A Sweet Gesture at 1 Michelin Star Het Gebaar @ Antwerp

A few days ago, hubby asked if I want to try a dessert place with a Michelin Star. Why not? Afterall, I knew that he was the one very eager to go because he has a very big sweet tooth. He would be the first one to say yes to a dessert and then another yes for a dessert after dessert. The Timmermans are really an unbelievably sweet family.

Unfortunately, the reservation for lunch on Thursday is really full and the only availability is at 2.30pm. To me, 2.30pm is way pass my lunch time but for a nice restaurant, I can make an exception. We arrived in Antwerp 20 minutes early and guess what my hubby did? He walked into Hermes, asked the staff for a Birkin bag and she said, "sorry sir, we do not have any ready Birkin bags but if you want to buy one, you will have to fill up the wish list." And my hubby said, "yeah sure and can you please make sure it comes before her birthday?" Lol.. that was so sweet. Luc couldn't believe it when I told him that one has to be on a wait-list for a Birkin and he thought that we can just walk into a shop and buy it. Well, at least now he knows... but still it was so sweet of him to think of getting me one.

The restaurant was just a five-minute walk from the shop and we arrived in time. The little cottage looks really quaint and just behind the cottage is the Antwerp botanical gardens. Who would have guessed that this cottage is the restaurant of Roger Van Damme whom is a celebrity chef on Njam! Tv and apparently he specialises in desserts. I saw his show once on TV and he teaches kids to cook which I find it surprising that he has a 1 Michelin Star dessert restaurant.

 Chef Roger sometimes come out to serve the desserts himself

The place is full full full. There were some walk-in customers and they were told that they can't get a table unless they make a reservation in advance. On weekends though, you do not need a reservation. This is how it works: If one wants to take a main course, he or she has to order a dessert too. If you just plan to take dessert, it's all fine.

They have quite a good selection of main courses consisting of pork, veal, scallops, ravioli and steak tartaar starting at €. And in the dessert selection, they have a few choices too and also classic desserts like creme brulee, dame blanche, chocolate mousse, tarte-tatin and crepes.

We started with a glass of Laurent Perrier Millesime 2004 (€17.50) as an aperitif and then we were served an amuse bouche just like any fine dining restaurants. The amuse bouche was served on a small granite plate that contains chicken with peanut sauce and half a quail's egg with a piece of fried rice cake served with avocado cream and radish. It was really impressive as I can taste the subtle peanut flavours that goes well with the chicken and quail's egg. The bread were good and most importantly, they serve a good piece of butter.

Service was a bit slow. I don't know if it's intended so that the customers have more time to chat in between courses or it was meant for us to anxiously anticipate the next dish? I ordered a recommended dish of the day which consists of lightly seared scallops with clams and potato puree and avocado cream (€32.50).  Presentation was top and so is the food. I love how the chef makes such a dish that tastes so simple and natural yet satisfying in terms of visual and palate. The potato puree was silky smooth and the scallops paired really well with the sauces.

Luc ordered a suckling pig which has a square piece of crackling with a thin layer of pork and underneath the crackling lies a few pieces of oval-shaped pork cheeks (€34.50). It is a very rich dish but lucky the leek and witlof saves the richness of the flavours. Too bad that the waitress served this dish by pouring some brown sauce on top of the crackling because it defeats the whole purpose of making the skin crispy. They should instead pour the sauce from the sides and not on the crackling.

After the main course, we had to wait for about 45 mins before we were told that the desserts that we ordered needed more time because some of the ingredients had run out and they needed more time to remake them. Well, I appreciate that they remade the ingredients so that we can have the desserts but what would be nicer is that they should have told us earlier and maybe we can choose another dessert or we decide to wait? Maybe the staff saw my "not-so-happy" facial expression and they walked over to us to explain and then they served us with a complimentary "pre-dessert". By the time I finished in indulging my "pre-dessert", I was already full and with stomach full of fury?

But I had to agree that the "pre-dessert" is really good.

