The Best Food So Far!

After a good nights sleep at Novotel (four star really does make difference!), we made our way to Brussels this afternoon where we encountered the most confusing transit system so far (worse than Berlin!).  Our directions to our B&B said to take tram # 3 and it took us half an hour of wandering to figure out where to catch tram #3 – instead of having one central tram/bus stop at the train station like most cities, there were about 6 different tram stops all over and around the train station so we had to run around checking each stop to see which tram stopped there.  Tram # 3 turned out to be in the least obvious place possible, underground where the metro was, and we couldn’t figure out why it’s called a tram instead of a metro because they look identical! 

We followed the directions we were given by Luc, the owner of the B&B, and got off at a station called SAINTE-CATHERINE where we used google maps on Paul’s blackberry to walk the rest of the way to Luc’s townhouse-style home.  As we walked, I noticed graffiti, litter, and the smell of urine everywhere, which totally grossed us both out.  I had pictured Brussels to be really nice and well-kept, but from what we’ve seen it’s one of the dirtiest capital cities we’ve been to so far.  Hopefully other parts of the city will be prettier, but Luc tells us the dirtiness is quite normal and it actually used to be worse!

This is the first time we’ve stayed at a B&B since Montpellier and I am reminded of the pros and cons of using a B&B versus a hotel.  Cost wise, if you compare with a budget hotel chain like the Ibis, B&Bs are about the same price, sometimes slightly higher (if you get a special advance booking rate at the hotel), but they give you a breakfast which the budget hotel usually doesn’t.  Our room at Luc’s is basic but nice enough, and, like Montpellier, we find that the bed is one of the softest and most comfortable we’ve had on this trip.  The disadvantage of a B&B is that you’re in someone’s home, so unlike at a hotel, you have to be conscious of your noise level when you come and go, watch TV, listen to music, etc. 

As far as B&Bs go, Luc has been as accommodating as one could ask for – he has said we can use the kitchen if we want (and even left some fridge space for us to store things!), provided us with a handy guide book for Brussels and gone through all the sights/attractions we should check out, and breakfast (fresh bread and cold cut meats & cheese) will be left out for us to get whenever we want as he leaves early in the morning for his day job.  The wi-fi works well so Paul is happy, and Luc has a dog named Zizi who’s really tame and lets you pet her, so I’m happy because I’m really missing my dog, Aspen, who’s staying at my family’s house. 

After getting settled in, we headed out to try some Belgian food at a restaurant Luc recommended called Le Fin de Siecle.  He told us that the restaurant does not have a sign with it’s name so it might not be easy to spot, but “it’s on a street named Rue des Chartreux, next to a furniture store.”  We found the street no problem, but there were several restaurants without signs and they were all in close proximity to the furniture store!  Thankfully we were able to look up the exact address on Paul’s blackberry and once we knew the unit number, it was no problem to find the correct restaurant.

Luc’s recommendation turned out to be a big hit – we might even say it’s the best food we’ve had so far this trip (better than Voyageur Nissart!).  Paul tried a dish called carbonnades, which is a Flemish beef stew cooked using Chimay beer, and it was the most amazingly tender and flavourful beef we’ve ever eaten.  I tried a Belgian dish called stoemp, which consisted of mashed potatoes cooked with mixed vegetables topped with Belgian style sausages and gravy.  Although I preferred Paul’s beef to my dish, the sauce for mine was really really good and the sausages were really flavourful too.  With our dinner we drank a total of four beers, trying out Kriek (a Belgian beer fermented with cherries), raspberry and peach flavoured beer, and Gueze, a type of Belgian lambic beer.  We liked all of the beers we tried, but my favourite is definitely the peach – it’s so refreshing and tasty with just a hint of beer flavour!

So far, Brussels is worth coming to just for the food and beer!  Hopefully the sights will show us a nicer side of the city than what we’ve seen so far and I really hope it doesn’t smell like pee everywhere we go!