Customer Reviews

13-inch Krampouz Tibos Electric Crepe Maker

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After 6 months of Sunday Crepe breakfasts for the family I now regularly get excellent Crepes (almost) with this Crepe maker without resorting to the professional Krampouz. As usual you have to practice, practice, practice.

Here are a few recommendations:
Ditch the plastic crepe helper. It's similar to the foaming helpers in Espresso machines, it gets total novices over the initial contact hump but quickly stops you from making any decent progress with the product (Crepe). The tool creates a messy experience and creates uneven crepes.

Second ditch the scraper. It's very hard to get good crepes if you prefer the very liquid kind of dough (which I like). Instead get a round Birchwood scraper. They tend to be larger as well ( 8 inches or so). The round surface allows you to evenly spread the dough ( AMAZON sells them )

Third ditch the spatula. It's simply to short. If you make a real crepe, a really thin crepe the provided spatula will just pierce through the crepe when you lift it to turn or take off the crepe maker. I got a 23 inch Birchwood spatula and am very happy with it.

Fourth: There is no magic to crepe if you follow my advice, use this great crepe maker and practice, practice, practice. I use a simple crepe recipe. You need to play with the temperature and times a bit. My crepes are done within 50s on the first side and 30s for the other side. Experiment and watch videos on the internet.

I bought this in July 2009 for a Bastille Day party - it was a huge hit! I practiced a few days before the party and couldn't have been happier. Thought it was a little pricey, but has proven to be worth every cent. Fist crepe or two will be a mess, but just keep trying. MAJOR improvement from just using a frying pan. The flat surface allows you to make larger and thinner crepes. We do not use the pre-measured well or scoop. We do use the wooden tools that are included and that is all you need, I just pour an amount in the middle and can eyeball the correct amount. Then I quickly spread with the wooden t-shaped tool to spread the batter evenly. Watch YouTube videos of crepe making to get the process down. We do not grease our surface before cooking b/c I use a recipe from the internet that contains melted butter and nothing ever sticks. This item cooks EVENLY and I use setting 3 for my crepes - other setting cook to fast for me. I do not use the included recipe book, but they do look good. I typically make my mix in the blender and it keeps for 48 hours, allowing me to whip out a crepe for breakfast and dinner 2 days in a row. I also like to cook one side, then flip, then crack an egg on top of the cooked side, let it cook for 1 or 2 minutes, then flip again and add cheese with enough time to melt and then fold and serve. Got this idea from YouTube video of a pro crepe maker. Ignore videos of crepe makers that are not on the street cooking crepes in front of customers - the other videos are a huge waste of time! Long and short of it - GREAT investment for your kitchen!! I even take mine on vacation to the beach! Enjoy!

I have used this product twice and I am very impressed with the uniform cooking of this Crepe maker. The large 13" nonstick surface makes perfect crepes everytime... no more throwing out the first crepe! The plactic spreading device makes it easy to evenly spread the batter for beginners. The crepe maker is much more substantial than the picture shows, in my opinion. I found the suggested thermostat settings a little too hot causing the crepes to brown too quickly but, after lowering the temperature, I was knocking out multiple banana/Nutella crepes in a matter of minutes. The results are much more like the crepes I got in Paris than ones I've made in a crepe pan.

I took my wife to Paris for her birthday and one of the highlights of the trip was the savory crepes, particularly the Breton masterpieces they serve at Breizh Café. We're back and she wanted me to recreate Paris-style crepes.

Finding the right pan was difficult. Most of the pans I looked at were too small. At 13 inches, the Tibos certainly doesn't fall into that category. The price made me wince, especially for something a certain TV chef would refer to as a "uni-tasker." Ultimately, however, it's worth the price to do it right.

Let me say I love this crepe maker. It's easy to use and makes crepes quickly and of the size needed to duplicate the savory galettes you find in France. The surface heats quickly and evently. So far we've made both traditional buckwheat crepes with raclette de savoie, pancetta, and crème fraiche and also sweet crepes with Nutella (of course).