By the time we were served our desserts, it was already 4.30pm and we were there since 2.30pm. So it takes 2 hours to have a main course and a dessert. The dessert better be good or else I will certainly walk out with a sour face! Mine was called Celebration 20 (€21.50) which is a dessert created for the festive season and also to commemorate 20 years of the existence of the restaurant. It is made with Chef Roger's favourite flavours of raspberry, strawberry, yogurt, basil, cassis and milk chocolate. We had a whole 5 minutes of visually appreciating the dessert before I started digging into this beautiful creation. This is a very beautiful dessert and I ate my plate clean except for the candy which I find to be too sweet and it sticks to my teeth.

Luc's dessert is called "Botanique" (€21.50) which is also called the "sweet garden". It consists of milk chocolate, combined with hazelnut, passionfruit, mango and lime. It is so nicely presented that Luc was a little hesitant to dig into it. He told me it was the most beautiful dessert he has seen and maybe ever eaten! I like the creativity of the chef and how he uses these ingredients and turn them into a garden which is so visually appetising. The taste itself is very good because the sourness from the lime and passionfruit creates a contrast with the richness and sweetness of the chococlate.

Both of us are very happy with the desserts. Perhaps the next time we return, we will just order 2 desserts each instead of a main course and a dessert. What I dislike is the waiting time and the staff even had forgotten our 2nd order of a bottle of water. She wanted to serve it in the end but I stopped her. It was too late and if I have to wait any minute longer for my dessert, I could have canceled it too since I'm not a big fan of sweet stuff. I think it was worth the wait as my hubby is very happy with the dishes. That is the only consolation for the wait. Not that I want to complain but a 3-hour parking in Antwerp is a f@#$$%% €8.70!!! For that I can have a really nice belgium waffle from Desire de Lille and a pack of super tasty frietjes from Frituur No.1. Ish....

But then again, for the desserts, I will be back (only when I crave for sweets).

Het Gebaar

Address: Leopoldstraat 24, 2000 Antwerp

Phone:03 232 37 10

website

Opening senses at Pastorale @ Reet, Belgium

One couldn't help but notice the number of Michelin-starred restaurants in Belgium. I was told that today, there is a total of 121 of these restaurants scattered over the country! Isn't that a delightful news to the foodies who are visiting Belgium or those staying here?!!

One of them remains as Luc's favourite. The Pastorale in Reet, founded by Bart de Pooter, whom is also the chef and Executive Director is a 2 Michelin Star restaurant with a humble front. If you pass by the restaurant building on the outside, it looks like a regular classic building but it has a very eye-catching gold statue of a laughing man on the right side of the entrance. As you passed by the entrance, the laughing man starts to make laughing noises and it's quite funny. 

The Pastorale gave me an artsy-fartsy feeling about this place. Upon entering the main door, there is an automatic sliding glass door that leads to the dining area. In the dining room, one is mesmerised by the unequal wooden slats that are nailed horizontally to the wall from one corner to the other. This is the creation of Arne Quinze whom started out as a Belgian graffiti artist. On the walls, one could not but notice the video installation of Arne Quinze's works which is called EYE.C.U and EYE.LIP.U running across 16 screens in the restaurant. The video features an arty extraction of eyes and lips and its movements, opening up one's senses and emotions.

The Menu. Luc is browsing through the 1-inch thick Wine List!

Pastorale succeeds in creating an interesting dining experience to its patrons. From the moment I stepped into the restaurant, I felt that there is something different about this place. I like the space created in the dining hall, the table that overlooked the finely-trimmed garden and an intriguing golden statue of a music conductor in an astronaut suit. The menu itself is a piece of art that needs a little decoding. If you ask for a wine list, be prepared to browse through for at least 20-30 minutes due to the vast selection. That is not all for Pastorale has an impressive spirits list including Gin I have never seen before and also a fine whisky list. One can even have a taste of Brora for less than 20 Euros.

With Bart de Pooter whom was so nice to come over and have a nice chat with us. This is the second time I met him and the first time was at his 2nd restaurant WY at The Mercedes House in Brussels which he had obtained a 1-Michelin Star since opening it one year ago. Well done Bart!

