Belgium or Brooklyn? 5 Bold new eateries in Brussels.
Brussels, long the realm of stuffy French restaurants full of diplomats in gray flannel suits, has suddenly become bold and cheerful. Thanks to a group of young chefs with iconoclastic ideas about taste and sustainability, the city, which has been captivated by Gaul’s rich sauces for almost two centuries, has become one of the most exciting and affordable places to eat out in Europe. now.
These exciting talents are transforming the city’s old-fashioned bistros and cafés with spices from places like Korea, Latin America and Morocco, “putting a vibrant modern twist on homely local comfort food dishes,” explains Michel Verlinden, a Brussels food writer and restaurant. critic for Le Vif, a major Belgian weekly magazine. At the same time, they make optimal use of local products such as cabbage, carrots, endive and, of course, Brussels sprouts.
Brussels may be the capital of Europe, but gastronomically it feels more like Brooklyn or Marseille. Casual, creative and multicultural, it’s a city that’s equally at home with bulgogi and duck breast – even together in the same dish.
Here are five Brussels restaurants worth a visit.
Anju
Many of the most interesting new restaurants in Brussels cannot be found in Brussels Ilot Sacréthe expensive heart of the city, but also in suburbs Saint-Gillesan evolving but still more affordable area favored by young creatives.
This explains why the chef Sang Hoon Degeimbre selected this area Anju, a new local favorite that explores its roots. Mr. Degeimbre was born in South Korea, but was adopted as a baby by a Belgian family. “Anju” is a Korean word that means food you eat while drinking alcohol. In addition to rice wine and Soju, Anju also offers a “sour Korean” beer, brewed for the restaurant by the Brussels brasserie Illegalalong with a great list of natural wines.
In the minimalist, taupe-colored dining room with K-pop illustrations on the walls, that means hearty comfort food. If starters like pajeon – pancakes stuffed with chopped vegetables and kimchi – or stir-fried octopus tentacles are impressively Korean, the technical skill of Mr. Degeimbre’s team adds an element of Belgian haute cuisine to main courses like Samgyetang (chicken in hot ginseng broth with rice and jujube) and duck breast bulgogi.
Desserts also nod to Brussels: Bingsu, a milk-based shaved ice, is topped with speculoos cookies from House Dandoya bakery from 1832, or hazelnut praline from the famous Belgian chocolatier Pierre Marcolini.
73 Rue de la Source, Saint-Gilles; entrees from 13 euros, or about $14; starters from €17.
Aster
Aster is a good example of how Brussels has left behind the delightful bourgeois decor that used to characterize the best restaurants. When you arrive at this former pizzeria, you immediately walk into the kitchen, where a balletic swarm of chefs led by the chef Túbo Logier buzzing around various grills. Most guests sit at a high refectory table under dangling light bulbs and eat and drink made from handmade ceramics instead of porcelain.
The largely plant-based and seafood tasting menu is served in a series of small plates, which change regularly. A recent dinner opened with an exciting five miniature hors d’oeuvres, including finely chopped North Sea squid in fermented tomato water, a mille-feuille of smoked eel and pickled celeriac, trout with horseradish and fig, a nest of fried julienne leek with a quail egg and small mussels with winter truffles. A surprisingly bright starter of red and yellow beets with cod eggs and beeswax preceded a poached oyster with cabbage and jus de petit lait – or whey – which offered a simple but brilliant confluence of milky flavours.
Another highlight was the langoustines prepared in three ways: roasted with an umami bomb condiment made from fermented vegetable scraps; in a milky broth with strips of clementine and sliced mushrooms; And chawanmushi (Japanese steamed egg custard) topped with meat and juices from the shell of the shellfish.
Mr. Logier’s creativity did not let up as the meal ended with two fascinating desserts: hazelnut ice cream with shaved Belgian blue cheese and apples stewed in seaweed, and a smoked white chocolate mignardise with sea bass eggs.
