Opening a cafe had always been a dream for Mikhail and Nataliya Goryachev. When they finally got to a point in their lives where they had the chance, they made sure to do it right, spending months perfecting recipes and selecting decor before opening.

Originally from Russia and Ukraine, the Goryachevs have been living in the Greater Houston area since 2005. They opened Nyam Nyam Café on Mason Road at the end of August with the hope of bringing authentic Russian and eastern European cuisine to Cypress.

The eatery’s menu is focused mainly on crepes, a type of pancake Mikhail said can be customized in an infinite number of ways. Almost all the crepes on Nyam Nyam’s menu can be bought for less than $10.

“It’s such an interesting concept,” he said. “You can have a crepe for every meal, from breakfast to dessert, and they’ll all taste different. As a chef, you can go in any direction.”

Almost everything at the cafe—including priozhki, a Russian baked good similar to kolaches—is made from scratch on-site. The family-run restaurant is true to traditional recipes, which were handed down from Nataliya’s grandmother.

“We Skyped with her from Ukraine so she could teach us step-by-step how to make the dough,” Nataliya said. “We practiced for months before opening to perfect the recipes.”

A selection of USDA-certified organic coffees are also available from various parts of the world, including Peru, Mexico and Italy. Coffees are always made fresh using purified water, Mikhail said.

The owners said they are constantly experimenting and coming up with new items to add to the menu, including gourmet options. A tres leches cake, made from an original recipe, was added as a dessert in September.

Mikhail also introduced two new gourmet crepes in September: a roasted duck crepe made with fresh apples, plums, apricots and a peanut butter coconut sauce; and a grilled strip steak crepe with hollandaise sauce.