The Belgian Cafe

[David McDuff]

Some friends and I had the chance to check out The Belgian Cafe (aka, Monks in Fairmount) last weekend. Following is an excerpt from a more detailed writeup which can be found at: McDuff's Food & Wine Trail.

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After enjoying a couple of beers at the bar, I was more than ready to order up some grub once a table became available. The cyclist in me couldn’t resist starting with a small order of the Eddy Merckx mussels, petite PEI’s steamed in a broth of rice, peas, peppers, tomato, saffron and Sly Fox Pale Ale. I’m not sure what the rice was meant to accomplish; the spoonful of kernels at the bottom of the bowl wasn’t enough to satisfy The Cannibal’s post-race carbohydrate craving, nor did it seem to add any richness to the broth. The peas, though, did lend a sweet, earthy tang of contrast to the briny flesh of the mussels. The refreshing texture and citrus, slightly funky flavor of Dupont Saison farmhouse ale made for a nice pairing.

Going to the core of the menu, I opted for a burger and a beer – La Chouffe, at the recommendation of our waitress – as a main course. The Bruegel is a classic beef burger, topped with bacon and melted sharp cheddar. Though cooked a tad past the requested medium-rare, the fat content in the beef was sufficient to maintain plenty of juiciness; however, especially when combined with the cheese and bacon, the burger also teetered on the edge of greasiness.

At the moment, the kitchen at The Belgian Café seems to be running a step behind the standard set at the original Monk’s Café. With a bit of fine tuning – the mussels need just a bit more flavor concentration to their broth while the burgers would benefit from a sturdier roll, such as the stirato served at Monk’s, and a surer hand at the stove – I hope the food will rise in quality as the design of the restaurant takes its final shape. The well thought out structure, ample space and relaxed atmosphere are already enough to make The Belgian Café a worthy destination for pilgrims in search of fine ale and chow as well as a regular watering hole for the denizens of Fairmount.

[Rich Pawlak]

Had the same bowl of mussels there 2 weeks ago, and they were oddly gritty. Didnt understand the small amount of rice either. Flavor was good, but the grit and small shell bits really put me off. Frites were fine, larger than usual, but fine. Also had a superb white bean salad, which truly shined.

Co-owner Fergus Carey was in the house that night, and he stopped by our table to catch up, trade pics of our twins and his son, and to get our two cents on the place. He took the mussels off the bill without mentioning anything to us. Classy.

Edited October 21, 2007 by Rich Pawlak (log)