Wild about Wild Boar

I had a reason to visit (yet another) South End Formaggio - or, really to get my monthly fix.  I wanted to spice up some hors d'oeuvres-y snacks I was putting together this past Friday night.

We found this amazing Wild Boar dried sausage (soppressata di cinghiale)  in Brussels a couple of summers ago. At one of those awesome outdoor markets.  Corsican wild boar.  So, you can imagine these feral pigs are eating all sorts of good Corsican nuts and berries and maybe a small Corsican animal or two.  That salami was sweet, robust, and a tad gamey.  And a perfect accompaniment to what was slowly becoming a predictable cheese plate.

And back to South End Formaggio - purveyors of just about everything delicious, crammed in a space no bigger than 30' x 20' (but still easy to lose yourself in thought).  I picked up a half a pound of their wild boar sopressata.  Theirs comes from Salumeria Biellese.  And these pigs are mostly raised in Texas, on a ranch, where they probably scamper about, play tag, or maybe set up a variety of houses to see which might get blown down - while gobbling up all kinds of yummy nuts, berries, and happy little animals.

Looking for something to add to your charcuterie - a party cure-all? something that tastes like maybe a little Mediterranean, a little rustic, and a little wild?  Grab a stick of wild boar dried sausage.  And serve immediately.

The Triumph of Neptune

This is the sign of an old umbrella shop that sits at the end of our little street in Brussels.  A very cool sign that I tried countless times to photograph to no avail:

image | tim borco (way better frame)

When the sign was rolled up into the top of the window, this appeared:

The front of one of the most creative restaurants I've ever enjoyed in Brussels.  Neptune.  Featuring one menu at €36, or roughly $50, that changes weekly.

Simple. Clever. Artistic.  Mostly Organic. Mostly Local.  Six tables. And the heart of the chef poured into every dish.




And if one had endless hours, time could last forever here.

48 rue Lesbroussart 1050 Ixelles - Bruxelles / Brussels

and more about this culinary wonder, check out Cooking for Four Hands and LEFOODING.COM (and enlist google translate, if necessary).

domani l'Italia!

To Florence @ 4:00 am, 16 July, 2011 -  an ungodly hour to anyone - 'cept anyone that hasn't been to Florence, Italy. Or anyone that hasn't been to Florence in over 20 years, when you fell in love with both the man you'd marry and a country that made you swoon.

Since our two weeks in Brussels, we've had a lovely and short and fully loaded, three day stint in Paris.  We've been back in Brussels for the work week.  And tomorrow we leave for our official vacation.  Four years ago we took the family to the Amalfi coast, seaside lovers that we are.  This time we will be staying at an agriturismo,  a villa in Fiesole, that is known for it's Chianti and bold reds and spectacular views of the Arno river valley.

"Will we have to work on the farm?"

"Only if you're lucky."

Le marché de Place du Châtelain, Bruxelles

Every Wednesday afternoon, rain or shine, from 1 to 7:30pm, there's an outdoor market where you will find everything from flowers, olives, dried meats from cypress, quiche, pastry, loads of wine, and a amazing variety of homemade ethnic food (Thai, Moroccan, Vietnamese, etc.) all in a gorgeous setting.  Just outside of Brussels (like a kilometer) Rue du Châtelain is a small, little road lined with awesome little bistros, homes, and outdoor cafes.

This weekly market is one of the reasons I love Brussels.

Everything, from the artichokes that are the size of my daughter's skull to the small, juicy strawberries to the people to the animated conversations to the outdoor sophistication.  No fried dough here.  No.  Just a bunch of Bruxellois and me, in my glory.

When we arrived, I finally embraced the good fortune we have of being here as a family.  I could go all nonchalant, like none of it's a big deal, been here before or ho-hum or even cynical but the fact is, I'm elated.  I'm over-the-moon with joy that my family and I are getting another piece of European action.

And more importantly, that I get another chance to take a bunch of stealth photos of what I find beautiful here.

Un Mois en Europe

Aaaaand we're off.  Heading back to Brussels with trips to London, Paris, Frankfurt, and maybe Zurich, ending with a sweet week in Florence. Four years ago we spent nearly two months in Brussels.  Last year, it was just a week.  I think a month will do us just fine.

I'll try to keep blogging....mostly with those random finds, discoveries, and oddities I come across.  The kids are older now, so I'm expecting it'll be a little easier - but then, that's probably a mistake.

A bientôt.

Something for Dad?

image | wineandcheese

Organic.  Unfiltered.  Cloudy.  Crisp and hoppy.  And extremely tasty.  Plus, the label is pretty.

It's our favorite Belgian Farmhouse ale.  And it'll make any dad happy this Sunday.

