GOOD GAME, GOOD GAME

After the extraordinarily long mild and dry spell,  mid November it turned chill and damp, and it was time for a long overdue ladies' lunch and catch-up with Aunty Marianne.  I like going for lunch with Aunty as I get to walk down the lovely Avenue Lambeau, ablaze with colour as the dying cherry trees made their last hurrah for the year.  Aunty greeted me with a choice of gin and tonics - Hendrick's, or Gordon's Crisp Cucumber.  I sipped a bit of each, and decided on the Gordon's which really did taste of cucumber.  We watched with some amusement Othello the cat watching the telly for a while, before heading out to eat.  Aunty used to rather favour Le Lido at the bottom of Avenue Georges Henri by the park gates, but was mortified to find on her last visit that the new management had installed TV SCREENS.   The horror, the horror.  When you dine out with Aunty, you know you'll be going somewhere Proper.    She told me we were going to the Heisenberg, which rather threw me, having recently watched "Breaking Bad".   

The Heydenberg, as it turned out to be called, is a rather staid looking Belgian/French brasserie on the corner of Avenue Heydenberg and rue de Décembre, opposite the De Baere bakery.  On a Sunday lunchtime in November a few tables were occupied by ancients, average age about 95.  Our arrival brought the average age down to about 75.   Aunty was greeted effusively by the nice lady manageress, who is used to seeing Aunty with The Bloke, but was happy to accept me as a substitute, even though I don't flirt as much as he does apparently.

Croustillant de Brie

For starters we both had Croustillant de Brie (Brie deep-fried in filo pastry) drizzled with honey and sprinkled with pine nuts and walnuts. I was delighted to see from the specials blackboard outside the restaurant that the game season had arrived, and the weekend special was Steak de Chevreuil (roe deer steak) with girolle mushrooms and fruits of the forest.    Aunty went for the marcassin (baby wild boar) with similar edible decoration.   Both dishes were served on a white rectangular plates with a quite delicious gamey gravy and liberally sprinkled with redcurrants, raspberries  prunes and figs.   Which reminded me we were nearly out of loo roll. 


The meat was beautifully cooked and quite tender, which surprised me, as my earlier experiences with game, during my time with the late Major, convinced me that venison can be quite tough.  Of course back then we used to buy our Christmas meat from a bloke round the back of the pub who would only take cash, which may have had something to do with it.

Wild boar in seasonal garnish

Roe deer steak with similar seasonal garnish

A half-litre of the house white with the starter didn't last long, and was swiftly followed by a half-litre of the house red.  For pudding I had the individual home-made Tarte Tatin with chantilly and vanilla ice cream (I know - give me a break, it was Sunday) and Aunty had the crepes with vanilla ice cream.   Her Atkins regime has fallen by the wayside recently, and I was lucky to catch her in between bouts of self-discipline.      
Besides the specials, The Heydenberg also does a standard menu of meat, fish, pasta and light dishes such as omelette and croque monsieur, as well as desserts, and children's dishes.  It has big plate glass windows on two sides through which to survey the denizens of Woluwe St Lambert going about their Sunday constitutional to the bakery or the park.

The bill came to almost exactly 100 euros for two.   Not cheap, but not beyond the price range of two Grandes Dames either.   And it's not often you can hand over fifty smackers without a twinge of regret.  It was altogether the most tasty, satisfying meal I have had in a long time (and I can't fault the company either).  The ladies toilets are nothing to write home about, but clean and the lock on the door works.  It is an entirely unpretentious, down-home, quiet family restaurant, with no tellies.  

Those old crones know a good deal when they see one. 

I give the Heisenberg four stars:  like Walter White*, I'll be back.

Brasserie Heydenberg
Avenue Heydenberg 17
1200 Woluwe St Lambert
Open 7 days a week, lunchtime and evenings




*I think that's who I mean.  I'm afraid I fell asleep on the sofa before the end.
 

JAMON JAMON PT.1: HAMMING IT UP IN ANDALUSIA

I did not write up the trip to Andalusia last November, since due to the top-secret nature of the mission, I did not have a chance to explore the region's culinary heritage to the extent I would have liked, but I did find a number of places where you can eat on a budget.    The places that impressed me most were the comfort stops just off the motorway, which were fabulous - with hand painted tiles, and counters piled high with all manner of home-made foods.  Watford Gap or South Mimms will never have the same appeal.

Spanish transport caff

Spanish food can be about grande cuisine, but do not overlook the smaller meals - breakfast, snacks, aperitifs.   The coffee in Spain is the best in the world, in my humble opinion (turns down sound of Italians protesting) - a Spanish breakfast of caffe con leche, freshly-squeezed zumo de naranja and a pastry comes a close second to the Full English.  

