Belgium

belgium. part two.

food-wise, i had an enriching time in belgium aka i hardly went hungry.. but i will only go through the more memorable dishes.

our first meal at "boat quay" was supposedly quintessentially belgian. we shared everything to make the most out of variety- mussels in white wine, accompanied by frites (fries); medium rare steak; scampis (prawns) in olive oil. i like the seafoody contrast with something saltish.. but don't forget, i love my ruffles potato chips with vanilla ice cream.. i know pairing mussels and fries is such a chalk and cheese combination but it strangely works! though aizhen thought the white wine was on the thin-side, i had no complains as this was my first time with belgian food so there wasn't any basis for comparision.

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another notable meal was at brugge where we had the canarda l'orange (breast of duck), fried scampi in garlic and flemish beef stew. i enjoyed the duck tremendously.. though the duck was thickly cut, skilled culinary skills retained its tender and juicy texture.. the fried scampis were delightful with a good crunch and the garlic olive oil dressing made for good frites dipping. the flemish beef stew was supposedly the restaurant's claim to fame and special because it was stewed with beer. however tasty, it was a little uninspiring and the taste beer did not pull through.. in fact, eating it made me miss homemade ox-tail stew.

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our best meal was a recommendation from yvonne's tutor- restaurant vincent along rue de dominicans. to be honest, there was a good deal of relief when i found myself staring into a french menu as this could only mean that they catered to locals and regulars.. but it wasn't difficult to decide as our waiter recommended a baked mussel dish and scampi croquettes. i didn't try the baked mussels which with a layer of melted cheese, looked terribly inviting but i enjoyed the scampi croquette which was creamy on the inside and thinly crisp on the ouside. i think there's a very fine line between tasty and incredibly good croquettes and this definitely qualified as 'incredibly good.'

dessert was involuntarily suggested by our waiter and we had their signature crepe vincent and vanilla ice cream with belgian chocolate on the side. the crepe was amazingly delicious- the texture was dead on and the pineapple rings & almond flakes gave a tropical twist but the beauty of it cremebrulee-like laquer surface which constrasted marvellously with the soft crepe beneath.

if you thought lunch was over, think again. having used up all my tummy space for the fresh baguettes and frites, i had to decline.. but aizhen and yvonne gamely shared a steak, flavoured by green peppercorn and by the looks of, was thoroughly enjoyed by the duo.

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i had belgian waffles at least twice in belgium.. mind you, there are two types of waffles found in belgium- 1. brussels waffel which is a symmetrically rectangular and slightly blander in taste, compared to 2. the liege waffle, which is roundish and sweeter. it is impossible to fault the belgian waffles as they taste sooo good and the luxurious aroma often hits you unsuspectedly, activating your saliva ducts and working your mind into a state of desire, even before you actually see one.

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belgium is undoubtedly the chocolate capital of the world and judging by the chocolatiers and chocolate houses that line their main street, i got the feeling that there was a religious zealor to preserving its existence. godiva, leonidas, neuhaus.. from nutella at breakfast to chocolate squares served with the bill, i nibbled on so much chocolate it honestly felt like being on an addiction. and andi, since you are reading this, i hope you enjoy the rest of the chocolates!