Best pizza in Brussels? Sì!

When it comes to pizza, there's been one clear resto at the top of my list for the last 4 years: Cosi Com'è. I was first taken there within about a month of arriving in Brussels - one of our Bruxellois friends introduced it to us as "the best pizza in Brussels," and I have yet to find a place that proves him wrong.

Pizza is a hotly debated topic and my friends from New York could easily get into a knock-down-drag-out fight with my Italian friends over what qualifies as true pizza. All I know is that the huge, thin pizzas that come out (slowly but surely) from Cosi Com'è's ovens are tasty as hell. Ask for their red pepper oil to give your pizza a nice extra kick.

In my past few visits I've also discovered their excellent pastas - they aren't listed on the menu but they are displayed beautifully where you first walk in and are definitely worth a try (their Raviolis aux Cepes is my personal fave). For those of you who prefer take-out, Cosi Com'è boasts one of the weirder attractions of Brussels: an outdoor pasta vending machine. I've never tried it but I suspect all their dishes are better when they come from behind the counter, and for take-out purposes, just phone your order in ahead of time.

As for the people behind the counter, they do leave something to be desired when it comes to service. Never come to Cosi Com'è if you are on a tight schedule, and don't be afraid to gently remind the waitstaff when they forget to bring your drink or anything else you've asked for. The decor is nothing special - fortunately they have expanded their seating area to include a pleasantly lit basement room, but reservations are still very strongly recommended on any night of the week. Stay patient, and I assure you the food is worth the wait.

Let me know your suggestions for quality pizza in Brussels - it's the easiest thing in the world for vegetarians and I'd love some suggestions.

Cosi Com'è

Place de l’Altitude Cent, 3

1190 Bruxelles

Tel : 02/ 345 48 09

Closed Mondays and weekend lunchtimes - and watch out for an epic summer closing in July/August

Kosher Brussels: PilPel - CLOSED

First of all, Happy new year! I hope 2009 will bring peace, health and happiness to the world. It certainly promises to be an interesting year, starting with a fairly momentous event on January 20th...

But back to the real important things in life: vegetarian food in Belgium. While searching for a sardine recipe (apparently they are one of the 11 healthy foods you aren't eating), I stumbled on www.trinigourmet.com. Written by a woman who is half-Trinidadian, half-Jamaican, and Jewish, I figured I could not go wrong (I was right, her sardine pate was delicious). We got in touch and she asked whether there was much of a kosher restaurant scene in Brussels, so I figured I would post something in reply.

Brussels is indeed shy on kosher options, while Antwerp has no shortage of kosher eateries (for a few highlights, see the article I wrote for Flanders Today magazine). That's what an active, ultra-Orthodox community will do for you. But of the teeny bit Brussels has to offer, my resto of choice is PilPel.

Kosher food comes in three varieties: dairy, meat, and pareve (neither milk nor meat). The fourth category, treyf, covers all the non-kosher stuff. What's good about kosher establishments is that you have certain guarantees walking in; for example, a dairy restaurant will never have any meat products whatsoever. This can be a handy thing to know as a vegetarian. Moreover, if you're vegan, ordering something vegetarian in a meat restaurant is a pretty safe bet since there will be no dairy products for miles (but do watch out for eggs, which are pareve, and can appear in both meat and dairy restaurants).

But you didn't come here for a lecture on the laws of kosher eating.

PilPel (Hebrew for "pepper") is a meat restaurant, but a vegetarian can get by quite happily. For one, they have falafel. For two, they have a whole slew of salads that you can order one by one, or as a mixed assortment. This includes delicious hummus, as well as different combinations of eggplant, tomato, cucumber, carrot, beet, and more. Everything comes with warm, thin, happy pita bread. And of course the meat options open up many more doors, so it's a good choice for a simple meal when you're heading out with non-veggie friends.

Nothing fancy, but definitely yum, and although you're sitting in a mini-mall, the decor is actually quite pleasant (hint: make sure to check out the shape of the ceiling lights when you visit). They also have a shop in case you feel inspired to pick up some kosher food.

A word to the wise: non-Jews do not often realize the quantities associated with Jewish eating. The general thought process is "the Russians are coming!" In short, we have a deep-seated fear of expulsion, to be followed by starvation. You have been warned.

