What: Christmas dinner in Bruges.
Where: Assiette Blanche, Bruges, Belgium.
Note: Bruges is a gorgeous medieval town in the west of Belgium. The town, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is famed for its historic monuments, charming canals and wonderful medieval atmosphere, but also for its gastronomic delights. Some of the best restaurants in Belgium are located in Bruges (or Brugge in Flemish) and its surroundings. In addition, the town is also world-famous for its intricate lace and divine chocolates.
I celebrated Christmas Eve in Assiette Blanche, a cosy restaurant in the centre of Bruges, and opted for the five-course Christmas dinner with matching wines. To get our taste buds going, we were served a glass of De Faveri Prosecco, one of the best I’ve ever had, accompanied by a shrimp croquette and a light foie gras mousse. My taste buds certainly perked-up! 🙂
One of the highlights of the meal was the first course, which featured a crispy slice of veal topped with foie gras, and a small chicory and chive salad on the side with a smooth mustard vinaigrette. Absolutely gorgeous!
The second course was another highlight: lightly-fried monk-fish fillets topped with pancetta, on a bed of couscous that was prepared in a strong shrimp bouillon (broth). I’m not a big fan of couscous but it certainly complemented the richly flavoured monk-fish beautifully.
The main courses and dessert were of an equally high quality and we left the restaurant feeling like we’d just had the meal of a lifetime!
If you’re visiting Bruges and feel like indulging yourself with an exquisite meal, I can certainly recommend Assiette Blanche. It has a lovely interior, the food is stunning and the service is top-notch.
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Hi Adriana,
I agree, you can’t leave Bruges without trying the moules & frites! Though I must add that most of the mussels are from Holland! 🙂
Cheers,
Keith
I love Brugges…. Belgium´s Venice! cannot leave the city without having moules et frites! mussels with fries… yum!
Hi Matt,
Thanks for your comment. Cool that you’ll be passing through AMS again – Queen’s Day is a blast! Look forward to meeting you (yup, hopefully a meet-up will work this time!).
Cheers,
Keith
I love bruge!!!! I didn’t eat nearly as well as you did.
btw- I’m back in a’dam for queens day. maybe a meet up will work this time!
Thank you for your comment Nico. I know, Bruges would look soooo cute in a snow globe! 🙂
Cheers,
Keith
Great! But how can we forget the Belgian beer. It’s some of the best in the world. They’ve perfected the Trappist style like no other place.
I hate to use the term but Bruges is definitely a “must-see” for any Europe trip, and not just for the great food. It’s so quaint and pretty. I feel like it could only be more cute if it were encased in a snow globe!
Brugge is an amazing city and I personally liked it way more than Brussels, but that’s just me
Haha, yes, it certainly felt very decadent! I haven’t told you about our Christmas DAY dinner yet! 🙂
I have always wanted to go to Brugges. Now I know where to eat. Foie gras mousse? Decadent.
Hi John,
Totally agree with you about the quality of food in Belgium. The meal I had (5-course, including the amuse) plus a wine arrangement (which included an aperitif, 4 different wines, water & coffee) was 75 euro per person.
Cheers,
Keith
Keith, sounds great. The food in Belgium has a well deserved reputation for its quality. Can you give us an idea of how much a meal like yours would cost?
Thanks Alex. Looking back at the pictures (my G11 at work btw), I can hear my stomach grumbling too! 🙂
Delicious! Definitely let my stomach grumbling away…