 20:39:07 I have only tried the sweeter crepes and I really enjoyed them. The girls were extremely nice, sweet, and patient. I like the vibe of the store, and would like to applaud the owner for his dedication to customer service and feedback. I also admire his construction of a very focused concept for this restaurant, which is innovative, eye catching, and a good change for a semi-boring city like Davis.

As for the uniforms, I don't think that they are degrading women at all. Many restaurants have uniforms that are made to fit into the context of their business' theme. Crepe House Uni is no different. The costumes do not show a lot of skin, are very cute, and matches well considering that this is a more modern/hip Japanese-styled restaurant. —renee415

2009-03-06 19:59:40 my boyfriend and I went here last night. i have to say that I have never been more apauled at the lack of professionalism. while friendly, i was thoroughly disturbed that the employee making our crepes did not use gloves and have long matted hair hanging in her face (and over the food). we waited 20 minutes for two simple crepes. i acknowlege that they were very apologetic for the wait, but all the same it should't have happened as it was late and night with hardly anyone else there. the place itself is clean, but i was neither pleased with the service, food, nor hygiene. to those at crepe house uni: gloves and hair nets (or other means of keeping hair in a customer's food!) are encouraged by the FDA. At the very least, I implore you, put your hair back! —reen

2009-03-09 19:10:22 note to all potential customers looking for honest critique of crepe house uni. manager screens comments, allowing for only favorable comments. —reen

April 27, 2009 I totally agree. I recently checked this wiki again and realized my follow up comments, as well as others who spoke on the same issue, have been deleted. I know that I didn't touch it. -HeidiDris

You can see every edit that has been made to every page (and by whom) by clicking on the "info" button at the top. The edit history of this page shows where anyone added or deleted anything. Before accusing someone of deleting comments, you may want to check out that person's user info and see what edits they have made. Turns out Sagat has never deleted a single comment from this page, except ones she personally made about the status of the restaurant that had become outdated. I've never been to this restaurant and can't speak about their food or anything else about it, but I do know a thing or two about how wikis work and wanted to help you understand too. —StaceyEllis

* Who gets to decide what material stays and what goes?

2009-03-09 19:30:22 Reen: I'm not sure how that is possible. There are clearly both positive and negative comments on the page, and I don't think that I've ever seen any comments removed from this page. In fact, your own negative comment about Uni directly precedes your comment about negative comments not being allowed. So I don't think that your statement can possibly be accurate. —IDoNotExist

2009-03-09 19:30:49 Note to all Crepehouse Uni customers. Sagat screens the comments made on this page so she can run her business accordingly. Both positive and negative feedback are taken into consideration. In no way does this prevent negative feedback for example, reen's previous critique.

Again, this board is open to all customers both positive and negative. This is a public server, so Sagat has no control over what is said. She does however read comments and makes changes to the work environment depending on the critiques received. —ThUn

2009-03-09 23:06:33 Hello Reen,

Thank you very much for your time.

I once again apologize for the slow service. We had a lot of orders right before you and your boyfriend came in. We ran out of both crepe mix and whipped cream. Please understand that we tried our very best to deliver your order as soon as we could.

All employees are required to wash their hands as often as they can. Once they have leave the kitchen area or they have touched anything other than food, utensils, and containers, they have to wash their hands again. None of them are allowed to have long nails. All my employees knows that is our number one rule. It is also extrememly hard to make crepes with gloves on due to the traction.

Regarding to the hair part, I apologize for my employee who just came in for her shift forgot to tie her hair up rightaway. I will make sure it won't happen again.

Lastly, I have never delete any comments, positive or negative, on this page. If you would please click on the info link on the top of the page, it will show you what changes are made to this page, including deleted comments, and by whom. To us, all comments are valuable in helping us to make improvements and serve our customers better. —Sagat

2009-03-30 12:05:42 I just tried the crepes here yesterday with my boyfriend and his mom. We ordered the cajun sausage, jumbo chicken and portobello crepes and finished off with a azuki bean and green tea dessert crepe. Crepe House Uni has, by far, the best crepes i have ever tasted. The owner Sagat, was very polite (so were the other employees), outgoing, and attentive to our needs. Theres plenty of other crepes that I would like to try so I will definitely be back soon. —trambajuice

Hello Trambajuice: Thank you very much for your visit and it was my pleasure to meet you, your boyfriend, and his mother. I look forward to meeting all of you again!

