Chef Jean-Luc Wittner.
Reminder Publishing submitted photo
NORTHAMPTON — It was not initially in the cards for Chef Jean-Luc Wittner and his family to open a second creperie about an hour away from their original location, Suzette French Creperie & Café, on 126 Water St. in Worcester.
An eye-catching letter from Thornes Marketplace, a nice day visit to Northampton and Suzette’s growing popularity in the state convinced Wittner and his family to switch gears, however.
“I called Jody [Doele, the marketing manager from Thornes], and said ‘congratulations, you caught our attention,’” Wittner said, of the letter his family received from Thornes.
The French-born Wittner, along with his wife Evelyn Darling, will open the second location of their restaurant on the first floor of Thornes Marketplace at some point in mid-to-late November.
According to Wittner, the name of the second location will be Suzette French Creperie since they will not sell coffee in the Thornes restaurant, but the menu will still mirror a lot of the Worcester café’s signature options, like crepes, macarons and frozen to-go French delicacies such as beef bourguignon, chicken blanquette, riesling chicken or navarin d’agneau, which is lamb ragout.
“Other than the macarons, our specialty is basically French comfort food,” said Wittner, who added that he is a self-taught chef who embodies the spirit of Julia Childs, the legendary chef, author and television personality who is recognized for bringing French cuisine to the American public.
Wittner and Darling opened the Worcester café in 2020 in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, a period that Wittner said was difficult but one that they overcame.
“It was a very scary time period, but we survived that,” Wittner said.
After receiving that fateful letter from Thornes expressing interest in Suzette’s business for the marketplace, Wittner said his family took a day to visit Northampton to explore the city and its atmosphere.
It was that day where Wittner said his family fell in love with the marketplace and the owners.
“I saw the tiny place, like the first floor, almost right at the entrance, and I was like, ‘that’s interesting,’” Wittner said of the new location. “Marketwise and production, it just makes sense.”
Years before opening the restaurants, Wittner’s love for cooking grew exponentially while working as a sales manager in France when he would enjoy the home-cooked meals from his mom and grandmother, two major influences for his own cooking.
He moved to the United States in 2011 and honed in on his skills while working in the hospitality industry the Worcester restaurant nine years later.
“I always wanted to be my own boss; it’s just my personality,” Wittner said. “I needed to achieve something.”
According to Wittner, he will work in Northampton full time, at least at the start, and his two sons, Clement “Clem” Wittner and Marc Wittner will work in their own roles as the restaurant finishes the expansion. Currently, Clement is the general manager in Worcester, and Marc is chef de cuisine.
“We couldn’t be more pleased that Suzette French Creperie will be joining Thornes in November,” Doele said in a statement. “Jean-Luc and Evelyn have a well-established operation in Worcester, and we know that they will please the palates of many in downtown Northampton.”
Readers can learn more about the restaurants by visiting the website: suzettecreperie.com. The Northampton location is in Suite 130, where a flower kiosk used to reside. The business hours will be the same as Thornes Marketplace.
