A Taste of France

Local restaurant inspires cultural differences

Story and photos by Jen Dunkerley

Many of us view small towns as having the same old types of diners, fast food joints and local dives. Occasionally there are those cultural restaurants thrown into the mix, but are usually overpriced chains. Recently, a new type of cuisine has introduced itself to the small city of Plattsburgh, NY. Hidden away in a small abandoned plaza lays Quiche et Crepe, a small French bistro run by a local couple.

Roger Metzger, a native of Iowa traveled to France where he met future wife Evelyn. Here, Roger learned about authentic French dishes and brought that knowledge back to the states. As the head cook of Quiche et Crepe, Roger prepares all homemade quiches, crepes, breads and French desserts. Evelyn also has brought her knowledge of cooking that she has learned from her family especially her mother and her grandmother in Normandy. The Metzger’s love of French cuisine and their talent for cooking it carried over when they moved to Plattsburgh in 2004 and was the fuel for the two of them to start the bistro in 2006.

“They like the atmosphere because they can sit and read and relax, no loud music or TVs to distract anyone. We wanted it to be just like the quiet cafes in France.”

“We had the motivation and the resources so we went for it,” says Roger . The two decided Plattsburgh was especially appropriate to open up a French restaurant because of the close border it shares with Canada. The Metzger’s agree that the French Canadian culture is already here so it is nice for people to visit and be able to go to a place that reminds them of their own culture. “They like the atmosphere because they can sit and read and relax, no loud music or TVs to distract anyone. We wanted it to be just like the quiet cafes in France.” says Evelyn. This type of atmosphere is something the Metzger’s worked hard to achieve. “I really like how relaxing it is because I’ll come in and have my lunch and do work for school or read a book and the food is so good,” says Kate Saltis , a SUNY Plattsburgh student and avid customer of Quiche et Crepe.

“The pictures are really cute and when you see them you already know what you want before you even walk in.”

When they first bought the space they both agreed it was in “bad shape,” but with hard work, patience and determination, four months later the bistro was ready for business. “It has been fun and exciting but a lot of commitment,” says Evelyn .
The main concern of the Metzger’s is that Quiche et Crepe feel like an authentic French bistro. Everything from paint color to the set up of the room was carefully planned in order to make customers have that “at home feeling” when they walk in the door. Even the title of the bistro was picked out carefully.“The title is meant to make people visualize the product,” says Evelyn . The windows of the bistro are painted with mouth-watering pictures of croissants, quiches, and crepes. “The pictures are really cute and when you see them you already know what you want before you even walk in,” says Saltis .

The two say that in the future they would like to expand on their patio outside as well as their boutique and do more for the landscaping to make it look more French but want to keep the bistro itself very small. “We like to have very close ties with our customers and we don’t think expanding will allow us to do that,” says Evelyn . After their hard work the Metzger’s have found a place of balance within the bistro and are very happy with what they have achieved by giving a little bit of their culture to a small town community.

Have you had a taste of France?