On my return, I was keen to find out where you could eat good Spanish food here in Brussels.  I had to go no further than the end of my road, where I found not one but two excellent little Spanish hostelries sitting together like a pair of castanets:  Casa Miguel and Los Amigos de Aragon.   They are tucked into place des Gueux, the point where rue Franklin meets rue des Patriotes, about 5 minutes' walk from Schuman roundabout, and the triangular cobbled area in front of the restaurants serves as a communal terrace, smoking area, outside bar and overspill when Real Madrid are playing Barça.  Sometimes people will be sitting down at tables eating with cutlery, sometimes they'll be crammed in standing up eating tapas off the bar, you take it as you find it. Both restaurants serve a great selection of tapas, and can do you a paella to order for a group.     We had a group session there recently and were served two tapas each, an excellent seafood paella and a huge selection of desserts for 25 euros a head, wine not included.  

At Sainte Catherine a new quite upmarket Spanish restaurant has opened, Le Fourneau Ibérique, serving "gastronomic tapas" and "new Iberian cuisine".  At lunchtimes you can choose 3 tapas for 19 euros.   A la carte dishes cost between 6 and 11 euros in tapa size, and 12 to 20 euros in racion size.   To impress your friends, you can book the whole restaurant and the chefs will dress you up in whites and put you behind the serving hatch as if you had prepared the whole meal. 

Tapas Locas is not far from the Ancienne Belgique and a great place for an after-show bite to eat.  It's a young crowd,  inexpensive tapas and typically speedy Spanish service.

Bar a Tapas in the trendy St Géry district offers some reasonable combos at lunchtime, a wide selection in the evening and private rooms for parties. 

Basque food is reputedly the best cuisine in Spain.  ComoComo on trendy rue Dansaert specializes in Basque pintxos, or tapas, served in yakitori style on a moving conveyor belt.  A bit expensive for tapas but tasty and unusual dishes.   One for los hipsteros.

If you want something a bit more upmarket, La Cueva de Castilla sits on place Collignon close by Schaerbeek town hall. With awards from Gault & Millau 2006 and Michelin Guide 2008, and valet parking, it's not a tapas bar.  There's a 3-course formula for 44 euros, not including wine. You're as likely as not to find the Bourgmestre of Schaerbeek entertaining guests there.

The area around the Gare du Midi is traditionally where Spanish and Portuguese immigrants settled, and there are dozens of small Iberian restaurants and shops which are a closely guarded secret to those in the know.  The Economato Espanol is a Spanish grocery store in the shadow of the Pensions Tower which is open every day but does a particularly roaring trade on Sundays when it finds itself in the middle of the sprawling Midi market.  As soon as the weather is warm enough, people will be standing at the outside tables drinking Estrella and discussing Valencia's chances in the Liga de Campiones.  This is where I buy my olive oil.  I am ferociously faithful to Spain when it comes to olive oil, it's smooth and buttery, without that bitter aftertaste you often get with Italian oils.  (There'll be a contract out on me by now with the Italian olio mafia).   My favourite brand is Carbonell Extra Virgen, at 8 euros a litre, but other brands in the same price range are just as good, such as Hojiblanca.  

You can also buy your Spanish olive oil, lomo, and other Iberian goodies from Productos Espanoles Mediterranea on the Chaussée de Louvain, just up from Place Dailly,  Sabores de Espana on Rue Archimède on the corner of place Ambiorix, or Espana Calidade and Casa Tella in St Gilles.


There will be more jamon jamon in the New Year after my Winter in Majorca with Gorbals Chopin.  Hopefully I'll have some good addresses to recommend. Meanwhile, rattle your castanets to this.





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Los Amigos de Aragon / Casa Miguel, 1 & 2 place des Gueux    02 734 1447 / 02 735 4100
Le Fourneau Ibérique, place Sainte Catherine 8       02 513 10 02
Tapas Locas, rue du Marché au Charbon 74   02 502 12 68
Bar a Tapas, Borgwal 11, 02 502 66 02
ComoComo, rue Antoine Dansaert 19     02 503 03 30

La Cueva de Castilla, place Collignon 14, 1030 Schaerbeek  02 241 81 80
Economato Espanol, Esplanade de L'Europe 9, Saint-Gilles

Casa Tella, Chaussée de Waterloo 23, Saint-Gilles
Productos Espanoles Mediterranea, Chaussée de Louvain 446, Schaerbeek
Sabores de Espana,  rue Archimède 66 (closed Sunday)
Espana Calidade, avenue de la Porte de Hal 63, St Gilles