Dinner at a flemish foodie

Yesterday evening I finally got to try restaurant J.E.F.in Gent! You cannot believe how long it took me to get a table. My expectations for this restaurant were pretty high, first of all as every review I have read about it was extremely positive. Secondly because Jason Blanckaert (chef and owner) is part of the Flemish Foodies…. So I wanted to try and check all this positiveness myself (not sure if this is a correct word, but it works for me).

For me restaurant J.E.F is the Gent version of L’épicerie du cirque (which is in Antwerp), the restaurant spreads a good vibe 🙂 from the moment you enter, both by the cozy interior (I liked it, especially the burn marked JEF lable on all tables) as the friendly staff. I was lucky enough to have the best spot of the evening, overlooking the partially open kitchen. This way I can also see the dishes I didn’t take (I’m a curious person).

If you are a too picky eater, I’m not sure if you’d find your ‘dada’ at J.E.F as we say. Lucky for me I’m no picky eater 🙂 and I liked the choice of dishes they proposed. Something I do have to add is that they also think of the vegetarians! In the choice of 4 starters and 5 main dishes there were refined veggie dishes (and no, no garden salad). For the starters you have to count between 15-20 EUR and for the main courses between 20-30 EUR. So, not to excessive.

Before we started eating, they gave a nice appetizer. They had made my favorite combination for a sandwich: ham, gherkins and crispy bread 🙂 (so for me it started well)

Yesterday evening we were lucky enough to try the new menu (they change it every x weeks). As a starter we took pork cheek with apple, pickles sauce and celeriac. As main dish I had the sole with crabmeat, pickleweed, hazelnut cream and bisque (probably made from the shell of the crab). I really love the hazelnut taste with the sole! My fellow eater had pork streaky, with young leak and ramsons.

I chose to go for wine with my meal, as they have a really nice wine list (between 5-7 EUR per glass). With my starter I had a white Pinot Blanc by Julien Meyer called ‘Les pierres chaudes’(I have to admit that I had chosen it because they said it was a funky wine J, so wanted to know their definition of it). With my main course I asked a suggestion of the restaurant, and funny enough they served (without me telling them) me a wine I had indeed laid my eyes upon, because it came from my dad’ s birthplace Valtellina, it was a Rosso di Valtellina from Ar.Pe.Pe. If you prefer beer (like my fellow eater), they also have a nice choice of beers and I’m sure the staff will be able to help you find a perfect match with your dish.

Something I really don’t want to keep from you, is the incredibly funny wall painting in the men’s room (FYI, normally I don’t take pictures here: -) )

I had a great relaxing night, thanks to the tasty food and the great company from my buddy Valentijn, if I would still live in Gent I’m sure I’d be a regular visitor of J.E.F.

FYI, for late eaters on friday, JEF has a special as between 10.30 pm – 01.00am you can eat a meal for 20 EUR!

Restaurant J.E.F.

Website: http://www.j-e-f.be

Address:

Lange Steenstraat 10,

9000 Gent, Belgium

Phone n°: +32 (0)9 336.80.58

Italy, a heaven for food lovers part 2

No matter which region you visit in Italy, you’ll always be eating some great food and preferably lots of it:-). Obviously it is not only the north of Italy is gastronomically interesting, also the South of Italy has a lot to offer. One of my preferred regions in the South of Italy is Campania

Campania

Who says Campania, says Naples… (and Italians (including me) also say Antonio de Curtis) these two should just be mentioned in one breath. For me his region has f some of the most beautiful spots in Italy besides Naples , just think of the Costiera Amalfitana with cities like Sorrento, Salerno or the island Capri, ….

On a gastronomical level, Campania has an incredible heritage, as a few of the most well-known Italian products like Pasta, pizza, mozzarella and limoncello are originally from this region. I can only confirm that the best pizza I have ever eaten was in Campania! There are of course also other typical dishes from this region that you should just try, but you’ll see that like in the other southern regions in Italy, they use lots of lemons, orange, lam, garlic and cities close to the coast will use lots of fish and shellfish like octopus, sardines, anchovies to make the most yummy dishes you have ever had! There are some you should definitely try if you visit this region:

  • Spaghetti alle vongole
  • Neapolitan-style lasagna, (I so love lasagna),
  • Caprese with buffalo mozzarella and San Marzano tomatoes,
  • Capri Chocolate Cake,
  • Babà, a rum-soaked sponge cake
  • Pizza Margherita (you cannot go to Campania without trying the real thing!