2009-04-16 17:50:15 Hello CEO Sagat,

Please call me back. I have been waiting for you to call me back in the last couple of days. I left you a message at 11:00 am today. Please advise me if this is not a good idea, otherwise, I will begin to use this channel to communicate with you daily. Hopefully this is the right channel to contact you. —Gloria

2009-04-26 19:05:24 I went to Crepe House Uni for the first time last night. The place is nice and the employees are friendly. Service could be a little faster, but I guess it is put into making a good crepe. I'll be coming again soon. :o) —strawberry

Hello Strawberry: I apologize for your wait and appreciate your patience. All crepes are made-to-order so it may take a little while for us to deliver your order. Please understand that we try our very best to shorten your wait time. We look forward to serve you again!

2009-05-06 22:01:52 I love crepes. Coming from the Bay Area, I have eaten crepes at numerous places. I was very excited when I heard Crepe House Uni was coming and it was a Japanese-style crepe restaurant. First time, I went there I encountered Sagat. Sagat was very friendly and polite! I was immediately taken by Sagat's professionalism and was treated very well. In the Asian culture (I'm Asian), it is very important to treat customers with the utmost respect, and I was not failed by the employees of Crepe House Uni.

Food: A The menu offers a wide variety of crepes from hot to cold deserts. Their gelato is also very delicious. I ordered the Gelato Crepe with Nutella and Chocolate Hazelnut. The crepe came out very quickly (under 10 minutes) and the crepe wrapper was very delightful and easy to use as well. The gelato was creamy and cold and tasted exactly what I wanted- chocolate hazelnut. The substitution for Nutella was also very worth it for the extra $.50. I will most definitely come back here to try the hot crepes!

Location/Ambiance: B+ Crepe House Uni is located in a great place in downtown- next to Beach Hut Deli and Sophia's Thai Kitchen, near the Borders Plaza and movie theaters. It's a great place to walk downtown and catch some great desert! The look of the restaurant inside is very modern, and with my appreciation for art, I liked the paintings on the walls. They have a WII that anyone can play with! The only problem is is that the place is so big that I can never imagine it being truly full. The tables and chairs looked modern, but when I sat in it, it seemed like any other regular chair. I also heard rumors of their new menu on the wall, but I have yet to see it. The location of the cash register was also very convenient. I walk in and look at their selection then I approach the nice employee ready to take my money for some delish crepes :).

Service: A As I have mentioned, all the employees are extremely polite. They have been well-trained and I commemorate Sagat for choosing nice employees! Just keep on saying hello, thank you, and please, then I will keep coming back! I also liked it when they had the work uniforms on. I have a good appreciation of those types of unique clothing. I hope they continue with the Japanese tradition!

—missmochi

Hello Miss Mochi: Thank you very much for taking time to leave us a comment and I am most delightful to hear that you have good experiences at our restaurant. We look forward to serve you again!
As opposed to sitting in super chairs? I don't get it. Anyways, I tried their crepe a few months back. I had the savory crepe and it just was decent, but then again, this was a while ago. Maybe I'll just stick to desert crepe next time. Their gelato selection do look amazing. —KimN.

2009-05-20 22:33:53 你好...very good sake :) May we have the Japanese beer please? Very good service and food, may be advertise on youtube? Have you checked out the yelp reviews too? http://www.yelp.com/biz/crepe-house-uni-davis-2#hrid:GKRaWEYqh5tDFy7Yx2J8lQ/src:search/query:crepe —sojoman

Hello Sojoman: We now offer a wide selection of Japanese beer, including high-end ones such as Koshihikari Echigo and Yebisu. I have always check reviews on Yelp and also respond to comments. Thank you very much!

2009-05-21 15:44:24 Hi! I heard about this place recently and I stopped by Tuesday afternoon with my friends. I really love cosplay and such and was hoping to see some of the uniforms but no one was dressed up when I went. Are there certain times when the employees dress up? —cutiekun

Hello Cutiekun: Thank you for your visit! We are having our new uniforms made at the moment. Please be patience. We are going to host Cosplay Night again very soon. Hope you can come join us!

2009-06-07 22:02:18 I noticed several of the Yelp reviews mention the uniforms seem to be gone. Sagat, can you clarify "cosplay night?" I take that to mean it's no longer a theme and permanent dress code for employees, and that the maid costumes are now going to be only for special events. Is there a new standard uniform? —EdWins

Hello EdWins: Cosplay night is for all customers who likes to cosplay to gather together and vote for the best costume. Customers who dress up will also receive a discount. We are having a new set of uniform made but as we are waiting on that, we don't have a set dress code. The maid costumes will be saved for specific locations in the future. As we have more different styles of uniforms, we will rotate them once in a while.