Amuse Bouche was a plate decorated with Scheermesje (Atlantic Jackknife/Bambo Clam) with Citroen sauce and mussels with a celery sauce. Amongst the decoration were fried whitebait and also seaweed. I love the presentation as it gives me a feeling that I'm by the sea. The pot of breadstick with sesame seeds, peas and hummus was really delicious. Even the butter, salt and pepper resembled pots in the garden. A pair of scissors is provided for us to cut the green leaves from the little pot when we savour the bread.

This restaurant serves probably the best bread I've ever eaten in a fine-dining place as the bread was made with fresh ingredients and natural yeast from the air and not the commercial yeast for bread. It is served with a special Olive Oil selected by the chef and bottled specially for the restaurant. The bread was so good that I told the staff that I would like to have it for breakfast and they were so kind to seal two breads in a bag for me before we step out of the restaurant!

These 2 dishes are still the amuse bouche. The top dish is a salad of duck confit, bulgur (a cereal food made from the groats of several different wheat species, most often from durum wheat), with a smoked mozzarella from Italy. I like the cereal textures of the dish and the mozarella binds them together. The 2nd dish is a marinated scallops served with a cream of carrots and curry decorated with pickled vegetables. The curry flavour is very subtle but it's a nice combination with the fresh scallop.

Finally after an hour and a half, we are served the first dish of the 4-course Bizz lunch (EUR60). This is a smoked pigeon, cream of celery, pickled onion and carrot with ice-cream of mustard. I must say the taste is as good as it looks. It looks like a funny combination but I love the contrasting textures the chef creates with this dish as the vegetable flakes are crispy, the ice-cream of mustard is creamy and the taste was very subtle. A good combination for the smoky pigeon cubes.

For my main, I chose a fish dish while Luc chose a pork dish. The Pike-Perch was served with a celeriac sauce, girolles mushrooms and hazelnut. The nutty flavours of this dish matches the fish really well as the fish was really fresh and the flakes of meat was juicy and sweet.

This is Luc's main which has slices of pork loins slightly smoked, speck and lard and parsnip puree. It was equally delicious. The dishes here are not only well presented on the plate for the pleasures of sight but the taste is equally satisfying. Bart focuses on seasonal ingredients and freshness which brings out the wonderful tastes of the dishes without overwhelming the main focus of the ingredient in every dish.

The dessert gives me a feeling of autumn which the brown-coloured ingredients and crispy crepes of muscat resembles the falling leaves from the branches. Served with an ice-cream muscat, caramel, walnuts and white chocolate. Lovely sweetness balanced out with the nutty flavours.

We were served with a surprise dessert. As I was lamenting how unfortunate that I had to miss Luc's My Tribute Glenfarclas 1968 dinner here at Pastorale last year and how much I heard about the Glenfarclas 1968 ice-cream but never tried it, the dessert chef made the exact one they had last year for us at lunch! It was really sweet of them and I finally had a chance to try one of the most expensive ice-cream made with the precious Glenfarclas 1968. It was really good, creamy and had a slight taste of whisky with sweet and bitter notes which paired very well with the dark chocolate. Well done!!!

The sommelier, Jon Stalmans is a very friendly guy with a passion for wines and whisky. During the whole time, he chatted with us and at the same time introducing some nice whisky from his selection since he knew Luc was into whisky. We had a dram of the Bowmore 1968 Tasttoe of which there is only 24 bottles out there at EUR36/dram. Damn.. it is a great whisky and a good finish. Ouch... the pocket hurts...

If you think that's the end of the meal, they came with a white-matted-porcelain box with a few pieces of chocolates on it. Those chocolates were really delicious. Just as when I opened my big mouth and asked "Is that all?", lo and behold, the staff opened the top layer of the box and it revealed more chocolates! Some of the chocolates are made with Pierre Marcolini chocolate and they really taste so good!!

We love the place so much that we went there for lunch twice in a week! After the Lindores Whiskyfest 2013, we brought our guests from Singapore and Malaysia (Emmanuel, Arun, Ben, Michael and Li Ling) there for lunch and again the staff surprised us all with an ice-cream made with the Glenfarclas 1968. After a 4-hour lunch, we all went home stuffed and lazy.

