Arts & Entertainment
Friday, May 2, 2014 • Bainbridge Island Review
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The art of the crepe
J’aime Les Crepes opens new shop on Madrone Lane BY LUCIANO MARANO
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What’s happening EAGLE HARBOR BOOKS
Bainbridge Island Review
For hungry islanders, buying authentic European-style crepes is about to get a lot more convenient as J’aime Les Crepes prepares to open a Madrone Lane location this week. Creperie owner Paul Pluska said that opening a second branch of the popular Kingston-based business on Bainbridge had long been an aspiration of his, but the locations available just hadn’t been right until now. “Bainbridge Island has always been the most natural location for us,” he explained. “We have, for the last 10 years, provided crepes with a mobile operation for many island events. Many regular customers have come to our Kingston creperie from Bainbridge. I finally found the perfect space for us at Madrone Lane, next to Mora Iced Creamery,” Pluska said. J’aime Les Crepes has placed in the top three in Evening Magazine’s “Best Crepes Award” for the past five years, and came in second place last year. The creperie serves primarily traditional Frenchstyle buckwheat crepes with a variety of custom menu creations featuring either sweet or savory fillings. Pluska is particularly proud of his shop’s batter, which he says is the essential basis for great crepes. He makes his in accordance with traditional European recipes he learned while traveling through the region as a musician. “I was a drummer in the NATO band, playing mostly in small jazz groups and big band shows all over Europe,” he said. “While living there I had a lot of time and
Luciano Marano | Bainbridge Island Review
The new J’aime Les Crepes Bainbridge Island branch, at 143 Madrone Lane, is slated to open later this week.
Crepes 101 What exactly is a crepe? A crepe is a thin, delicate pancake usually made from wheat or buckwheat flour. They are served with a variety of fillings, both sweet and savory. The word itself is of French origin, derived from the Latin “crispa,” meaning “curled.”
Luciano Marano | Bainbridge Island Review
J’aime Les Crepes owner Paul Pluska cooking for visitors to the Bainbridge Island farmers market outside of his new Madrone Lane shop location. the opportunity to learn all about how the French operate a small creperie. I learned all that we do from small, family-run creperies in Paris and throughout Brittany [and] Normandy. Many of these
families helped me with equipment, recipes and advice. Our savory batter is just what you would find in many typical creperies in the Brittany [and] Normandy regions of France.”
Even the new location on Madrone Lane, Pluska said, emulates the style of a European bistro. “The road being closed off is what really appealed to me,” he explained. “Having lived in Europe for many years, and being in towns where no cars [are] allowed, I clearly saw that the road being closed would be a huge plus for pedestrian traffic.” The new shop is located at 143 Madrone Lane, next to Mora Iced Creamery. “We are all very excited,” Pluska said of his staff and himself. “It is going to be a great little spot - a real, crepes-only, dedicated creperie on Bainbridge.”
Island-born filmmaker debuts latest project at Seattle film festival BY LUCIANO MARANO Bainbridge Island Review
Animation, once thought of as a medium for the production of children’s movies and comedies, is now being recognized as an effective means of storytelling in more serious endeavors. Dramatic, horror and even documentary filmmakers are exploring the power of animation in numerous projects, stretching the uses of the medium and creating inventive and effective films that often better convey mood and feeling than even traditional live-action movies. One such recent project saw Bainbridge Island-born filmmaker Laura Jean Cronin using animation as a means to explore the issue of family homelessness.
Her short animated film, “Home for Sale,” will debut Monday, May 19 at the Harvard Exit Theater in Seattle as part of the larger project “American Refugees,” created as part of Seattle University’s Film & Family Homelessness Project and funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Cronin said that the subject matter was fortuitous for her, as she had recently been struck by the number of foreclosed homes while searching for a house to buy. “There was a preponderance of foreclosed homes,” she explained. “Family homelessness is a huge issue, and it affects way more families than the turn to film | A13
Image courtesy of Eagle Harbor Books
Island author Marcia Breece will visit Eagle Harbor Book Company in downtown Winslow at 3 p.m. Sunday, May 4.
Island author shares her latest ‘Secrets’ Bainbridge Island author Marcia Breece will return to Eagle Harbor Book Company in downtown Winslow to discuss and autograph her latest book, “Secrets Lost: Secrets Remembered,” at 3 p.m. Sunday, May 4. The event is free and open to the public, though seating is limited. Two seats may be reserved with the advanced purchase of the book. Set on a farm in rural Western Washington, Breece’s latest book tells the story of what happens when a pair of spectacles found in an heirloom trunk give the woman who dons them a glimpse of lost generations and forgotten family secrets. Her awakening only grows when her path converges with a mysterious lumberjack, who helps reveal to her the true essence of love. Eagle Harbor Book Company is located at 157 Winslow Way East. For more information, call 206-842-5332 or visit www.eagleharborbooks. com. KIDS IN CONCERT
Suzuki students will play benefit concert Image courtesy of Lorraine Montez
Bainbridge Island native Laura Jean Cronin will premiere her animated short film about family homelessness, “Home for Sale,” one piece of a four-part film project called “American Refugees,” on Monday, May 19 at the Harvard Exit Theater.
Suzuki piano, violin, and cello students of Bainbridge Island are collaborating with the students and mentors of the Kids In Concert program in a benefit concert turn to HAPPENING | A10