Capoue - Parkour Style

Unusual hobbies and peculiar food inclinations have a way of rewarding one in unusual ways. My Brussels wanderings brought me to a popular site, the pissing cherub near the Grand Palace. Denying my tourist instincts to snap that popular picture (I succumbed later), I focused on the green and red awning covering an Escargots stand instead. I was already full, but how many opportunities does a person have to sample 10 sea snails for €3.50? And the snail decor was so inviting.

While I was debating, the proprietor went inside a nearby restaurant. I waited and paced. I settled near the left front support next to another Belgian. "Do you do parkour", he asks. Perplexed, I reply affirmatively, "yes, in Colorado". This led to a discussion of DemonDrills (aka. Ryan Ford of Apex Movement), Colorado parkour, telltale signs of a traceur (backpack, camelbak, bashed shins - if you do this sport resign yourself to being injured 50% of the time [his quote]), serendipity, and that he's waiting for several Germans and a Japanese girl to arrive for a Saturday parkour jam.

Parkour versus snails? Duh! Parkour always wins out. And who wants to run and jump with snails in their stomach? The guy looking directly at the camera is Jo, the person who invited me.

First stop was SQUARE where we spotted two other traceurs training, Bastien and Rodolphe. It's a great area to work on wall runs, cat hangs, supports, climb ups, QM, rail balancing, striding and precisions.

Nearby are functional sculptures. This one was great for vault combinations. The trees near this long stone bench were fun for linking movements also.

Not only is this a great view of Brussels skyline, but also notice the walls, rails, steps, and skate box. Slightly past the above sculpture, this area presents different combo options and the rails are more open here than at the SQUARE. We were practicing wall run dyno combos among other movements. There's more to explore, but people were getting hungry. More specifically, Martin from ParkourOne was craving Capoue ice cream.

But he got distracted by a nearby art piece whose mesh acted as a trampoline. Not only is it great for practicing front flips (Martin above), side flips (Benji below), but if you're feeling good, try muscle ups (John of ParkourExchange.org).

To this sculpture's right, we had more wall run challenges, rail balances, climb ups.

One spot, so many options. Great views, fun challenges, new parkour buddies, there's even something for skaters.

Finally, we were all quite hungry and ready to move on. Capoue ice cream was calling. We were informed it was a 20 minute walk from this spot. Distance dictated 45 minutes which was okay since I saw more of Brussels than anticipated especially if I was on my own. I also learned if you want to pick up hot EU Parliament interns, go there on Thursdays.

We finally arrived to Capoue and I was desperately hoping it was worth it. It's an inviting spot, the orange enough to break through the gray monotony.

I wasn't the only hungry one. We were all craving the Glacier Artisanal goodies.

Fromage blanc and pistachio. The pistachio was pleasantly brown. Brown is typically not a pleasant color, but much less suspiciously colored than bright green pistachio ice cream. It was nicely nutty and the pistachio flavor carried through well. The fromage blanc was a delight, slightly sweet with a tang. Read more about it here. If Capoue was closer to Brussels centre, I would have readily returned for the fromage blanc.

Satisfaction after a hard day of parkour. But wait! We're not finished. We discovered a kids' playground without kids.

Meet Phil, king of the playground lache to precision.


Capoue
Chaussée de Boondael 395A, 1050 Ixelles, Belgium

Patisserie Orientale - Brussels

Walk purposefully without intent scanning your surroundings. Let your brain naturally process incoming images. You're not blind to anything, seeing everything. Great food finds are made this way. Then when purposefully trying to find your serendipitous discovery again, is it hidden?

This was my Patisserie Orientale experience in Brussels. Found it by accident Saturday, tried to find it Sunday and couldn't, gave up and then rediscovered it.

 A patisserie could be your ordinary French bakery, but the Orientale elevates that concept. Look below at the colorful dessert mounds. Dates, figs, almonds, walnuts, pistachio, and more are featured here. This is the place for nifty dessert creations.

 Here are Saturday's selections back to front. A bird's nest with almond "eggs", an almond and pistachio carrè fantaisie (fancy square), green pistache & amande bourse (meaning bag), and l'orange corne de gazelle (horn of gazelle). My favorite was the bourse for taste and design. Second was the square dessert for the fruit sweet underlayer.

