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YUM - Food in Brussels [1]
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Date: 2023-08-11
We recently returned from a wedding in Brussels. It was wonderful, and the food was Great, even the express grocery food. A few recommendations, and a comparison to American food.
The wedding food prepared by a Turkish Chef was a mix of Armenian, Georgian and Thai food — very unusual, and very good, even for a person who prefers American comfort food. The Chef is from Thailand, but grew up in Turkey, and is now living in Belgium.
After the wedding, we stayed in Brussels for a few more days, and had wonderful dinners at a variety of restaurants.
Our top place was Taverne du Passage — a Brussels landmark venue. The dessert pictured above is phenomenal. No need for our delicious salmon dinner — just order the dessert, maybe two or three helpings.
Finding the restaurant is more of a challenge. It is located in the “Queen’s Gallery,” which naturally enough is adjacent to the “King’s Gallery.” They are in long, beautifully decorated, arcades lined with shops and restaurants. Finding the galleries isn’t too hard. They are in the Lower Town, near the Grote Market, which is the famous town square, and the immense St. Michael / St. Gudula Cathedral. Once inside, start searching, or get a good map of the galleries.
Next is a small, neighborhood, Italian restaurant, La Buca de Bacco, located in the Schaerbeek neighborhood. Getting there should be simple, but the tram line that goes past is being repaired, and it is a 20 minute walk from the St. Mary’s Church where the 92 or 93 tram lets you off. Of course, a taxi should get you there, but make sure you write out the address for the driver, as many of them primarily speak French. (Ubers were very good, but we avoid them due to Uber’s business practices. However, we have an older family member who thinks it is really cool to take Ubers.)
The restaurant is a throwback to the 20’s (the 1920’s, not the 2020’s), when diners got dressed up for dinner. Only the staff dresses up today. It reminded me of the Woody Allen movie, Midnight in Paris, when the screenwriter goes back in time to the 1920’s and 1890’s.
The food was delicious, and the prices reasonable, but not cheap. I had angel hair spaghetti with truffles, which was delectable. It you’re not a truffles fan, you can leave off the truffles, save about 10 Euros, and still have a wonderful dinner. The other diners had rigatoni with eggplant, zucchini & tomato, and burrata cheese on eggplant caviar. No desserts, as we were stuffed after the main course.
The last place is L’Ultime Atome, a popular, large bustling brasserie near Avenue Louise and Stephanie Circle, and located in a warren of streets. Prices are low to moderate. I had fish and chips Belgium style — a single, large, well battered, fried fish, with a basket of frites, i.e. Belgium “French Fries,” and nothing oily about them. (Don’t know why American restaurants can’t make oil free fries.) Others had eggplant with tomato & parmesan, and a veggie burger, all very good.
At all of these restaurants, the service was excellent.
The last place is the chain groceries. We went to two — a larger one (large for in the city), and a small express one. We got baguettes (multiple types to choose from) which lasted days instead of just 1 day; apricot preserves, bananas, utensils, and water. All the food items were delicious. We also bought 1.5 liter bottles of Spa water for 1 Euro, vs. 3 to 5 Euro’s for small half liter bottles elsewhere.
The disposable utensils were made of wood, which is also used on airplanes. Much, much better than plastic. Feels good to the touch, didn’t break, and can be recycled.
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Now to compare Brussels to American food. While we didn’t have any really cheap eats on this trip, we had them in a past trip to Brussels. They have all been good, unlike most American cheap eats, and many American moderate chain restaurants. What surprised me most was the apricot preserves, which were delicious despite being processed food. Nothing like most processed preserves found in the US groceries.
Don’t know why the food is so much better in Brussels than in the average American city — large, medium or small.
(Note: Belgium is composed of two large regions — Flanders in the north and Wallonia in the south. Two different language, cultures, and food — Dutch in the north and French in the south. Brussels is in the middle and supposed to be both, but most of the population speaks French. Because of this divide, this diary speaks only of Brussels food instead of Belgian food.)
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