I remember if it were yesterday, me sitting on the terrace on a nice summer evening,  overlooking the sea at the Costiera Amalfitana  with some spaghetti alle vongole and some local white wine  (my fav. Is Greco di tufo from Di meo for example)….  ….  I have never felt more relaxed….

Sicily  

To me this is the most special region of them all, not only because it is an island. You can really see lots of influences of all the tribes that have concurred it, Ostrogoth’s, Byzantines, Arabs , Normans etc…  A good example of a city where you think you’re not in Italy anymore is Cefalù, you really feel like being in Morocco or Tunisia.

Not only do you see it in the cities, but also the food is strongly influenced. Gastronomia della strada, is something you cannot miss in Sicily, these are all small stalls where you can buy traditional Sicilian dishes. Usually it are dishes like Panelle (like an omelet with chickpeas as a base (like Humus)), pane con la milza (like a hambuger), stigghiole (meat roles), quarume, fritola (fried fish) and one of my favorits, arancini (filled rice balls)

The central eating pattern of the Sicilians exists out of pasta, vegatables and they cannot live without bread with sesame seeds (something we have in common).  Some great examples of dishes like these are

  • Pasta con le sarde (pasta with sardines)
  • Pasta alle Norma (Pasta with eggplant)
  • Pasta o niuru di siccia (nero di seppia/ squid)

Like I had already said, lam and fish play a central role in their cuisine, or fish.

A few of the must eat dishes with fish are ‘Alici crude al limone’ (little fishes with lemon) or some Agnello al forno… but the list of great dishes goes on and on…

If you have a sweet tooth, Sicily is the place for you as there desserts are really sweet (in every sense of the word. My personal favorite is Cannoli Siciliane!

The Sicilian wines (especially the red ones) are also getting better and better, but because the grapes see a lot of sun, the wines have quit a higher alcohol percentage…. One of my favorites is Don Pietro from Spadafora

When you would go to Sicily, try to visit, Cefalù, Taormina and Agrigento, you won’t regret it!

I could keep going on and on, but I have to stop somewhere… 😦

Italy a heaven for food lovers

You cannot think of Italy and not think of food or gastronomy. If you can, something must be wrong 🙂 as this country just breathes food! What disturbs me sometimes is that people think you can only eat pasta and pizza in Italy, but this country has so much more to offer. Every region in Italy has different specialties. Picking out the best would be impossible, but there are a few that just have to be on your ‘to do’ list:

Emilia Romagna

My mouth is already watering just by thinking of this Region. For the non-food part, this region is famous because of Ferrari, Pavarotti, Giuseppe Verdi and for some of its cities like Modena, Parma or the University City Bologna (Also Rimini, but I’m not really in to that city). But when it comes to food, Emilia Romagna is actually known as the stomach of Italy.

Why? Very simple, this region has so many wonderful gastronomical products! Just think of the balsamic vinegar  from Modena, or the Parmigiano Reggiano, or some of the famous meat products like Parma’s culatello or regular Parma ham and let’s not forget the mortadella the list goes on and on. You can maybe visit the museums of the taste (you could also see it is a big factory visit), this way you get to know all the regional products.

Just  try to picture yourself sitting outside on a sunny day under a pergola  and right in front of you, you have a plate full of Parma ham, Mortadella, salami, some bread and some  local table wine … I would be heaven, wouldn’t you? Or maybe some strawberries with some aged balsamic vinegar might tickle your taste buds…

When you come to this region, you should be eating a few of the following dishes:

  • Lasagna Verdi (Green Lasagna) I love!!!
  • Cinnamon Flavoured Sweet Strozzapreti
  • Cappellacci with Ricotta Cheese
  • Salama da sugo” of Ferrara
  • Liver of an Adult Lamb with Balsamic Vinegar
  • Rice Cake
  • Zabaglione
  • Etc….