 Sunday's adventure led me to a larger tasting. Workouts were in my future. From top left working clockwise we have a twisted pastry with sesame seeds and a syrup (possibly date?), pastry stuffed with crushed nuts and date or fig paste, almond date hearts with some framboise in the filling, amande and mandarine bourse, pistache and noix de coco rocher (boulder), and a packaged dessert of crushed petals around a dense date and pistache mixture (bonus citrus notes).

These selections were based on color and potential ingredients. Afterwards, I wanted to magically transport this place back to Porto then to Colorado. Winners were the twisted pastry especially with the bring you down to earth sesames, the bourse thanks to the amazing mandarine flavor, and the rocher (ahhhh... coconut).

Patisserie Orientale is located near the Grand Palace at #19 Rue du Marche-Aux-Herbes GrasMarkt. Prices are €2.50 per 100 grams.

K-Touch - Brussels

Find the Brussels Stock Exchange, face away at the three streets stemming opposite. Take the left most street until you see the large tree on your left. Eat here. Those were the words spoken by a new Belgian acquaintance. Like a man who drank too much absinthe and scotch (I had), I "smoothly" bumbled my way to this restaurant at 22:45h. Like a hazy red beacon, it's sign beckoned from the tree's branches (from another perspective).

Open until midnight, K-Touch is an affordable option in the Grand Palace's district. According to my friend, it also serves remarkable food (agreed) amongst this street filled with Thai, Indonesian, and Vietnamese restaurants. I fell upon the menu like a starving man. #03 Tom Yam Haed (spicy soup with mushrooms and lemongrass, €5) and #32 Kaeng Deang Kai (chicken, red curry, coconut milk, peanuts, Thai vegetables, €11) were the choices. To fend off my stupor, I was given these rice crisps that tasted slightly of cheese.

Brussels is wonderful like this. Food seems to either features cheese or raspberries. It's simple, it's tasty, and I like it.

First course, the Tom Yam Haed soup. Swimming with perfectly thick mushrooms, the broth was fragrant and medium spicy. It was quite welcome since any warmth was tempering off as the evening continued. The place mat served as the perfect backdrop.

 Next was the Kaeng Deang Kai curry. It hit the right spice notes - quickly eatable while zinging the taste buds. The chicken was plentiful, the vegetables too few, but all the food seemed high quality. The complimentary rice and the curry disappeared quickly.

This is a teaser for their food presentations. The curries are simple, a double ceramic bowl layer, bottom with candle for heat, top with curry. Other serving dishes with vegetables and meats were more elaborate.

 I'm very thankful for this recommendation. It's great to enjoy good multi-cultural restaurants at affordable prices. You can thank Belgian's liberal immigration policy for this. The service was friendly here also. Brussels is more service oriented than Portugal while the tipping policy is identical. This means less frustration and a happier dining experience.

More art, other lit areas as seen through the stairs. The WC is tucked around the stairs.

37, Place Saint-Gery 1000 Bruxelles, Brussels. Total bill: €16 (rice crisps complimentary).

Tour D'y Voir - Brussels

Trying new food is like crack. I'm pretty temperate and boring at home. In Denver, this means lunch is either Chipotle or Panda Express. Dinner is eggs, pizza at Whole Foods, or proteins bars before and after crossfit workouts at Apex Movement. Then introduce me to a new restaurant and watch me go crazy. Unlike others' entertainment budgets, mine is dedicated solely to food. This is amplified on my weekend trips from Portugal.

Tour D'y Voir is a crazy example. I discovered the restaurant Saturday when a Brunello Cucinelli store caught my attention. I was there too early for the advertised lunch special and wanted to wander. Then five minutes after Sunday breakfast, I was across the street eyeballing the place. I walked past it and noticed their lunch special advertised. A good sign, but I just ate. I walked away, I walked back, Tintin preached that I already ate, Captain Haddock added "blistering barnacles! eat man!". Captain Haddock won.

Welcome to Tour D'y Voir, home of the €16 three course lunch special. Read their online menu and you'll understand why Captain Haddock won. Located on Level 1, above a salad place, I was nervous that I was dressed improperly (shorts, tshirt, backpack) and that a reservation would be required. Fortunately, their staff put me right at ease, assuring me there was room and ushered me to their left side dining area.

This place is elegant and refined without being snobby. Notice the outdoor view, the furnishing, the paintings and their fetching menu:

 If you're ordering their lunch special, you won't require this menu. It's certainly fun to browse, though. They also have a nice wine selection. Sunday's lunch was not written anywhere so you must forgive my secondhand descriptions and be satisfied with pictures. The server apologized that first course could not be well translated into English, but I was sold with the words "pasta, cheese".

