A new café has opened its doors on the edge of campus near Earl and Division Steets, and it is betting on a simple model of good food, made fresh, every time.
Crepe & Cup opened on Sept. 4 at 61 Division St. in the space previously occupied by Grabbies Bistro, a vegetarian focused restaurant that relocated from the spot in June 2026. The new café serves crepes, waffles, coffee, smoothies, and milkshakes daily from 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The menu is centered around customization, with customers able to build their own crepe or waffle with a range of sauces including Nutella, caramel, white chocolate, and pistachio.
The location on Division Street has seen more than one business struggle before Crepe & Cup arrived. The owner, Hisham Tarshishi, said this history was what motivated him to take it on.
“Multiple businesses have attempted to open here over two years,” Tarshishi said in an interview with The Journal. “For me, it was a challenge. I wanted to show that it’s going to work,” he said, citing student pricing, quality of food, and appealing to student life.”
He added that the business is personal to him. A Kingston resident for two decades, he said he has other businesses to fall back on, but this one is about proving something to himself and to the city he has called home for 20 years.
He knew that opening near a university at the start of the school year can be a gamble. The first few weeks of September bring thousands of students back to Kingston, a group who can power entire blocks of the local economy while school is in session.
The location on the intersection of Division and Earl Street puts Crepe & Cup in a unique and competitive part of Downtown Kingston, surrounded by other restaurants and cafés all fighting for the same student population. The spot hopes to succeed with a unique menu, highlighting crepes and waffles as their primary options.
The hours have been designed around students as well, staying open until 10 p.m. seven days a week.
What makes Crepe & Cup different from other establishments operating in the area, Tarshishi said, comes down to the care and effort on every item on the menu.
Tarshishi said he spent months perfecting every item on the menu before opening in September, from sourcing the right coffee beans and developing the crepe recipe with inspiration taken from friends in France and Lebanon.
“For smoothies, we use real fruit, no shortcuts,” he said, “I wanted to get it exactly right.”
The response has been encouraging, according to Tarshishi.
“We’ve been getting a good amount of customers since opening, and we’re happy with the response so far,” Tarshishi said. “We’re still a new business, so we’re working on building our customer base.”
To reach students, Tarshishi said the café plans on utilizing social media, primarily Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. They also plan on developing student specials and promotions to build connections with the Queen’s community.
In a community that runs on student funds and word of mouth, Crepe & Cup’s first semester might determine whether the corner of Earl and Division has found its staple café.
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