Pastorale indeed supersedes my expectations. The service was good, the staff were friendly and the ambiance is really nice too. Most importantly, I knew what I was tasting.

Pastorale Restaurant

Laarstraat 22, 2840 Reet

tel: +32 03 844 65 26

info@pastorale.be

www.depastorale.be

A Romantic Day in Paris

The last trip to Paris has been a really romantic journey. From arrival to departure, Luc really made me feel like a princess. I arrived on Air France to CDG at 6am and had to wait for my luggages for 40minutes (even with SkyPriority) and that is the longest wait I ever had for a holiday trip. That is one part of traveling that I dislike. As I walked out of the arrival hall, there was already a guy waiting for me with my name and he carried my luggage, and then drove me to the hotel in a nice Mercedes. I was relieved that I don't need to queue for a taxi after a long flight! It was really thoughtful of Luc to arrange that.

We stayed at Hotel Du Louvre which is just next to the Louvre because I told him that I would like to visit it. It was a small, nostalgic but cosy hotel with windows that opened to the streets. That morning I arrived, he arranged for a typical Parisien breakfast to be served in the room. The croissants were really crispy and delicious. And in the evening, after we returned from dinner, a surprise awaits me in the room. There were rose petals on the floor and also on the bed, forming a nice heart shape. On the table, there was a bottle of chilled Krug champagne and it was all arranged by my sweetheart. He knows I like Krug and that was so lovely!

Since Luc knows Paris pretty well, he took me to some places that I had not been. First we wanted an afternoon drink and light food and he took me to Harry's New York Bar which is celebrating its hundredth year anniversary. I know that the name doesn't really ring a bell especially it's located in Paris but this bar is no ordinary bar. This place is filled with old and rare whisky goodies. It's also one of the favourite bar for the whisky boys. The selection that they have is amazing with Macallan dating back to the 50's. They do not serve food before 6pm and they also do not have a menu for the whisky. If you want to know what they have, you will just have to walk to the display cabinets and also the bar. Everything from the deco to the bartender is vintaged.... *smiles

In the evening, Luc made a reservation at Le Baudelaire at Le Burgundy Hotel at Rue Duphot which is just 10 minutes walk from the hotel where we are staying. The restaurant serves a gastronomic cuisine with Parisian influences and it received its one Michelin Star since its opening. We took the Tasting Menu which costs € 210 comes with wine pairing and I must say that the wines are pretty good and I am very satisfied with the wines they served. 

The 1st course of Joel's summer vegetable salad with celery salt, aigo boulido and young salad leaves was well executed and I like the creativity of the chef in the ingredients used as well as the food presentation. He plays with a lot of different salt and soury flavours which unfortunately does not make a tick in my palate. I always like more natural tasting food that uses less salt and that night, I found some of the dishes like the turbot and wagyu beef were a little too salty and some too sour. His style is indeed for the adventurous. But I'm glad the amuse bouche, starters and wines were really good.

When in Paris, do what the Parisiens do. I had to shop. Not to satisfy my shopping cravings but more because I really need to buy some autumn/winter clothing. The weather has not been very kind and it does not help when I arrive there with a suitcase full of summer clothes. We went shopping at Galeries Lafayatte and I came out with a nice fashionable black Moncler jacket and an electric blue Karen Millen coat. Then I wanted to stop by Longchamp and we bought a foldable travel bag which is in their new collection and it came in really handy during our trip to Marbella.

 A customary visit to the Louvre.

People say if you really want to visit the whole Louvre, it will take at least a week!

It was indeed my best trip in Paris. Despite our leisure schedule, we also managed to meet some of Luc's friends and seriously, a few days in Paris seemed too short and we didn't even went on a cruise trip on the Seine river. Well, Paris would still be there and we have already planned to return in Dec!

Luc's 1st Banana Leaf Rice Experience @ Curry Leaf, Damansara Utama PJ

Being a Belgian, it was Luc's first experience having his food served on a banana leaf! This would have been something common for us Malaysians but for him, our lunch at Curry Leaf restaurant at Damansara Utama (also known as Damansara Uptown) is an eye opener. It was in my plan to take Luc and Sophie out for an authentic banana leaf rice experience but Sophie couldn't join us for lunch as she was not feeling well. 

