Bites

Places where you can go for lunch or dinner, and enjoy a nice beer with it.

Fin de Siècle

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20160318 Fin de Siècle IMG_1866_webWhen you pass by Fin de Siècle in the evening, there are usually a couple of people standing at the bar. They’re not there just to have a drink, but they’re waiting to be seated. It’s a logical result of their no reservations policy, but it’s always a good sign if you see people are willing to put up with the wait, isn’t it?

We were lucky when we went for dinner there this week, we only had to wait for a couple of minutes before being shown to ‘our’ table. ‘Our’ between quotation marks, since you’ll rarely have the table to yourself here: you’ll be seated where ever there are some places left at the long, communal tables.

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Bia Mara

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Façade of Bia Mara“Eat more fish” is the motto of Bia Mara. “Good luck with that”, was my first thought, when in 2013, I first walked past the now famous chippie. And foreigners from a soggy chip country selling chips to Belgians?
I’m not a fish eater at all: in most restaurants I usually just skip the seafood section of the menu. But after the first time I tried the Classic at the lively fish and chips shop on the Marché aux Poulets, I was hooked — pun intended. Because of Bia Mara, I’ve eaten more fish in the last three years, than in the preceding thirty years!

The fish and chips at Bia Mara — seafood in Irish Gaelic — are nothing like the fish and chips you might have eaten in the UK. Simon and Barry made their own version of the classic dish, using herbs and spices from all over the world and Japanese tempura or panko for the fish, making it more crispy than usual. The chips are more like potato wedges than ‘normal’ chips, and nicely seasoned with seaweed salt. If you really want vinegar, just ask for the spray.

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