PilPel
Avenue De Fre 82 (De Fre Shopping Center)
Uccle 1180
Tel: 02-374-5300
www.pilpel.be
Open: Mon-Thurs lunch & dinner; Fri lunch; Sunday from 12pm-10pm

Vegetarian in Brussels: A One-Act Play

The following post will either read as a rant, or an offering of vegetarian humor, depending on your/my state of mind:

The other night, I was invited to a work dinner at the Brussels Food & Wine Academy. My invitation offered a slew of culinary options - gluten-free, shellfish allergy, nut-free, even Kosher, for God's sake. Given that I actually keep kosher, I knew better than to request that option (waaay too complicated to figure out unless you live it), but I thought "surely, I'm safe if I take vegetarian. Vegan for Gidon." Famous last words.

I will qualify all of the following by reminding you that I am not vegetarian, and Gidon is not vegan - but for the purposes of the Food & Wine Academy, they should have been planning for those cases. Therefore we reserve the right to condemn them.

The evening started innocently enough with passed hors d'oeuvres. The only ones we could eat were the vegetables, which a vegan couldn't dip into the Russian dressing (mayonaise = eggs). We cheated on our vegetarian/vegan guises by partaking of the smoked salmon.

We sat down to dinner and starters were served. Salad for Gidon - so far, so good. Scallops for me. Houston, we have a problem.

Scene: a restaurant. Vegetarian diner seated at table. Enter waitress, with scallops.

Diner: Excuse me, these are scallops.
Waitress: Yes.
Diner: I am vegetarian.
Waitress: Yes.
Diner: I don't eat fish.
Waitress: Oh. You are vegan.
Diner: No, I am vegetarian. I don't eat animals, and I don't eat fish.
Waitress: So you're vegan.
Diner: NO, YOU RAVING IDIOT! (throws chair at Waitress)

All of that was true except the last line - which may, in fact, be the most believable part of that conversation. Having been (in)appropriately reprimanded by my superiority-complex endowed waitress, my scallops were finally removed and replaced with a salad.

Forty seven hours later, our main dishes arrived. By this time, they had conveniently placed me in the "vegan" box, so Gidon and I both got a few spoonfuls of rice, 6 cooked mushrooms, and some baked jerusalem artichokes. I have no complaints with the quality of the food, just the size of the portions, since thus far they had provided us with enough food to starve a rabbit.

In short, we came home at midnight and made dinner. Oh, the humanity!

Mushrooms from heaven

I admit, I have a big ol' soft spot in my heart for Cafe des Spores. For one, it was the first interesting restaurant that Gidon and I discovered in Brussels - just because we lived in the neighborhood at the time and walked past it late one night, when its windows were all steamed up and we spontaneously decided to stop in for a late dessert. It quickly became the restaurant we took all our visitors to - my parents, his parents, my brother's wife's mother, you get the picture. As if all those happy memories and meals weren't enough, Gidon proposed to me at CdS almost two years ago. So I definitely get all warm and fuzzy just thinking about the place.

But don't let my warped sense of reality sway you - Cafe des Spores gets good reviews from everyone, as far as I can tell. From the vegetarian perspective, you'll be looking at three main ingredients: mushrooms, cheese, and wine. How could you go wrong?

Cafe des Spores, despite the (witty) name, is probably more about the wine than the food. I'm sorry to say that I know ashamedly little about wine, but I can say that everything I've ever had there has been exceptional. As for the food, it's a small menu, with a half dozen starters and usually 3-4 mains, of which 1 is almost always vegetarian. So you don't have a ton of choice, but neither does anyone else, and everything available to you is guaranteed to be delicious.

Two starters have stayed on the menu since our first visit, and are mandatory every time we go: oeuf cocotte (we've had it with cepes and last week with truffles), and blondes aux herbes - delicious light caps with herbs and garlic, often served up in a little escargot tray. These two are scrumptious and absolutely non-negotiable.

Then we fill in around it. Last week we added some delicious cheesy teeny raviolis topped with (more) truffles, and for the main, we got the fondue for two: a wheel of melty Mont D'Or, topped with a plethora of lightly cooked mushrooms. Last week they were also offering some special wines of "natural fermentation" and I - again, knowing nothing about wine - really enjoyed the Vouvray they suggested.

For dessert, the mushroom inspired dishes have been really special - creme brulee with cepes, and cepes ice cream - but last week the desserts were mushroom-free, so we settled for a delicious tiramisu featuring calvados instead of coffee. Only people who knew me in college can appreciate the humor of my enjoying anything made with calvados, but this was good.

We've been trying to make a date there for the last two months but kept calling too late. CdS absolutely requires a reservation, even on a weeknight. There are not many tables and they only seem to do one seating per night. You'll be charmed by the decor - lots of sleek black wood with some pointed lighting, and an open kitchen taking up a good third of the floor space on the ground floor. The chef is friendly and it's a treat to watch him at work, especially from upstairs with an aerial view - but watch out, it does get hot up there.

