Father Matthieu Le Merrer, when he is not celebrating masses or weddings, dedicates himself to two passions: football and crepes. He used to be the captain of the football team Espérance sportive de Saint-Benoît in Saint-Benoît, Vienne. His other passion led him to create a mobile creperie, in the form of a food truck, named “Brother Truck.” With a play on words reminiscent of the monk friend of Robin Hood, this 39-year-old priest aims to “give back to the poor” through his crepes, inspired by his Breton origins.
Inaugurated in early April, Father Matthieu’s trailer sets up once a week – on either Wednesday or Sunday (after mass) – in the Trois-Cités neighborhood in Poitiers, in the parking lot of a bakery. Accompanied by a volunteer assigned to handle payments, Father Matthieu operates the spatula for four hours. Over two hundred crepes are made that afternoon, with classic butter and sugar crepes sold for 50 cents and homemade caramel crepes for 1 euro. An option to pay double the price is available on a signboard, in order to provide a meal to the less fortunate, following the concept of suspended coffee.
However, the purpose goes beyond just providing food, but also to engage in conversations with both believers and non-believers, through discreet evangelization efforts. Reflecting on the meaning of his priesthood when celebrating his 10th anniversary of ordination in 2022, Father Matthieu realized that what he enjoyed most about his ministry was unplanned encounters and discussions. Guided by Pope Francis’ encyclical Fratelli tutti from October 2020 on fraternity and social friendship, Father Matthieu, a son of a former sub-prefect from Trégastel, decided that a food truck would enable him to fulfill his dream of a church that is dynamic and reaches out to everyone.
It took two years to finalize the project, including creating an association, crowdfunding for the purchase of a refrigerated trailer instead of a truck, coming up with a name with the help of local scouts, developing a slogan “La crêpe pour tous”, adhering to hygiene standards, and obtaining approval from the Bishop of Poitiers. The heart of the project lies in fostering human connections and encounters, and Father Matthieu aims to bring people together through his mobile creperie. By venturing out of the confines of his church and reaching out to the community, Father Matthieu hopes to spread a message of fraternity and social solidarity through his crepes.