When it comes to wine, this region is less special (for me); the more famous local wines are the sparkling Lambrusco and the Trebbiano, but this region is not really known for its wines…

You can find more info on Emilia Romagna on following website

Piedmont

I don’t think this region needs an introduction, because I’m sure you’ve all read my previous posts about this region. When visiting I’m sure you’ll be taking a wonderful gastronomical trip, with some of the best products available like White Truffles, Barolo wine, etc… Ok, these two might not be the cheapest, but when you are in this region, you just have to try them (if not here, I’m not sure where you should be trying them).

Another very big trademark from this region is chocolate, as one of THE most famous chocolate companies in the world is from this region, Ferrero (I couldn’t live without Nutella!!).

You can see that this region is close to the French boarder, lots of dishes have a French touch…

Which dishes you should really try when visiting this region:

Wine if definitely one of THE most important products of this region and also one of my favorites (together with the Valpolicella wines from around Verona).  I know that Barolo might sometimes be expensive, but this region has lots of alternatives wines that are as majestic as the Barolo. Wines like Barbaresco, Barbera, Dolcetto and for the sparkling wine lovers with a sweet tooth you also have the Moscato d’Asti. One of my preferred vineyards near Alba is without any doubt Batasiolo

For more information I would like to refer you to one of my previous blog posts about Torino or 2 of the other posts: 1 or 2

Tomorrow more of my favorite food regions…

Birthday mission part 2

Keeping a secret from your girlfriend is never easy, especially for me, because talking is something I tend to do a lot (so I’m told ;-)). So you can imagine how difficult it was to shut up about her 3 birthday celebration days??  I really like to see the look on her face when she gets surprised, as only then I know I’ve completed my mission successfully. For the part with her family, I decided to do it at restaurant InVIncible. The fun part about this evening was that she had no clue what I had planned 🙂 , but she was reaaaaally happy that her family was waiting for her in the restaurant.

This was my first time that I came to restaurant Invincible but fact that both Kenny and his wife Wendy had worked at restaurant Pazzo 🙂 (you all know how much I love this place) already reassured me… Restaurant Invincible is actually where the renowned restaurant Gin Fish had been (until 2010).

What I like about Invincible (besides they’re great selection of wines), is that the restaurant is big, but yet small… for people who are dining alone they have a big bar/counter where they can eat while seeing the chef preparing their dinner, for people who prefer dining more quit they have some nice tables and for a business dinner you can easily dine or lunch at the table on the mezzanine… FYI, the acoustic is also good

About the food I can only say we had some niiiiiice eating 🙂 I had first taken a vegetarian dish (yes, be you didn’t expect that) I took the gratinated Portobello mushrooms with a chili-Jack Daniel’s butter. Another popular first course at my table was Rillettes of fresh and smoked salmon with a salad of Parisian mushrooms and Parmesan cheese (presentation in a very appetizing way)

As main course I took some nice Côte à l’os (soft like butter) with some pomme rôti, béarnaise & garden salad . Other dishes at our table were the Quail and the cod fish candied fennel sauce & soft Absinthe sauce.

We finished with a chocolaty dessert

Our dinner got accompanied by some nice 2011 South African Syrah, The Wolftrap, that I had chosen from the wall of wines that I could overlook from where was sitting

Every filled plate had been emptied, so I’m sure everybody like the food! (including me)

So to make a long story short (for my standard), my mission has been completed successfully!

Restaurant InVIncible

Website: http://www.restaurantinvincible.be

Address:

Haarstraat 9

2000 Antwerp, Belgium
Phone n°: +32 (0) 3 231 32 07

 

 

 

 

 

And the winner is…

Elena Arzak, this name maybe doesn’t immediately ring a bell. Elena Arzak is the 4 generation of her family to head up restaurant Arzak that has already existing since it opened in 1897. This on itself it already quit remarkable

On top of that she managed to get her restaurant be in the top 10 of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list and was the first Basque restaurant to be awarded three Michelin stars.

You could really say Elena is really gifted, but she didn’t get it from a stranger, as last year, Elena’s father Juan Mari Arzak was honored with the esteemed Lifetime Achievement Award at last year’s World’s 50 Best Restaurants ceremony.

