My travel guide said that when you’re in Belgium, you’ve gotta have Moules Frites, Carbonnade Flamade, Waterzooi, chocolate and beer. So we stopped at Le Forestier, a small restaurant in the Sablon area of Brussels. Opting for a smoke-free environment, we dined inside and ordered the Moules Marinière, 21€ and the Carbonnade Flamade, 16,50€.
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| Interior of Le Forestier |
Moules Marinière is an order of mussels cooked in a white wine with onions, celery, and herbs served with frites. I was disappointed in the quality of the dish – the flavor of the broth was ordinary and the mussels were quite small. Frankly, I had better moules back home in NYC for a cheaper price.
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| Moules Marinière |
Carbonnade Flamade is a hearty Flemish stew made of beef, beer, and onion. I’m glad our waiter recommended the beef stew over their Waterzooi. The stew was very flavorful and the meat was tender – no need for a knife – you can break apart the meat with your fork and let the meat almost melt on your tongue. Forget the mayonnaise and ketchup, dipping your frites in the sauce is a must.
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| Carbonnade Flamade |
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| Frites |
Our beer choices were Orval, 4€ and Belle-Vue, 3,50€. Orval is a Belgian Trappist Ale (Pale Ale) with a nice aroma, and smooth taste. You can learn more about the Orval Brewery via their website. Belle-Vue is a type of gueuze, a Belgian lambic beer. I wouldn’t recommend getting a lambic when ordering these dishes – the sourness throws the flavors off.
Compared to many restaurants in Brussels, the prices here were decent, and not overpriced like the restaurants near Grand Place.
Le Forestier
Chez Hatem
2 Rue Haute
1000 Bruxelles
Tel: 02 513 72 97
e-mail: le-forestier@hotmail.com
