The humble crêpe may not be the most obvious afrodisiac going, but at the hands of a good French chef, probably a misto quente could get the heart pumping for reasons other than slowly clogging arteries. And so it is at Le Blé Noir, where Alain Caro's touch of genius is liberally deployed to lift the filled, square parcels into realms previously unimagineable, and at prices rarely associated with the word 'pancake'.

The restaurant is certainly an intimate little affair, and given its reputation for candle light and couples, its difficult to stop the eye wandering over to other tables to see what's going on, who's getting lucky and who will be left with nothing more thana full stomach from their evenings efforts. With few tables, the chances of having to queue is increased the later you go, but once inside the stencilled walls add to the atmosphere, and in the restaurant's dark confines Copacabana really does feel a world away.

Made in the classic Brittany style with black flour (blé noir in French), the crispy crêpes have attracted a huge and loyal following, with ingredients like grilled shrimp, mushrooms and champagne in the Frehel (R$54) giving a big hint as to why. The goat's cheese with caramelised figs and Parma ham (R$52) is a knockout, and the chocolate-laden charutos (cigars) for dessert provide the perfect way to round off this little taste of northern France.