Right now, as it happens, I'm in Bruges for a day or so. Work takes me to Brussels more often than any other Continental city, and I do like it there (dinner in Little Vietnam is always a highlight, and the bars and cafes around Grand-Place for the proper tourist experience, or the back streets of Ste Catherine for funky chill-out drinking venues) but I feel like I've 'done it' enough, whereas Bruges is renowned for being historic and picturesque and is only an hour by frequent train from Brussels, and yet until now I'd never been. An evening and a day is only enough (especially when one spends half of that time working on a paper for deadline) to get a taste of the atmosphere, wander around and see a few sights -- but also enough to sample some of the city's dining and drinking spots.
I arrived at Bruges station around 4:30; dusk was just falling by the time I reached the town centre, so after finding my hostel and checking in, I decided a drink in the hostel bar was in order. They serve a decent house beer, Augustin, which seemed like a good place to start a Bruges beer adventure; I also tried a Keiser Karel. I know next to nothing about beers and can't even say what type these were, but both were rich, full-bodied and long-tasting.
Two beers down, I was getting quite hungry and ventured out in search of dinner. After getting distracted by the night-time canal-side scenery and meandering through a few back streets, I ended up back at a little place just across the road from the hostel. De Gouden Kroes is a seafood restaurant that comes reasonably well-recommended on TripAdvisor, which in this city that seems to have more restaurants than residents (I'm sure 90% of the people I've seen have been tourists) is as good as any other way to choose -- that and the €35 seafood platter, which when one is trying to decide between oysters, mussels and other options, provides a perfect compromise. I was slightly surprised that they were entirely empty at 7:30 on a Friday night, but this didn't detract too much; the atmosphere was neat and clean, and the huge tank of live seafood on display inside the restaurant promised good things.
Complementary appetisers consisting of a dish each of green olives, little brown-grey soft-shell shrimp and winkles (complete with pin for winkling) were very welcome, even if the inclusion of the latter also on the seafood platter made them a tad redundant. The platter itself was enormous, excellent quality and very good value. Three types of oyster (I'm afraid I don't remember which, though they were all subtly different and deliciously fresh); a generous helping of mussels and a similar number of large whelks, both steamed; a pot each of crevettes and winkles; three big, juicy prawns; two edible crab claws and two lusciously meaty spider crab claws; two langoustines complete with spiky claws and sweet, springy tail meat; and a huge whole scallop, together with a dish of thinly sliced scallop meat (possibly again different types; I didn't ask, but they seemed different - though that may have been due to the different presentation), both raw and with a wonderful sea-fresh sweetness. A choice of sauces came alongside: shallot vinegar, mayonnaise, aioli and a lightly spiced rouille; and the Muscadet available by the half-bottle was a perfect accompaniment.
The next morning, I needed to find somewhere for a tea-fueled writing session. (Not only did I want to get out and see somewhere other than the hostel cafe, but the frankly unenthusiastic service of the morning staff didn't induce me to stay!) Gingerbread Cafe, on Sint-Amaand St, fit the bill well: a spicy lemon black tea, and then a praline-scented black tea with hazelnut and almond, were both suitably aromatic and invigorating, and came with free hot water refills and a little chocolate and friand to nibble. I didn't feel up to cake for breakfast but picked up some ginger cake to take home.
Deadline met, I was ready for a late lunch around 2pm. Following my Lonely Planet mini-guide, I decided to head to Cafedraal, near the massive St Salvador's Cathedral, so I could see a bit more of the city en route. While I felt the welcome from the front of house was rather snooty ("A table? Well, just one dish and order quickly, the kitchen closes at 3..."), my at-table waitress was lovely, recommending which beer would go with my food (something called Bruges-Zot, with a nice rounded bitterness) and being all-round smiley and nice. The food itself was also excellent: I defied the maitre d' and ordered two dishes, though I did concede they could come at the same time -- a half-dozen oysters, and a "North Sea fish soup". The oysters were plump and everything one could want an oyster to be (save for detached-from-their-lower-shells, which I had to attempt myself with the oyster fork); the soup was outstanding. Tender chunks of salmon and whitefish, mussels and a fat prawn swam in a rich, tomatoey broth laden with finely diced vegetables. Little croutons, spread with a rouille that was piquant rather than creamy and sprinkled with shredded cheese, acquired a perfect texture and savouriness from bathing in the soup. Though listed under starters, this was easily hearty enough to be a main course in itself; I left full and satisfied.
After a canal tour and a walk around the city, it was time for more beer-sampling at the oldest pub in Bruges, Cafe Vlaamische. I was curious to try a Gueze, which they had on the menu: it turned out to be a light-tasting beer with a long, slightly sour aftertaste. Next I tried a Brugge Tripel, a heavier beer, more in the style of the ones I had sampled the day before.
For a final Belgian meal, I succumbed to the tourist lure of the restaurants lining the grand square of Markt, with their prix-fixe menus of typical Belgian specialities: I couldn't leave without at least one meal of moules frites! For starters I went for the shrimp croquette, which was tasty enough but overall unremarkable. The mussels, cooked in beer, were really quite good -- the beer-based liquor was heady and savoury, and complemented the juicy mussels and tangy sauce. Dessert was a choice of ice cream or chocolate mousse; I picked the latter, which did what it said on the tin that it might well have come out of.
So, that was Bruges in a nutshell (or teaspoon). Plenty of good food and new places, and a post to boot! Let's see how much I can catch up from here on...
