Bite Of The Day: Japanese-Style Crepes And Thai Ice Cream Rolls At Fifty On In Sunset Park

It’s a rare thing to find an eatery that offers something truly unique to a neighborhood or to Brooklyn, but Fifty On Crepe House (472 49th Street), which opened just two months ago, is one of those things, not only because it sits between Fourth and Fifth Avenues instead of closer to Eighth Avenue’s hub of Asian and Asian-American cuisine, but also because it offers multiple popular dessert trends in one spot: Japanese-style crepes stuffed with savory or sweet items, shaved ice cream rolls, and homemade Thai ice cream.

The Japanese-style crepes ($5.50 to $7.50) are made of rice flour — making them naturally gluten-free — and stuffed with your choice of either sweets (stuff like chocolate, fresh fruit, yogurt, custard, nuts, and ice cream in multiple flavor choices) or savory (dubbed “salad crepes,” these options range from Thai Chicken and Tuna Mayo to Hot Dogs Or Black Forest Ham).

Our Matcha Strawberry crepe ($7.50) came layered with sliced strawberries, spoonfulls of red beans, custard cream, a scoop of matcha green tea ice cream, a few almond slivers, and chocolate-dipped Pocky sticks. The crepe itself is firm yet soft, like a blanket that envelopes the cool ice cream and tart fruits in your mouth. It holds up better than some other crepes we’ve tried in Manhattan and elsewhere, and the homemade (!) green tea ice cream retains a hint of the tea’s natural bitterness while being as sweet and refreshing as one imagines ice cream should be.

If you’ve never heard of rolled ice cream, you’re in for a treat. Wrap your mind around this: instead of letting the ice cream mixture firm up in a giant barrel stored in the freezer, you pour the mixture onto a frozen griddle, then scrape/roll the ice cream layer into rolls, which are then served immediately — vertically — in a cup that is then topped with your choice of fruit and candy toppings.

The concept made a splash last year in Manhattan’s Chinatown at a store called 10Below, and this is the first sighting we’ve had of it in Brooklyn. Boy are we glad to have it in our own backyard — easier access, equally delicious, and no ridiculous lines (at least not yet)!

Manager Ricky Chen explained that Fifty On’s desserts also stand out because the crepes are crispier than others and the ice creams are all homemade in-house. He also noted that the name “Fifty On” comes from the owner’s goal to eventually have branches in all 50 states.

Currently, the store offers 10 ice cream flavors, 10 sweet crepes, and 6 salad crepes. More flavors will come as summer progresses and brings its bounty.

Verdict: We are thrilled to have stumbled across this sweet gem right in our backyard and look forward to going here for lunch, dinner, dessert, or just a filling snack on-the-go!

Fifty On Crepe House
472 49th Street
Brooklyn, NY 11220
Open daily from 12-9:30pm
Naturally gluten-free