F O R E T
Belgian Saison Ale
100% Organically grown hops and barley
7.5% alcohol by volume

Mer du Nord - Brussels

I'll take an open air seafood stand, with a glass of white wine while standing shoulder to shoulder with some other fish head any day - just as long as you don't try to talk to me.  Because all I can really do is slurp, sip, nod, and smile.  And maybe mumble 'très bien'. 


Mer du Nord - de Nordzee
45, Rue Sainte Catherine, Brussels 1000, Belgium

(all images from Mer du Nord capturing some of that authentically Belgian ruggedness )

"The Mer du Nord is not exactly a cafe, but a stop-off here should be obligatory for everyone visiting Brussels. The Mer du Nord is actually a fishmongers, but over the last few years it has set up a pavement bar which serves glasses of crisp chilled white wine and champagne, delicious bowls of fish soup, shucked oysters and a tapas-like selection of scallops, tuna, swordfish and plump prawns cooked fresh à la plancha right in front of you" - Nordzee-La Mer du Nord

Les Maisons en Europe

Brussels

Amsterdam

London

Berlin

Switzerland

Florence

Paris

We are heading back for month of July this summer. Kids aren't so thrilled, but what do they know.  They know exactly nothing, that's what they know.  Actually, they know that the yogurt tastes way better in Belgium.  And they know that it's rainy and cold in July.  Aaaaaand they know that if you don't watch your step, you'll probably step in dog poo.  But maybe with more travel, we can be sure to show them clean sidewalks (London), yucky yogurt (Italy), and sparkling weather (Paris).

Euro Leather Icon

Founded in 1829 in Brussels, Delvaux is the oldest fine leather luxury goods company in the world.  And what I've found on ebay and elsewhere, it's often the handbag that Mrs. Manchester Whittingham Foxworthy III might daintily carry to the charity luncheon.

I've never been a fan of the design - I get the impeccable construction, the leather, the craftsmanship....but I dunno, I'm not crazy about the shininess or the logo of the bags prior to the one below....mostly just sour grapes, I suppose.  Or just too conservative for me.  As if I had five thousand bones to spend on a shiny handbag, anyway.

But Delvaux has this iconic status.  Maybe not so much in the US, but it certainly has quite a following in Europe. And with good reason....

image | lyst

From W Magazine:
Delvaux’s Le Pin satchel, which was big in the Eighties with über chic Euros (check out Princess Stéphanie of Monaco sporting a red one in her 1986 music video “Comme Un Ouragan”), had rather humble beginnings as a horse feed bag. Solange Schwennicke, the owner and former CEO of the nearly 200-year-old Belgian leather goods brand, was vacationing in Tunisia when she saw the canvas pouches, strapped around the animals’ necks and bearing tiny perforations so that the dust within the oats could pass through. Inspired by them, she introduced a leather variation in 1972, and this spring the family-owned house is reissuing it in supple calfskin (complete with punched holes at the bottom of the bag) and in a range of neutral shades. “When it is authentic, a creation is eternal,” says Schwennicke (available exclusively at Barneys New York; $1,690).

Former feedbag meets beautiful leather.  Not a bad combo.

Se Baigner - Taking a Swim

Full dork disclosure:  I love the water, even indoor, chlorinated, tank water.  And with what looks like a good chance we will be returning to Brussels for a month this summer, I thought I'd conduct some 'research' on les piscines.   Seeing as a tank might be a good place to go with the kids.....

I found some stuff.  And I got lost for a little bit.

- just came up for air.

and here you go, swimming pools, in and around Brussels.

(and if you want to go for a swim in the deepest indoor swimming pool, that's located in Brussels, through some amazing clips and videos, go *here*)

image | etterbeek sport

image | etterbeek sport

image | trabolen

image | nemo33

image | toxel

image | toxel

Swirly Art Nouveau | Victor Horta

I woke up with some sorta 1950's tension headache and these swirls and muted colors seem so pleasing to the eye.  Unfortunately, decent photos of the Musée Horta are harder to come by and cameras aren't allowed inside, at least that's what I was told (could stand to work on my stealth photography with my next visit).

image | great archeology

image | Brian Pirie

image | unesco world heritage

image | andrew findlater

image | horta museum

 

One of my most favorite elements of Brussels: Art Nouveau architecture.   And it's everywhere.  You can also find amazing examples of Fascist, Art Deco, Brutalist, Bauhaus, and of course, Gothic and 16th Century.  Brussels isn't exactly known for anything more than maybe the home of the EU and some food stuff - but if you dabble in design or just like to look a grand and diverse collection of architecture, it's definitely worth a visit.


Victor Horta (1861-1947), Belgian Art Nouveau architect. 

See more of Horta *here*.