Antoine Dansaertstraat 202, Brussels; tasting menu, €80.
Klijn
You wouldn’t expect such a disarmingly friendly welcome amid the brutalist chic of artistic Brussels Dansaert districtbut that and the menu of contemporary Belgian comfort food Klijn may give you the feeling that you are in a rural inn.
Kline describes itself as “locally rooted and globally inspired,” which translates to dishes like Brussels sprouts, guacamole and braised pork belly with crispy chili sauce and kimchi. The pork is raised in a traditional way and fed with potato and corn feed, supplemented with olive oil and fresh hay, on a sustainable farm.
Starters such as crispy, round, fried ham croquettes filled with béchamel sauce and finely chopped Ardennes ham and beetroot chutney, with pumpkin seed crackers, are made for sharing. The starters are arranged under two headings: ‘Cold and fresh’ and ‘Hot and heavy’. The offering changes often, but can also include succulent dishes such as North Sea scallops with a carrot emulsion and Belgian saffron, and roasted mushrooms with salsa verde and white mole. The dessert recently included a baked Belle de Boskoop apple with Belgian buffalo mozzarella and miso, a challenging composition that did justice to the ‘Sweet and sour’ section on the menu.
162 Rue de Flandre, Brussels; starters from €9.70; starters from €9.80.
Nyyo
The son of Vietnamese immigrants, Linh Nam grew up in Liège and worked for Google in New York for seven years before returning to Belgium and opening Nyyo, a minimalist restaurant with cocoa-colored walls and rattan hanging lamps. The menu reflects the triptych of culinary influences in Mr. Nam’s life: Belgium, Vietnam and the United States.
The Belgians love steak tartare – they call it filet américain – which probably explains the popularity of the beef tai chanh served here, with the difference that this variation on the dish is flavored with a citrus vinaigrette, Vietnamese coriander, ground peanuts and a quail egg yolk. The bahn mi burger riffs on the sandwich with a slice of chicken liver pate and a beef patty in a toasted sesame brioche bun with aioli, house-made pickles, cilantro and a side of coleslaw, and in Linh’s Tacos, rice flour shells have an oyster mushroom filling seasoned with aioli, cilantro and scallion onion oil.
Finish with a Liège Ca Phe Café, an espresso shot with condensed milk, vanilla ice cream, cognac and cinnamon whipped cream – a sweet hybrid of Belgium and Vietnam.
38 Rue du Bailli, Ixelles; small plates from €10 to €19.
Clock
With its diversity of architectural styles, Brussels sometimes has the endearing atmosphere of an architectural thrift store.
That is also the case for Clockthe French chef Florent Ladeyn‘s airy restaurant with an open kitchen and large windows. Mr. Ladeyn is such an avid locavore that he has banned coffee (chicory is served instead), olive oil, lemons, chocolate, vanilla and almost every other ingredient not produced in Belgium or northern France.
The menu at this casual spot changes often, but can include starters such as sweet potato churros with crispy chili oil, sea snail croquettes, and Brussels sprouts with fried onions and mimolette cheese. As with many new restaurants in Brussels, vegetarians are well catered for, including a delicious main course of grilled turnips and celeriac with beets, black garlic and a Flemish chicory mole. Mr. Ladeyn’s regionalism is also reflected in other main courses, including quail à la Brabançonne – stewed with endive in kriek beer with sour cherry flavor – and roasted French Mont des Cats cheese with fermented honey.
Although many dishes resemble the hearty medieval food depicted on peasant tables Bruegel paintings, their quiet worldliness is a perfect expression of how Brussels likes to eat today.
Rouppeplein 10, Brussels; lunch: starters from €5.50, main courses from €14; dinner: fixed price only, €60.
Follow New York Times Travel on Instagram And sign up for our weekly Travel Dispatch newsletter for expert tips on smarter travel and inspiration for your next holiday. Are you dreaming of a future getaway or are you just traveling in an easy chair? Check out our 52 places to go in 2024.