This year it was Elena’s turn and she won the Veuve Clicquot World’s Best Female Chef award at the World’s 50 Best Restaurants Awards! So better be quick to book a table! (FYI, a menu would be 170EUR pp)

Sex on a plate

Last week was my girlfriend’s birthday and for the past 13 years I’ve tried to make it something special… but I can tell you that it doesn’t get easier after all these years. Usually we celebrate it abroad, Rome, Barcelona, Paris,… but this year I figured I would do something else than the usual . This year I gave her  3 days of birthday celebration (yes, 3) 1 day with her family, 1 day with her friends and last but not least one romantic day with me. Food was a large part of her birthday celebration 🙂 (so it was also a kind of my birthday). Anyway for our romantic day, I decided to take her to Sergio Herman’s restaurant Pure C.  Reason; well my girlfriend mentioned this restaurant too many times the last few months…  (any excuse is good enough for me to go)

For you who don’t know Sergio Herman, he is the chef and owner of 3 Michelin star restaurant Oud Sluis, which is in the list of 20 best restaurants in the world… In 2010 Sergio decided to open Pure C who was already given 1 Michelin star after 1 year.  (Sergio also has a restaurant in Ibiza and will open one in Antwerp next year which will be in an old chapel, can’t wait to try it)

In Pure C it is not Sergio himself cooking, but the 27 year old Syrco Bakker, who has been Sergio’s right hand for many years in Oud Sluis .

How was it? I can only say it with the words of the master himself, “Sex on a plate” from the first plate they gave us until the last… YUMMY!!! From the moment you sit down, they are already there with food 🙂 (I like) One dish prettier than the other, real pieces of art, one by one … this is the reason one come to restaurants like this… It is true that you can see Sergio’s signature in these dishes, but also the twist Syrco gave to them himself. Some people might say that the portions are too small, but I had eaten more than enough at the end of the evening (and I am a big eater). I could talk about all the dishes we had, but I think the pictures speak for themselves.

We chose to have accompanying wines with everything… but you can also just take one bottle or even accompanying beers, I’m sure the sommelier will help you to find the perfect match!  We started off with some nice bubbles (how else when you are celebrating something). I also liked the Rosé bubbly wine they served with our 1st (of 6 courses) Pet Zec. Well technically speaking I liked all of them 🙂 but some have that extra something, which makes it easier to remember them. What was also nice, is that we didn’t only get French wines, we took a trip through, France, Spain, Croatia, Portugal on the Pure C wine express 🙂 (with Francis Lelieveld as driver)

Ladies, I will have to disappoint you on one thing, if you expect to see Sergio Herman himself, this won’t be the case as he’s cooking at Oud Sluis.

Pure C  was a magical place for me, a perfect painted picture.  From the moment you set foot in the restaurant you can see the harmony (not only because of the food) the interior, modern with burning candles everywhere.

The view, from the whole restaurant you overlook the dunes and sea and let’s not forget the very helpful and friendly staff, who are dressed how Sergio himself would dress (which didn’t work for everybody, If I may be honest).

I can only say that if you are looking for a relaxing, very gastronomical and not too uptight and even romantic dinner, Pure C is really THE place for you!! (FYI, you can also sleep at the Pure C hotel) I know I’ll be going back!! NO doubt! For the people who are afraid of the financial part of the diner, don’t worry, this is really affordable gastronomy for everybody!

Restaurant Pure C

Website: http://www.sergioherman.com/en/pure-c/about/

Address:

Boulevard de Wielingen 49

Cadzand, Netherlands
Phone n°: +31 (0)117 396036

Marie aka Mieke

How was your weekend? Mine was wonderful, although, maybe a bit too many babies if you ask meJ. But my weekend wouldn’t be as perfect if I wouldn’t have had food. This weekend it was restaurant Marie that I found by accident but due to lots of positive reviews I just had to try it.  Marie is a little vintage style restaurant just a few meters from the De Koninck brewery. When I entered the restaurant, it was like seeing my parent’s living room in the 80’s 🙂

What is really nice about this restaurant is that from the moment you walk in you feel welcome and feel like coming home. This thanks to the no-nonsense and friendly approach from the owner Mieke. Yes Mieke! Then where does the name Marie come from? Well very simple, this was how her father used to call her, so in legacy to her father she called the restaurant Marie, but she had to admit that Marie sounded better as a restaurant name than Mieke (Which is true…)

We (Me and 3 of my favorite women) didn’t only come here to chitchat, but also to eat. The menu they serve can be found written on blackboards on the wall… A menu exiting out of 5-6 first courses and about 7-8 main courses and a few desserts. The portions are quit big, so if you’re a little eater, I’m sure only a main course will do .

