New European-inspired café to open in Dilworth in October

Crema Espresso Café and Bar, a European-style café, pastry shop and creperie, will be open around the end of October at Kenilworth Commons, in the space formerly occupied by Dilworth Coffee and Kenilworth Espresso at 1235 East Blvd. B.

Owners say the café will be small and cozy, keeping simplicity at its forefront. Co-owner Alexis Mizrahi-Botero’s inspiration comes from visiting cafes around Europe, particularly in Italy. It will feature handmade pastries and crepes made on-site, locally roasted coffee and tea drinks, and beer and wine.

“Italy has got to be our favorite place that we’ve traveled to,” Mizrahi-Botero said. “The atmosphere draws you in. You want to stay there and people watch and enjoy the moment. While we traveled through Europe, we left our phones and they never entered our minds once. It was truly a place to relax.”

Mizrahi-Botero and her mother, co-owner Elana Mizrahi, also own Royal Cafe and Creperie, a family-run restaurant on Matthews Station Street in Matthews, where the team focuses on fresh, simple ingredients and quality coffee and teas. 

“Certain things shouldn’t be overcomplicated,” Mizrahi-Botero said. “Uncomplicated, unpretentious. Why would you need to complicate a crepe? It’s meant to be a simple food that you can take with you on the go, and that’s it.

“It’s what we’ve done here and it’s what we’re trying to do in the new space.”

Local craft beer and European wines will also be served. Crema staff will work to pair appropriate crepes with spirits (beer and cheese crepes, anyone?).

Coffee and espresso drinks will feature area roasters Boquete Mountain Coffee in Charlotte, Black Powder Roasting Co. in Mooresville and Crossroads in Waxhaw. Crema will also offer about 30 varieties of looseleaf herbal teas. 

The café will provide seating for 25-30 patrons, with a community table along one wall and outside seating available. Local artists’ work will be displayed with strategically placed mirrors, allowing art to be enjoyed from multiple angles. 

Breakfast crepes will be served all day, including fresh, farm-to-table, regionally sourced ingredients. Pastries will be handmade and hand-baked and will include small, richly-flavored cakes, fruit tarts and mousses. 

Mizrahi-Botero grew up with her grandmother’s crepes every morning in Russia before she and her mother moved to the United States in 1995, not long after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Mizrahi-Botero’s dad and grandparents joined them in 1998.

“To me, personally, it’s not just crepes and it’s not just business,” she said. “It’s a tradition I want to keep going as long as I can.

This story was originally published September 22, 2017 at 12:00 AM with the headline "New European-inspired café to open in Dilworth in October."