How to Set Up a Crepe Bar

Set up a stunning crepe bar and let your guests build their own perfect crepe. This crepe bar guide covers everything you need including the best toppings, styling tips, make ahead advice, and how to create a beautiful setup your guests will never forget.

Jump to:

• Quick Look
• Why You'll Love This Crepe Bar
• The Crepes
• Crepe Bar Toppings
• How to Style a Beautiful Crepe Bar
• How to Set Up a Crepe Bar
• Make Ahead Tips
• How to Fold a Crepe
• Frequently Asked Questions
• More Sweet Inspiration
• Recipe

I love crepes and I love to serve them at a party. They're special, they're surprisingly simple to make, they can be done in advance, and there are so many delicious things you can serve with them that they work beautifully as a self serve bar. And everyone loves the chance to customize their own.

This crepe bar goes a step further with both vanilla and chocolate crepes, a full lineup of homemade sauces, sauteed apples, custard, fresh fruit and more, all served in beautiful vintage china on a lace covered buffet. Most of it can be made the day before which means by the time your guests arrive you are relaxed and ready to enjoy the party alongside them. That is always the goal.

We set up this crepe bar for our Breakfast Under the Stars brinner party and it was one of the most loved parts of the whole evening. But a crepe bar works beautifully for any occasion. A weekend brunch, a bridal shower, a birthday dinner, or really any gathering where you want to serve something genuinely special.

If you love this idea you might also enjoy our full Breakfast for Dinner Party where this crepe bar made its debut, and our Mimosa Bar as another great addition to any party.

The Crepes

The foundation of any crepe bar is of course the crepes themselves. We make both vanilla and chocolate crepes which gives guests options and looks absolutely stunning on the crepe bar.

For our vanilla crepe recipe we use a simple blender batter that comes together in minutes. You can find the Sweet Crepe Recipe here. For chocolate crepes simply add 2 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder and an extra half tablespoon of sugar to the same batter. Everything else stays exactly the same.

How Many Crepes Do You Need? 

Plan for 2 to 3 crepes per guest. For a party of 8 we made two double batches which gave us plenty for the buffet with a few extra.

Make Ahead

Crepes can be made completely the day before. Stack them with a piece of parchment between each one, wrap tightly and refrigerate overnight. Reheat the whole stack in the microwave just before serving. They taste just as fresh and it takes all the pressure off party day.

Crepe Bar Toppings

This is where the magic happens. Lots of toppings is what takes a crepe bar from ordinary to genuinely memorable. We set out thirteen options and not a single one went untouched.

The Creamy Fillings

• Vanilla Custard is the filling that surprises people every time. It sounds simple but spooned warm inside a folded crepe it is absolutely delicious. We used store bought custard and it worked beautifully. No one needs to know. 😄
• Whipped Cream is non-negotiable. Light, cloud-like, and the perfect contrast to the richer sauces.
• Hazelnut cream or Nutella is a real crowd pleaser. If you put it out someone will use it on everything.

The Sauces

• Caramel Sauce is our favourite. We use The Pioneer Woman's Easy Caramel Sauce Recipe and it lives up to its name. Make it the day before and it reheats beautifully.
• Chocolate Sauce adds richness and pairs perfectly with the chocolate crepes. And we didn't use just any old store bought chocolate (although if you're short on time you can). We made our Hot Fudge Sauce Recipe, which is the smoothest, most delicious chocolate sauce I've ever had. I'm not even a huge chocolate fan and I love this sauce!
• Maple Syrup is our Canadian addition and honestly one of the most used toppings of the whole evening. Don't skip it.

The Fruit

• Fresh Strawberries are a non-negotiable, and a real crowd pleaser.
• Fresh Raspberries or Any Berries are a great addtion, classic, and colorful.
• Fresh Banana Slices are easy and inexpensive and pair so well with Nutella, chocolate sauce, or caramel sauce.
• Sauteed Apples were the first thing to disappear from the crepe bar. Warm, soft, spiced apples inside a crepe with a drizzle of caramel is just unbeatable. We peeled and sliced our apples, cooked them with a little butter, sugar and cinnamon, and then thickened the juices with some cornstarch. I made this ahead and reheated it before serving.

The Crunch

• Toasted Slivered Almonds. Just a small bowl but they add the most wonderful texture contrast to all those soft creamy fillings.