Curry Leaf at Uptown is the 2nd outlet from its original restaurant in Seremban which is also known as Curry Leaf. The restaurant in Seremban has been in operation for 15 years and this branch in Uptown is managed by Michelle and her husband Dewayne. The restaurant is started by Dewayne's parents whom his mother is a Chinese and his dad an Indian. Together they create wonderful recipes for this restaurant and Michelle whom used to work for L'oreal is now hands on at the restaurant with knowledge in cooking and also about the Indian cuisine.

 It's located along the same row as HSBC and beside Pathlab. This is a simple, clean and fuss-free restaurant. A plus point of this place is that it is not stuffy.

Just like any curry house, you can pick your own dishes here from their big variety of meat, fish and vegetables dishes everyday. The price is clearly displayed above the food counter. According to Michelle, the vegetable dishes will be changed daily to avoid food fatigue but a few clear favourites remain day to day.

Their lassi drinks are a must-try here. They use fresh fruits and also  fresh cow's milk which is then fermented into yogurt. So basically a Lassi is a traditional yogurt-based drink originating from India's Punjab region. Mom chose a Peach Lassi (RM3.80) and Luc took a safe choice of Mango Lassi (RM3.80) but I decided to be adventurous and ordered a Salted Lassi made with chilli and also diced onion. Sounds weird right? A traditional lassi is savoury whereas a sweet lassi usually containing fruits instead of spices is more popular among non-Indians. It turns out that the Salted lassi was not too difficult to stomach. It's lightly spiced and a little salty. It's definitely a "first" for me as I have not been too adventurous with Indian cuisine. The Mango Lassi is really nice, full of fresh mango flavours and it wasn't too sweet.

The most popular dish here is of course their Banana Leaf Rice. Here, the real banana leaf is used as a plate and the waiter will serve a few different vegetable dish onto the leaf and then followed by the rice. There's a choice of white rice or briyani and 3 different curry sauces. The real deal is of course to eat them with your hands but I probably shouldn't scare Luc during his first banana leaf experience.

All the vegetable dishes that were served on that day were delicious. I love the Aubergine with onions which is sweet and savoury. That is the most popular vegetable dish from the restaurant. So far I have not tasted anything like this in other curry houses. Actually I like all the vegetable dishes here.

Curry Leaf Fish Head Curry (RM25 onwards by weight)

Asked if I like fish head curry and of course I nodded my head. I think it comes from my dad as he's the real champion when it comes to eating this dish. He can leave no fish head unturned and he would make the fish die a worthy death. The fish head portion here is quite big and what I have here is the smallest portion. It's better to have 3 or more people eating this so that you can have more space for other dishes. The fish was fresh and the curry was flavourful, spicy and there were lots of lady fingers.

Chicken Stuffed Naan (RM6.50)

The restaurant offers a wide variety of naan (a type of oven-baked flatbread). One of the naan that we managed to try that day was stuffed with minced chicken and topped with fresh parsley. The naan here is soft, freshly baked and best eaten warm. And on the top left corner of the picture is one of the dishes that I enjoyed most here. It is the Fried Squid with sesame seeds (RM10). It was so crispy and light that I can keep on eating and eating them.

Kashmiri Naan (RM5)

The Kashmiri naan is also a signature dish from the restaurant. It is a sweet naan topped with fresh mango slices and dried fruits. This is indeed a very creative combination.

Who would have thought that the mango and dried fruits would compliment the naan so nicely?!! I finished half of the naan myself and I had one more of the same naan to be taken away too!! I think the winning combination of these ingredients has to do with the fact that the mango is fresh, juicy and sweet.

We managed to try their Squid Briyani (RM9) which comes with a generous portion of squids too. The briyani was wet and has a lingering flavour of spices. And the picture next to the Briyani is the Chicken Lakshimi Kebab (RM6.50) which looks like a layer of egg that wrapped over the chicken cubes. This is another dish which I have not tried before. To end the meal, Luc had a Bru Coffee (RM2.70) from India and mom had a Ginger Tea.