We went for the Black Angus with roquefort sauce (with the cheese, not the beer), Brill fish with sauce vierge  and broccoli, veal steak with teriyaki and diced vegetables and quail with honey, ginger and chicory. To accompany this meal we drank a very tasty Spanish red wine

One by one (yes I tasted from all 4) very tasty colorful dishes and generous portions with the ‘Keep it simple moto’.  Not even one second did I feel uncomfortable in this restaurant, so if you feel like having a no-nonsense dinner with friends in a vintage setting… restaurant Marie is your spot 🙂

 

Restaurant Marie:

Address:

Boomgaardstraat 42

2600 Berchem, Belgium

Phone n°: +32 (0) 475 80 40 22

 

 

The modesty of Modeste

Nothing better than dinner with friends, right?! The most difficult question every time again, where will be eating???  I know the company is the most important of the night, but for me the food I’ll be eating is as important :-).  So a few days ago I had dinner with a friend at the recently opened “Grand Café Modeste”  (I think they opened around January).If you like the beers from the Duvel Moortgat Brewery , Grand Café Modeste is  THE place to go as the Brewery is owner of the building and also the home brewery for this restaurant . One beer that is actually one of the reason I’ve already been to Grand Café Modeste 3  times in 3 weeks , as this is one of the few places where they sell Triple d’Anvers (a special beer from De Koninck Brewery). As they didn’t have it the first and the second time I came here, I decided this week to have another try 🙂 , but this time with result!! I’m not a beer dinker, but I really liked this one …  (But don’t worry, I didn’t dry out the other 2 times 😉 )

Another reason for me going back 3 times was just that I like the vibes hanging at this restaurant and the staff was very friendly and helps you with a smile  (the fact the waitresses were very  cute was a bonus 😉 )… I can also say for a fact that the acoustics in the whole restaurant is good (I already sat at all angels)… so  don’t worry if you want to come with a larger group. The only minor point I could say is that you notice that the restaurant isn’t open that long and you can still see that everything is not running 100%, but that didn’t really disturb me (otherwise I wouldn’t have returned 3 times)

The food, the reason I came to Grand Modeste in the first place. As I came here 3 times, I took the liberty of trying other dishes every time I came. They serve the classical Belgian cuisine with dishes like Belgian Stew made with Maredsous beer, vol au vent, asparagus with Mousseline sauce, A Hamburger Antwerp style, Ostend vispannetje, etc… We’ve done the test and I liked all dishes, what made the burger special, was actually the fact that the buns were focaccia with Rosemary, which really added a big value!  Grand Café Modeste also tries to incorporate Beer in most dishes … which would seem logical as their house brewery has such great beers …

Initially I wasn’t convinced of Grand Café Modeste, but I have to say that I have changed my opinion… I’m sure I’ll be going there again.

Grey Shrimp Risotto

I’m a grey shrimp lover! Guilty as charged…  So let me share one of my own recipes. Please when making this recipe or any other recipe with grey shrimps, BUY THEM FRESH and unpeeled… I know the peeling takes some time, but first of all they are cheaper unpeeled, but most importantly the taste is much much better!!   Don’t add any Parmesan cheese!! (this is not done with fish risotto’s or pasta’s)

What you need to get started: (for 2-3 people and even 4 people if you are tiny eaters)

  • 1 Shallot (finely chopped)
  • 500g grey shrimps
  • 2 cups of risotto rice, I prefer Carnaroli , but Arorio or Vialone Nano will also work(regular coffee cups)
  • Pepper
  • White wine
  • 1l fish stock (made from the shell of the shrimps)
  • Butter (farm butter, NO Margarine)
  • Olive oil

Get Started:

  • We first start with peeling the shrimps (you can look at one of my previous blog posts to see how you have to peel them) DO NOT throw away the shell, we’ll be making fish/ shrimps stock with them

  • Making the fish/ shrimp stock is very easy, you heat a pot with a little lump of butter  and braise the shells for a few minutes. Add a bit of wine and fill the pot with water until all shells are under water. Let it cook for about 15-20 minutes (if you want , you can add a fish stock cube or other fish if you have some, to give extra flavor, but not to many otherwise the stock will become too salty). Sieve it and your stock is ready to use.