There's a reason this place has practically a cult following in town. If I haven't convinced you yet, go give it a try and you'll soon understand.

Cafe des Spores
Chaussée d'Alsemberg 103
1060 Saint Gilles
Tel. 02 534 13 03
http://www.cafedesspores.be
Closed Sunday, and lunch on Saturday and Monday. Reservations required.

The Mysteries of Triskell

I am pulling myself back from the brink of blogicide! Weeks of not posting… mea culpa, mea culpa. I hope to have some good restaurants in store for you (and me) in the coming weeks.

Today, I want to talk about Triskell. Triskell can be hard to find, in the sense that it is very poorly labelled. But so long as you know the address, you are in for a treat. At the corner of Avenue Brugmann and Rue Berkendael, there is a charming Breton creperie: Triskell. For those in the know, of whom I am not one, Triskell is (if I have understood correctly) the symbol of Brittany, and containing an interconnected triad.

This little restaurant deserves special mention for the quality of its service. Smiles all around; adamantly and pleasingly un-Belgian. As for the crepes, they have that nice buckwheat batter for the savory ones, and for veggies you have some nice cheeses, mushrooms, tomatos and so on to choose from. There’s some lovely dessert crepes, and delicious cider to wash it all down. Plenty to make a veggie (and your non-veggie friends) happy. The setting is cozy with big windows and soft lighting; an excellent place to hole up during the dark, cold Belgian winter. It’s simple and straight-forward, and makes for a lovely night out.

Triskell
Avenue Brugmann 150
1190 Forest
Tel. : 02.347.04.39 (Reservations not required but not a bad idea)

Shanti time

How many times have I thought about trying Shanti, only to wuss out, thinking it was too far away when there are so many good restaurants just a stone’s throw away from home? This past weekend, we boldly headed all the way to the ULB area for a quiet dinner at this vegetarian (really pescetarian) restaurant.

The décor definitely deserves a comment: fresh blue walls, plants and candles everywhere. It’s eclectic and comfortable and really has a lovely ambiance.

I stayed veggie, starting with a truly delicious salad topped with melty chevre. The dressing balanced out the flavors well, and things were off to a good start. Gidon opted for fish patties that were crispy and satisfying.

We switched gears to Indian for our mains. The vegetarian version for me – dahl, mixed vegetables, rice, raita, chutney, a papadum, and a deep fried banana. The last point seemed out of place but I’m no expert on Indian banana consumption; as for the rest it was a nice Indian concoction but next time I will probably leave the Indian food for specialty Indian restaurants and try something different chez Shanti. Gidon had some tandoori fish that was very nicely spiced and worth another trip. His also came with a papadum, rice, and more of the same chutney, which disappointed us both although he got a little more worked up about it.

Shanti doubles as a bio store so we’ll have to time our next visit for when that is open. This was one of the few vegetarian venues in Brussels that we hadn’t tried yet (not sure there are any left, actually), so I’m pleased to say that it ranks with the other few out there – very well.

Shanti
68 Ave Adolphe Buyl
1050 Ixelles
Tel. 02 649 40 96
Open Tuesday-Saturday for lunch & dinner

Made to Mesure

On Fridays I work from home, and I’m ashamed to admit that I often forget or can’t be bothered to make lunch. For now I’m trying to make lunch dates to ensure that doesn’t happen, which gave me a good excuse to try out Midi Sur Mesure, a salad bar at Bascule that I’ve passed many times on the tram.

If you’ve ever been to New York City, you know these joints: start by choosing a type of lettuce or pasta as your base. Pick and choose the ingredients, which are priced individually, and top it all off with a choice of dressing. The guy behind the counter tosses it up in a big bowl, adds up your total, and poof! Lunch.

Of course, in New York, being as it is America, the portions are a wee bit bigger than what Midi Sur Mesure offered. Even though I got several toppings – rucola with boiled egg, parmesan, croutons, and mushrooms – I definitely wasn’t full at the end of it. And naturally those toppings start adding up before you notice it. This one cost me about 7 Euros; believe it or not, some things are actually cheaper in New York.

To their credit, the salad was fresh and tasty and I still love this concept, but isn’t there anyone who can bring the price down a notch so I can get a real meal? And my message to whoever achieves this challenge: franchise.

Midi Sur Mesure
Two locations:
51, rue Archimède, 1000 Brussels
13, avenue Legrand, 1000 Brussels
Monday-Friday, 11h30-15h. Delivery supposedly available but I’ve never tried.
http://www.midisurmesure.com/FR/midisurmesure.html

(Thanks to Sarah for that scrummy salad photo!)