Even then, words were missed in translation. Here we have a small salad with a fruit vinaigrette (framboise perhaps?) accompanying the cheese (fromage) stuffed pastry (not pasta) topped with a tangier vinaigrette. The softened cheese had notes of sweetness (amazing my handwritten notes read). The pastry shell had the consistency of flaky phyllo dough.

The second course featured chicken and vegetables. The baked potatoes were lightly seasoned without their skins. The vegetables were cooked perfectly soft and retained their flavor essence. Not mushy, but separated easily with a fork. The chicken had such a savory smell. It was slightly moist with no hints of dryness. Bedding the chicken was brown gravy and two large onion slices. The onions were cooked until naturally slightly sweet.

Finally, I finished with the third course. It was a choice of coffee or dessert (beer cake). This beer cake was simply amazing. There is a slight beer-like taste amongst its doughy consistency. It doesn't overpower you, but simply states "I'm different than the rest". It was topped with vanilla ice cream and raspberry sauce. Like snow, powdered sugar covers the plate. The crust was flaky and underneath was a dark brown boba-like layer. Each scoop of dessert revealed a new delicious flavor.

Tour D'y Voir opened my eyes to Brussels fine dining scene. I wanted more. Even if I missed Brussels Resto Days, I still had this lunch special. It even bettered my entire 2011 Denver Restaurant Week experience. The staff was friendly, helpful, quiet and efficient. The dish pacing was great and in between I had complimentary seasoned olives, bread and butter.

I strongly recommend this place for its service, decor and most importantly, it's food. And it's dog friendly too.

Enjoy the rest of the pictures. Here we have this dining area's bar (there's another dining area to the right as you come up the stairs).

Tour D'y Voir slowly filling up. Hushed conversation filled the room. Dress ranged from casual to business.

Comfortable seating for drinking enjoyment and conversation. Notice the artwork too.

The box containing my €16 bill.

Tintin and Snowy downstairs.

Captain Haddock at Level 0.

Le Perroquet - Brussels

Know the word resto when in Brussels. And when you see posters for Resto Days act quicker than me. I missed Brussels restaurant week by 1 day. That's what happens when you don't pay attention until Sunday, May 15 at 12:42am and the last day was May 14.

Life goes on, so Sunday was food voyeurism day. As I mentioned before, the gallery district is a restaurant bastion. Le Perroquet greeted me Sunday morning. Their brick facade was a welcome sight along with their indoor and outdoor seating options.

Home to some parakeet art, Le Perroquet also sports a pita heavy menu. I had seen pitas advertised at other small restaurants the previous day so my curiosity won. That, their vast selections and good prices.

I placed my order when I was informed that the kitchen would open in 10 minutes at 12pm. Being that it's too early for good people watching, you can content yourself with a book, a beer, or the aforementioned parakeet art. Besides the bird lurking amongst the liquor bottles, there are painted wood carvings strewn about.

My order was based on two things. First, "Spicy" seemed too typical an order. Second, I felt Middle Earthy. Voila! The Mogador (€7.20)! Blanc de poulet, lardon, raisin sec, oignon cuit, salade mixte.

Brimming with small bacon cuts (lardon), seasoned chicken breast (blanc de poulet), yellow raisins, onions (oignon cuit), mixed greens, it was ideal. The smell was amazing, it was savory as it was colorful. Packing a satisfying punch, it was a welcoming way to begin a Sunday morn. Perfect for a hobbit in other words. The Mogador was also accompanied by four sauces. From the top left working counter-clockwise, I will attempt to describe them - chive yogurt, tangy vinegar (the winning pairing), mediterranean, and 1000 island. I was very happy for these choices and that they were complimentary.

In Portugal, everything is charged to you. Nothing comes with the meal free of charge. Brussels restaurants all had complimentary items as you will discover in my future posts. It's fun discovering countries' restaurant cultures and learning their differences. Just be flexible and ask questions if you're unsure.

The service was great here. Prompt attention was given when I arrived and during my meal. The WC is downstairs to the right of this carving.

Le Perroquet filled up nicely as the afternoon wore on. People shared the wooden tables and chairs with friends or strangers. Notice the man to the left. Lightweight blue blazer with varied plaid lining on the bottom third of the jacket, round black rims, distinguished white hair, cuffs showing a bit, black and white wingtip shoes that fit his essence. His outfit was worth a furtive picture.