  •  Now we have our whole basis ready, so we can start with the actual risotto.
  • Heat  a pot with some olive oil and the shallot in it. Let it braise until you see the shallot starts to become a bit glassy

  • Add the 2 cups of rice (don’t worry, 2 cups is more than enough, as the rice swells a lot)

  • Keep stirring (that rice doesn’t stick to the bottom of pot)
  • Add a half glass (or whole glass , depending how big your glasses are) of white wine . and stir it.

  • Now put the heat on medium, when you see the rice almost absorbed all the wine , you can add 2 soup spoons and stir the rice
  • From now you keep adding stock whenever you see the rice absorbed almost all the stock  (1 or 2 spoons at a time) until your stock is finished. This will take about 25-35 minutes. It is important to keep stirring  (not the whole time, but just every 2-3 minutes) to make sure the rice doesn’t stick to the bottom of your pot

  • At the end you add a few lumps or good old farm butter (no Light products please) and stir .
  • Right at the end you can season with Pepper ( NO salt, as your stock is already salty. If somebody might want it saltier, they can add it afterwards). And add some shrimps (keep some for decorating your plate) and give a last good stir.

The finished result will look as follows

Buon appetito!

An Italian in Spain part 2

During our stay we also enjoyed  lots of great restaurant/ tapabars. Some of them were from Tragaluz, but you read about this is a previous blog post.

Restaurant Les Quinze Nits was another true discovery (thanks to friends of mine), heavenly desserts! This restaurant doesn’t take reservations, so you’d better be quick to get a table, as always a whole row of people waiting to get a table … So we got lucky. When sitting outside, watch out for the pickpockets!

Another must do place to have a drink and tapas before y ou have dinner is  Can Paixano (la xampaneria) in Carrer de la Reina Cristina, crowed but a ‘must do’ in Barcelona.  FYI, the more napkins you see on the floor, the better the tapas J  (a Spanish rule). There of course many many other great tapa bars, restaurants, etc.. in Barcelona.. So let me know if you discovered some nice places in Barcelona! I’m always happy to try new places

When we went to Barcelona, we were really lucky that we had some beautiful weather, so we could actually go to the beach every day. What we usually did was walk in the city and around 4 p.m. (sometimes earlier) go to  the beach and enjoy the last sun of the day …. This worked perfectly as dinner starts very late. So we still have time to get back to the hotel and to the restaurant.

We even had one day we staid an entire day at the beach  and believe it or not, but we had stir-fried food for lunch. It might seem like not done in Spain, but this was the closest to our spot on the beach . This place was called Woki market, there are specialized in organic food :-). That was actually some good eating for a day at the beach, we could have done worse.

Something that really surprised me, was the good public transport in Barcelona… something I wouldn’t have expected from a southern-European country/city. The busses and metro trains ALWAYS came on time.  In some cities, taking the subway or bus can be hell, just finding out the route it is taking, but not  in Barcelona! Honestly. We used it the whole time we were there!

Another way to get around in Barcelona (besides bicycles ) is the little Yellow Go cars… We didn’t do this, as I thought it looked silly, my Girlfriend liked it…  You be the judge…

We stayed at the Diagonal hotel in Barcelona, at that  time we had a good deal via booking.com . overall is was a nice hotel , they had a nice choice of breakfast, the rooms were nice… the only thing some people might find less, it that it is not right in the heart of the city center, but it only took us a 15 minute walk to the Barceloneta/ Port Olimpic and when taking subway, you are in just a few minutes at Plaça Cataluña, Passeig Garcia (where the fancy shops are) or sagrada familia. I would also always know there the hotel was, just by looking at the building next to it, which was a giant sausage shaped building (some give another word to it 😉 . I would just suggest to find a good deal on Booking.com if you decide going to Barcelona.

I could go on and on about this city, but I think the best way is to explore this city yourself. Like I said before, this city has something to offer for everybody!… I k now I’ll be going back! Hope you will to?