Other reviews here mention ditching the accessories and I concur with those opinions; they're fairly worthless. Take the time to learn to use a crepe rake, it will pay off. Also, the ladle is just a tad too small to make a full-size crepe; an extra tablespoon helps significantly. Another quibble would be the design of the heating indicator light. Some crepe batter will inevitably launch over the side during the learning process. For some reason, the light is recessed, making it a magnet for semi-cooked batter which is nearly impossible to clean out. Making the light flush to the base would easily solve this problem.

Aside from these minor issues, however, the crepe maker itself is the best I've seen, and I did a lot of research. It's not as good as being in Paris, but it certainly goes a long way toward recreating memories.

Ever since a first visit to France, we've been trying to find the perfect home crepe maker and for us this is it. The directions are very specific and should be followed to the T, with one exception: the included measuring cup for batter is not quite big enough and a touch (maybe about 2-3 Tbsp.) more batter needs to be used for each crepe. Also, when you start the spreading action, it tells you that it needs to be completed in 4 seconds and this is true! You must be really quick. Our favorites are strawberries and nutella and for savory, fried egg (which can be done right on the crepe maker prior to making your crepe), spinach, mushrooms and shredded cheese.

The best crepe maker at a fantastic price! - The only suggstion I have for other customers is, contrary to the instructions recommending setting '5', I have found '4' to be the best to work with as it'll give you more time to spread the crepe mix into a perfect circle.

Nothing makes crepes easier to eat and enjoy than this product. No more waiting for the batter to cook in the crepe pan and getting some uneven results. The Tibo crepe maker will make a perfect crepe in less than a minute. The recipe book that comes with it is fun and easy to work with. I couldn't be happier with this device.

We bought this crepe maker to make a few crepes as an additional product for our vending business. We averaged a couple dozen in a half a day since it wasn't the main product. It worked OK the first time but then it just shut off. After it cooled off, it worked again but we tried it another day and it shut off again. I know it's not made for commercial use but I didn't expect it to shut off after only being turned on less than a couple hours. Just know that this is for home use and probably won't be turned on that long so it will should be OK for the average user.

That being said, it's a nice crepe maker. It has kind of a Teflon coating so the crepes don't stick. It doesn't take very long to heat up. Crepes cook a bit too fast so if you want to put Nutella, fruit or other ingredients in the crepe while it's on the crepe maker you'll have to hurry putting them on to heat them up before the crepe burns. Crepes made with this machine are definitely better than ones made with the cheap makers you find in the common stores.


Pros:
1. Nice large surface. 4 oz of batter will make a full size 13" crepe.
2. Cooking surface in non-stick. Easy to pull the crepe off.
3. Not heavy so it's easy to move and store.
4. Uses normal 110 electricity and 12 amps so it won't throw a breaker in most American homes.


Cons:
1. Settings are not realistic. Highest setting is 8 but if I put it higher than 2 the crepes burn. Cooks a bit fast even at that setting.
2. Can't leave it turned on for very long because it gets too hot and shuts off.
3. Tools that come with it are next to worthless. Buy the wooden dowel spreader (on Amazon). That's what the pros use and as long as you drag it through the batter and not try to push the batter, they work great, creating a perfect round crepe.

This is a good quality appliance - and in spite of the price - I think it is well worth it. Its made by a company that builds "restaurant" crepe machines - and they have got it figured out.
Its great for when you have company over (especially with kids) who love to construct their own crepes.
The thermostat setting on 3-4 is perfect and it heats up within a couple minutes.
It comes with the little "wood" instruments to spread the batter - and to flip it over. There is also a little receipe book with a lot besides crepes (tortillas, etc..)
The only accessory that did not work well was the plastic "spreader" that is suposed to run in the grove around the edge of the griddle. Its supposed to deposit an even layer of batter, but perhaps it only works with thicker batter. With crepes that are fairly liquid - hmmm not so much.
A friend of mine has the same machine - and she makes crepes every week with this - and lots of them - she's had it a couple years and its holding up really well. I think its worth it ... give it a try.

The thing works great. Forget the plastic spreader gimmick -- just practice a little while with the wooden spreader & you'll get the hang of it. A better spreader is one made out of 5/8" dowel about 7" long with a 1/4" dowel drilled into it for a handle. I made one for myself, but you can buy them, too. Set it on about 4 or 4.5 at first to give yourself more time to spread the batter.