2009-06-27 09:19:02 When will cosplay night be? —cutiekun

2009-07-30 01:18:44 Wow this page was interesting to read! haha... almost like seeing a car accident on the road... there's a morbid fascination. Anyway, I really like this place. I'm noooot so much into the coffee but I'm a really picky coffee drinker so sometimes I bashfully walk in with a cup I've purchased somewhere else. I've been playfully teased about it but it was all in good fun. I haven't tried all the crepes and it's been awhile since the gelato, but what I've had I've really liked. I do wish the portions were a bit bigger or more full of stuff but that's the American in me speaking out. But the service is always great and the ambience is awesome and there's nowhere else like it. I came in with one of the UCD Japanese professors once too for a little dessert after dinner and she said she loves the place too. :-) I've been concerned in the past about the survival of this place cause I definitely don't want to see it go down, but it's still here and things appear to be ok. :-) woot. —hitobito

hitobito, your coffee from an outside location is more than welcome in our store. We totally understand that people like to mix-and-match their food and drink, or people want to bring in certain things from other places while studying. Don't be shy about your coffee, no need at all. We are trying are best to keep UNI running. Hopefully business picks up with the beginning of the school year. =] ThUn

"2009-08-13 12:10:00 Crepe House Uni has been closed the last 2 Tuesdays in a row when we went between 3pm and 4pm. All the tables and chairs from outside were missing, and the lights were out. There was nothing posted around, so we have no idea what is going on. The food here was always awesome, but we've had to get our fix elsewhere. Are these new unposted summer hours? robvanacker

robvanacker, we apologize for the inconvenience. I posted the summer hours on here about 2 weeks ago. Please check them out about. M-W we open at 5pm and close at 11pm for the summer. I hope this helps. ThUn

2009-08-31 19:28:16 Hi Sagat and Crepe House Uni friends! I am always at Crepe House Uni as I find it a wonderful place to study and do work and I really enjoy the sorbets here. I have just one gripe. Since my first visits at Crepe House, my diet has changed significantly and I no longer eat animal products (meat, dairy, eggs, or honey). While I used to really enjoy your crepes, I am no longer to eat a single crepe here because the special crepe batter contains dairy. Is there any chance that new, dairy-free crepes might be introduced to the menu? As a loyal and frequent customer, this is something I would really appreciate!

Thank you for your kindness and hard work. Go Crepe House! :o) —ChrissyNoble

Hello Chrissy! Thank you very much for your comments! We can make our crepe batter with soy milk and egg substitute, but the crepe mix itself contains non-fat milk powder. I don't think the headquarters in Japan will make a vegan version of the crepe mix, but I can definately look into that. However it might be a lengthy process. —Sagat

2009-09-03 16:55:04 Went there once some time ago, so they may have changed. But I got a desert crepe that had a drizzle of chocolate, a few almonds/walnuts and a drizzle of whipped cream wrapped up in layers of tasteless crepe. Maybe their savory is better. —jdavis

2009-09-10 22:59:52 Dang! So many comments here. Sagat obviously takes a very active role on this page. But why does the main description also double as someone's review?

Anyway, I like this place, even after just a few visits. The crepes are finer than elsewhere in town, and I feel like the portions have grown over time. I like the California and Portobello crepes, and the curry special was pretty good too. In all cases, enough food for the meal, even if you feel like you're paying a bit much for the amount. Then again, all the prices on the menu are adjusted to include sales tax.

Hard to decide whether Ice Krimski or Crepe Uni have the better gelato, but after years in Davis without any decent gelato, it's nice to even have that problem. If you have $2.50 to spend on two ounces of tasty goodness, you really can't go wrong. Especially with the marvel of free samples.

The service has gotten some attention in other comments. My experience has always been that the cashiers, servers, etc. have been friendly and helpful. My one criticism would be getting the occasional mumbler who makes no eye contact and appears to be uninterested in selling me food. Shyness or early-stage trainee? Both?

I hope business picks up when school starts again. I'm just starting to think of Crepe House Uni as a regular-ish eating/working venue. —Santani

2009-10-30 09:57:34 Crepe house uni has great crepes, but consistently terrible service. My friends and I have waited up to twenty minutes for a crepe before, and the place wasn’t even busy that day. Also, there are a few extremely rude workers here. I once went with two friends and they got our orders messed up and some girl came and asked my friend if this one crepe was hers, and my friend said she didn’t think that was what she ordered and if there were any more being made, and the worker girl just said no and tossed the plate on the table and walked away. It turned out it was indeed not the crepe she ordered as it came about fifteen minutes later and nobody claimed it. Same thing happened to me with a middle aged male employee (maybe the owner?). Anyways he brought me a crepe that was not what I ordered so I told him so and he just stood there and rolled his eyes at me. Amazingly crappy service. The only nice employee is the young guy with glasses.

—essyyun