Comments on: Brouge: The new Belgo? [invite to review]

By: Andrew Fisher

Andrew Fisher — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 14:16:36 +0000

First of all I would like to thank Foodeater for reviewing my restaurant. Overall a positive review and we shall take note of any comments where we can try to improve.

I thought I would write a response as the hint to what we offer is in the spelling of our name ‘Brouge’ which is an English take on the spelling of a lovely Belgian city ‘Bruges’. We offer a fusion of Modern English with Belgian as explained in our menu. We do offer core traditional Belgian dishes on our menu (Salade Liégeoise, Waterzooi de poulet, Gigot a La Cuillère, Stoemp Saucisse, Moules Frites, Waffles) and we add more of the hearty dishes/stews in the winter such as ‘Vlaamse Karbonade’. The main Belgian influence on our menu is cooking with Beer which runs throughout, and the Ribs which the reviewer liked were cooked with a Belgian Lambiek Beer ‘Mort Subite Geuze’ which has a cideresque quality matched well to the baby back pork ribs we serve.

Many of the modern Belgian Bistros/restaurants in Belgium offer a very similar theme to what we offer, which is simply to offer many ‘Modern world’ dishes along with a core of Belgian traditional dishes. See a few restaurant menus of those we have visited in Bruges below;
http://www.arthies.be/EN_menu.php
http://www.sacre-coeur.be/default.asp?page=10
http://www.parkrestaurant.be/alacarte.htm
http://www.curiosa-brugge.com/menu.php

Our main philosophy on the food we serve is to source locally where we can, and make everything from fresh ingredients onsite everyday, nothing is ‘bought in’ ready prepared, and we also try to keep our prices as low as is feasible. Come and give us a try.

Thanks
Andy
Brouge

By: Kang L.

Kang L. — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 11:28:13 +0000

Kavey/Lizzie – Immense and ribs, yummy I’ll make a note to go to Bruges sometime soon.

Gourmet Chick – Speaking of ribs; I vaguely remember eating really amazing ribs at this restaurant, which looks like a double storey old-style pub, in dark woods. I can’t remember what it was called but I do seem to recall it was amazing! I also remember the bilingual nature of Belgium, well tri-lingual almost, three menus in french, dutch and english!

By: Lizzie

Lizzie — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 11:06:23 +0000

How disappointing that they don't serve 'proper' Belgian food. I had a great foody long weekend in Bruges not so long ago - the food was (while expensive) immense. Lizzie’s last blog post..Asmara - An Eritrean Adventure

By: Gourmet Chick

Gourmet Chick — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 08:57:47 +0000

I guess the moules are Belgian but not that much else (unless you count cooking food in Beer). I lived in Leuven for six months a few years ago to study - such a great town! Gourmet Chick’s last blog post..Trattoria Dal Billy (Gourmet Chick in Italy)

By: Kavey

Kavey — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 21:25:09 +0000

How strange that they've called attention to the Belgian connection with their very name but have so few dishes that bring that to the table. That said, I learned on my latest trip to Bruges that ribs are indeed a local speciality (albeit not served with chinese-style sauce, as in this case) and had what may well be the best ribs of my life, plain-cooked and utterly addictive, in a tiny little restaurant in which I'd made an advance booking for my gang of 16. I still dream about those ribs a couple of years later! Kavey’s last blog post..The Month of Peas