Did you know that Belgium has 129 Michelin-starred restaurants? Based on per square km, considering that Belgium is a relatively smaller country compared to others in Europe, that’s like one of the highest in the world!
Located practically in the heart of Europe, it’s understandable that Belgian cuisine is influenced by German, French, Austrian and Swiss cuisines. Belgium is also blessed with lots of natural resources to fuel its cuisine – the forests of the Ardennes are rich in game and meats, agricultural produce from its fertile plains and the rich marine life of the North Sea.
I admit I have not been exposed much to Belgian cuisine and hence it was a delight to be introduced to it at a recent lunch in Soleil Restaurant, hosted by H.E. The Ambassador of Belgium. That lunch also kicked-off “Belgian Week” in Soleil and its award-winning Belgium Chef, Evert Onderbeke has come up with a tempting array of “A Modern Twist on Belgium Classics”.
The list of modern classic Belgian dishes created by Chef Onderbeke was long and as the good chef wanted us to taste as many of those dishes as possible, tasting portions were served. Therefore, the photos that I snapped (with watermark) and shown below are the petite tasting portions and do not reflect the actual serving. There are also several photos below, provided by Soleil which show the actual portion size.
Potage de Petit Pois – Green Pea Custard, Marinated Goat Cheese, Green Pea Soup, Mint,
Chorizo Crumble
Filet Americain – Veal Tartare, Aged Balsamic Pearls, Miso Cremeux, Pecorino Sorbet
Salade de Homard – Poached Lobster, Nori, Beef Carpaccio, Hijiki, Avocado Ice Cream
Vol-au-Vent – Flaky Puff Pastry holding up Spring Chicken, Mini Eryingyii Mushrooms, Spinach and Chicken Skin Crumble
Gentse Waterzooi – Slow cooked Sea Bass with Saffron Emulsion and Vegetables Julienne
Le Gibier – Pulled Venison Shortrib with Popiah Skin, Celeriac Puree, Poached Pear & Beetroot Ketchup
Carbonnade a la Flamande – Braised Beef Cheeks, Floreffe Double, Dark Chocolate
Hutsepot – Duck Leg Confit, Consomme, Baby Vegetables, Sausage & Foie Gras
For dessert, try the Coupe Fraises which has strawberries, Cuberdon Ice-cream, hibiscus, yoghurt and basil Cremeux. It’s perfectly executed and one of their most popular sweet items!
The “Belgian Week” affair will run until 14 November 2016, so do hurry and get over there soon if you want to check out Chef Onderbeke’s excellent creations. For a total Belgian experience, there’s Belgian Craft Beer on tap or try some of their house mixologist’s Belgian Beer Cocktails.
SOLEIL RESTAURANT
Ground Floor
22A Jalan 17/54
Seksyen 17
46400 Petaling Jaya
Selangor
Tel: +603 7932 5989
Fax: +603 7932 0877
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.soleil.my
*SOLEIL RESTAURANT will be at the above premise until 15 November 2016.
From 5 December 2016, they will be relocated to:
Lot 7 & 8, 2nd Floor
DC Mall, Plaza DC
Damansara City
6 Jalan Damanlela
50490 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-201108261/012-612-5989
KY says
oh my that Veal Tartare!!!
Pureglutton says
It’s really good.