The restaurant has a number of signature dishes which includes Chicken 65 (RM10). I asked Michelle why it is called 65 and she told me that this dish used to require all the chicken cubes to be weighed 65g each. Wow... I really have no idea that this is a deep-fried chicken with spices originating from Chennai. The Mutton Roghan Josh (RM10) is recommended as I am not a mutton person but I don't mind eating this because it is not gamey at all. Even my mom who doesn't take mutton due to the strong flavours indulged a few pieces.

A picture of us and a table full of yummy goodies!

I really have to thank Michelle for her hospitality and the invite for lunch. It has been a nice experience for the 3 of us because I am so unadventurous when it comes to Indian cuisine and now I have a chance to learn more about it. Luc enjoyed his first banana leaf rice and we would be coming back when we are in town the next time!

The restaurant is opened for breakfast from 7.30am to 10.30am and 4-10pm where there is a breakfast menu. They also provide function rooms upstairs and also catering services.

Curry Leaf

No.75, Jalan SS21/37,

Damansara Utama,

47400 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Tel: +6017-3377880

Website

Grand Cafe de Rooden Hoed & Laurent Perrier Champagne Bar @ Antwerp

We were walking around Antwerp and wondering what we should eat for lunch. Then we came across this restaurant which seemed to be quite popular as many people were sitting at the terrace due to sunny weather. The Grand Cafe de Rooden Hoed can be translated to Red Hat Cafe in English. Located on Oude Koornmarkt, this street is filled with cafe and restaurants.

On such a sunny day, a cooling Duvel Tripel Hop is nice!

Kokkels

I was surprised when I saw these being served as complimentary appetiser. It looks like the "Balitong" that we have in Malaysia. The needles are used to poke the flesh out from the shell. And these are quite addictive because I walloped almost 3 quarter of the it.

Kaaskroketten €12.50

Luc had cheese croquettes served with north sea shrimps and garden cress. The croquettes are piping hot but they are delicious!

Escargots  €14.00

I had the escargots that are baked in herb butter. The funny thing was, I couldn't get one of the flesh out from the shell and I thought I should just tell the waiter about it. He collected my plate and a few seconds later, he came out with one of the escargots and the flesh is half taken out. It was nice for them to do that for me or else I will loose a yummy escargot.

Paling in 't groen  €24.50

Luc ordered an eel dish which is cooked in the "grandmother's" way. It comes with a herb sauce, parsley and potatoes. I liked how the potatoes looked so smooth and nicely peeled. It's not really my dish as I don't fancy eels.

Waterzooi €16.50

I didn't know what to order as the whole menu is in Dutch and they do not have an English menu at the moment. Luc recommended that I should give this dish a try as it is a typical Belgian dish where the meat of guinea fowl is cooked in a poultry broth with fine vegetables and castle potatoes. It's really good and the broth is milky and flavourful.

It was really a nice lunch as we enjoyed the good weather and also the sight of horses with the carriages passing by. These are some of the tourist attraction that you can find in Antwerp. The restaurant is nice with good service but I think the price is rather expensive. This is expected as it is located on a busy tourist street.

Grand Café De Rooden Hoed

Oude Koornmarkt 25

2000 Antwerpen

Tel: +32 (0)3 2890909

website

After lunch, we walked around and eventually ended at Stadsfeestzaal which used to be a ballroom built in the year 1908 and Luc told me that he remembered dancing here when he's young. It was almost completely destroyed in a fire but was renovated in 2004-2007. This is located on a main street called Meir where it's a shopping street.

A must visit at Stadsfeestzaal is the Laurent-Perrier Champagnebar. It's not an ordinary champagne bar because this bar is shaped like a champagne glass and the structure of this bar is amazing. 

At the bar, you'll be sitting 7.5m above ground and it overlooks the whole ballroom. We ordered a champagne each. I had a Rose (€15) and Luc had a Brut Millesime 2002 (€14) which is served with 2 pieces of cookies.

You would think sitting at the top is scary and unstable but it seems to be ok and you can take the opportunity to admire the structure and interior of this building.