Belgium Eats

We ate like kings in Antwerp.

On Friday night Kevin and I had dinner at one of the many cafes near the cathedral. I can't remember the name of the place, but the wood-burning stove drew me in. I anticipated that the food would not be great, thinking that it was more the location that got the crowds. I'm happy to report that I was wrong.

We shared an order of mussels. On all the menus in Antwerp they were offered three ways — natural, with white wine, and with garlic. We went for the garlic and were not disappointed. The mussels were plump and briny — honestly some of the best I've ever eaten. We also split an order of spare ribs, which I was surprised to find on many menus in the city. The spare ribs were also excellent with a slightly spicy, slightly sweet glaze that really hit the spot.

On Saturday night we ate at Het Vermoeide Model Restaurant. A bar and staircase so steep it closely resembled a ladder occupied the first floor. The dining space is on the second floor, with tables in every nook and cranny. In the center of the room, which opened to the floor below, a grand piano was suspended along with a piano player who provided the soft background music.

We started with a plate of house-cured Norwegian salmon. It was lightly spiced with dill and chives and exceedingly tender. Next was a steak with Roquefort sauce and pork braised in a calvados-spiked sauce. Both meals were very good and (disappointingly) left us too full to try the desserts, which included something that looked like and old-fashioned ice cream Sunday and pound cake served with fruit and cream.

Sunday morning Kevin and I enjoyed something that we haven't had since leaving the states last year — a proper brunch. At Chez Fred in the shopping district along Kloosterstraat, we were delighted to have omelets and quiche. The prefect brunch experience was accented by great music, good coffee, and really nice dark brown bread that is served whimsically in a brown paper bag.

I knew we were on to a great food scene, but received confirmation of this fact while sitting a brunch. The very stylish and hip gay couple that sat at the table next to us on Saturday night arrived at Chez Fred for brunch just as we were paying our bill.