Bagels a la Flanders Today, with a side of pastrami

As some of you may know, when I'm not writing blog entries, I sometimes spend time writing for Flanders Today - a free newsweekly covering Flanders and Brussels. Up to now I've mostly covered arts and some "human interest" pieces, but in today's issue I'm branching out to an area close to your hearts: food!

Flanders Today is featuring a regular column called "bite" which I'll be contributing to. Today's article, written by yours truly, covers bagels in Brussels. I introduce Au Pays Des Merveilles (seen previously on this blog) as well as Sens near Place Chatelain - a must visit. Sens has terrific bagels, vegetarian options, and even kosher meat, as well as pastrami that some say is the best in town (I haven't eaten it, but people's reactions do indicate that it's worthwhile for the carnivores out there). Whatever toppings you take, the bagels will transport you straight back to New York. Read my article here and then go check them out!

Meanwhile, may I recommend that you also subscribe to Flanders Today while you're at it - it's a good read, and did I mention it's free? You can sign up for your weekly copy here: http://messagent.vummail.be/optiext/optiextension.dll?ID=eOfmIenerZmeee8

Happy bageling!

Sens
Rue Armand Campenhout 62
1050 Ixelles
Tel. 02 850 66 24
Open Monday to Saturday, 7:30 to 18:30

Bagel Wonderland

As part of my professional life, I work part-time for the International Jewish Center (IJC) where I get to answer all kinds of fun questions. By far my favorite was an email that came in a couple of years ago: "Hi, I just moved to town and I'm looking for a place where I can buy a good bagel." To those of you out there who hearken from New York, Montreal, or other important points in the world of bagel geography, I can already hear the resoundingly sarcastic "Good luck!"

So it was certainly an exciting moment when I discovered that PilPel (a shop/restaurant which has already been reviewed on this blog) carries frozen H&H bagels. New Yorkers, eat your heart out. But recently, I heard about Au Pays des Merveilles ("Wonderland", as in, "Alice in"), a little bagel restaurant/coffee shop in St Gilles. Whereas most Belgians seem to think that a bagel is just a roll with a hole in the middle, APDM at least gets the bagel concept a little more accurately, if not exactly up to North American standards.

I felt obligated to go with the classic: cream cheese and lox. A bit of criticism here: for one, APDM actually has a section on their menu called "classics" - and cream cheese and lox does not make the cut. More to the point, don't get your hopes up for lox; smoked salmon was all that was on offer, although I've come to expect that in this bagelly-hopeless country. (For those who don't know, lox is not smoked and has a salt content high enough to harden your arteries just by looking at it.) I was happy to see that they were generous with the "schmear" (i.e. cream cheese), and the service gets two thumbs up for friendliness.

APDM's bagels come in from Amsterdam, and I'm glad they make the trip. These certainly beat the other "bagels" on offer around town (perhaps with the exception of those frozen H&H beauties, but the fresher the better so I'm about 50/50 on this one). Also the tea, coffee, and hot chocolate selection makes this place a surefire destination for a Sunday brunch. Clearly other people agree, since the small and adorably decorated seating area was full up by 11:30am last Sunday morning, and there was no shortage of people lined up for takeout.

The bagel conundrum remains, but give APDM a try.

Au Pays des Merveilles

42 avenue Jean Volders

1060 Saint-Gilles

Tel. 0488 476 826

http://www.apdm.be/

Open 7/7! Mon-Fri from 9h-18h; Sat-Sun from 10h-19h

Belgium's Latest Export

No Belgian food blog can consider itself complete without a trip to Le Pain Quotidien. Not only are they all over Brussels, they are now all over the world. Does this make them more special or less special? Either way, their Belgian outposts serve up tasty sandwiches and salads, and an excellent selection of juices, teas and coffees.

PQs always include a big communal table, part of their philosophy but not something I’ve ever connected with. What I do enjoy is all the light shades of wood, the well-lit dining areas, and (often) a garden or some sort of outdoor eating area that can brighten up just about any gloomy Brussels day.

My favorite menu item I find is best for sharing: the Tuscan platter. Ricotta, parmesan shavings, sundried tomatos, tapenade, and more, all served up with a basket of bread… delicious. Make sure to ask for it without ham, and sometimes they will even be nice enough to add a little extra cheese to make up the difference. Their selection of tartines and salads gives vegetarians plenty to get excited about, although the salads in particular will cost you a pretty penny (eurocent?).

Also, they are open for Sunday brunch. It’s no diner, but if you’re American and missing that Sunday morning food-fest with your newspaper, it’ll do the trick.

Le Pain Quotidien
Various locations in Belgium and beyond:
http://www.lepainquotidien.com/storelocator.htm