The Cold

• Vanilla Ice Cream. We kept ours in the freezer and brought it out when the crepe bar opened. A scoop of ice cream inside a warm crepe with caramel sauce is one of life's great pleasures.
• Chocolate Ice Cream. We didn't offer this, but if you have real chocolate lovers, then this is a great addition, think triple chocolate crepe with chocolate crepe, chocolate ice cream, and hot fudge sauce.

How to Style a Beautiful Crepe Bar

This is where your crepe bar goes from a food station to something genuinely beautiful and this is the section nobody else is writing about.

• The Vessels: Mismatched vintage china is our favourite way to serve crepe bar toppings and it makes such a difference. Teacups for smaller portions like almonds and custard, small jugs for the sauces, pretty bowls in varying sizes for the fruit and whipped cream. The mix of patterns, colours, and shapes looks curated and charming rather than generic. Check your own china cabinet first and then head to the thrift store or antique store for anything you're missing.
• The Backdrop: We set our crepe bar up on a white buffet against a floral vintage gallery wall and it made the whole setup look like a styled shoot. The gallery wall provides so much visual interest behind the bar that you don't need to over-style the surface itself.
• The Linens: A lace tablecloth draped over the buffet adds softness and texture and photographs beautifully. It immediately signals that this is a special occasion rather than a casual setup.
• The Height: Varying the heights of your vessels and adding a tiered stand for the crepe stacks creates visual interest and makes the whole bar look more abundant. We placed our vanilla and chocolate crepe stacks on a two tiered brass stand which became the centrepiece of the whole setup.
• The Flowers: A small vase of baby's breath tucked alongside the bar adds softness and life without competing with the food. Simple, inexpensive, and completely beautiful.
• The Crepes

How to Set Up a Crepe Bar

• Choose your dishes ahead of time. With so many options, it's helpful to plan out your dishes. Before party day go through your china cabinet and gather everything you want to use. Lay it all out on the buffet and use sticky notes to label each vessel with what it will hold. This sounds like a small thing but it makes the day of setup so much faster and less stressful. You just fill and go. And don't forget spoons and tongs for serving too!
• We love mismatched vintage china for a crepe bar. Teacups for smaller portions like almonds and custard, small jugs for the sauces, pretty bowls in varying sizes for the fruit and whipped cream. Head to the thrift store for anything you're missing.
• One important note if you're using vintage china with gold edges. These cannot go in the microwave. Reheat your food in a plain container first then transfer to your pretty serving pieces. Worth knowing before party day!
• When you're setting up the bar, lay your tablecloth first before anything goes on the surface. Place your tiered crepe stand and taller pieces towards the back, and smaller vessels in front. Add your flowers and candles last as finishing touches. Don't forget plates and forks.

Make Ahead Tips

The day before: 

• Cook all your crepes. Some people recommend a piece of parchment between each one, but I didn't find it was necessary and had no problems with them sticking to one another when stacked directly on top of each other. Wrap the stack or place in an airtight container and refrigerate overnight.
• Make the caramel sauce and chocolate sauce and store in jars.
• Cook your sauteed apples and refrigerate.
• Make your custard if you're making homemade.
• Prep your bar vessels with sticky note labels so setup is easy.

The morning of: 

• Wash the fresh fruit.
• Whip the cream.
• Toast the nuts.

Just before serving: 

• Reheat the crepe stack in the microwave. Fold crepes into quarters for serving.
• Warm sauces and apples in plain microwave safe containers then transfer to your vintage serving pieces.
• Slice the fruit.
• Bring out the ice cream last.

How to Fold a Crepe

There are a few different ways to fold a crepe and part of the fun of a crepe bar is letting guests experiment and find their favourite. Here are the most popular options:

• Quarter fold This is the classic and our personal favourite for a crepe bar. Fold the crepe in half and then in half again to make a triangle. Spoon your toppings into the open pocket or pile them on top. Easy to hold, easy to eat, and it looks beautiful on the plate.
• Roll Spread your filling down the centre of the crepe then roll it up like a thin wrap. Great for fillings that might spill out of a folded crepe.
• Half fold Simply fold the crepe in half and add toppings to the open side. Quick and casual and perfect for generous portions of fruit and whipped cream.

There are no rules here. Part of the joy of a self serve crepe bar is watching guests get creative with their combinations and their folds.

Frequently Asked Questions

More Sweet Inspiration

 If you try this crepe bar or any other ideas on my blog please let me know how it went in the comments below and leave a star rating. Thanks for visiting today!

 

Recipe