The outdoor seating slowly filled too. Nothing like being comfortable with your pet.

Le Perroquet is located at Rue Watteeu 31 - 1000 Bruxelles. Go there, sample more than I did, take many pictures.

Green Fairies Wear Clan Tartans - Delirium & Floris Bar, Brussels

"Delirium. Just saying." the facebook comment read. Truly cryptic, but easily deciphered as Brussels was mentioned on my Facebook. 100 meters from the Grand Palace, tucked in the restaurant alleys, look for pink elephants and the amber glow cast by light reflected through beer glasses.

Delirium has many facets to explore. Boasting a vodka bar, tequila bar, whiskey and absinthe bar, rum bar, cocktail bar, and beer cave, there is much to see. Look around and discover the different rooms before you start drinking and become fixated with the suds at your glass' bottom.

Meet the vodka bar. Surrounded by 400 vodka selections, that UK couple were drinking beer and listening to blues. There isn't much bar seating, but there is table seating to the left. Notice that it's relatively quiet. Earlier in the day, the vodka bar and tavern sections are open and subdued. If you want to leisurely meander through the books/tomes listing beer and vodka decriptions, this is the perfect hour.

I started with the St. Bernardus Wit. It was a lighter beer and served with BBQ chips. While there I chatted with the UK couple and discovered they never visited Colorado, though they've been to many other states. They hope to rectify this soon. After they left, I consulted the vodka tomes.

These are huge and dense with descriptions, pictures, prices and numbers (making it easy for the bartenders to find your selection). This bar opened May 13. It's always nice finding recently opened places. There was one error. Eristoff Vodka, made in Georgia (the country), was listed under the USA. Oops. Anyway, all their books I looked at are organized by country.

However, I was remarkably intrigued by Le Petite Bleu Wodka with Asparagus. The bartender let me have a free sample, so thank you for your great service. The verdict: keep the asparagus cooked on a plate lightly seasoned or wrapped in prosciutto.

This is the beer cave. I'm not sure what else to call it. It's completely dedicated to beer and related paraphernalia. It's quiet during the day and gets much busier at night.

The place is amazing. It was too packed for my taste, but there is a WC toward the back left. This is important if you're drinking a lot.

Sunday evening brought the Floris Bar open at 8pm and closes at 6am. There are 400 absinthes and I started with the Berthe de Joux at 56% for €6. Pale green color, amazing anise notes, burns then coats the tongue soothing it.

Pouring water over the sugar cube (louching) gave it a muddied yellow color. This gave it a smoother taste. This room features 300+ Scotch Whiskys also. I moved to the bar's other side where it was smoke free.

Scotch was next. Absinthe paired with Scotch is probably not recommended, but I was on holidays. First was the Glenmorangie ASTAR (57.1%, Highland, €6 for 2cl, #252). Being that I was born in Missouri, I was drawn and intrigued by the story of it aging in bespoke casks constructed from Missouri Ozarks oaks. It is strongly spicy, biting the tip of tongue. As it gets to the back of your throat, the scotch smoothens and warms you all over.

They were out of my next choice, the Laphroaig Ian Maclead Chieftain's Hogshead (46%, Isle of Islay, €5.60 for 2cl, #134, 1993), but they were out. Then I decided I would try the Caol Ila 12 years (43%, Isle of Islay, €3.80 for 2cl, #22 I think), but the bartender suggested I compare the smell of this and the 18 year. The 18 year won me over (1991 Signatory Vintage, 46%, €7.30, #23 I think).

The smoky smell won me over. The first note appeared sweet, then moved to smoky and oily. During these Scotch samplings, the trouble started. I was told I needed to sample an amazing absinthe.

Welcome to Absinth 35, an amazing strong Czech absinthe registered at 70%. The very passionate bartender topped off a shot glass, placing a sugar cube and matches next to it. He dipped the cube into the absinthe, then lit the cube on fire, letting the sugar sift into the shot. He mimed the universal symbol to "shoot it", so I did. Wow! It was intense, so intense I had to sit and replay the shot in my mind and taste buds. The Scotch tasting was officially interrupted.

Thusly interrupted, enjoy Absinth Beetle. Each bottle of Absinth Beetle contains giant beetle Eurycantha Horrida also known as Spiny Devil Walkingstick. I didn't try #300, but this beetle probably eats green fairies for lunch.

Overall, both Delirium and Floris Bar were excellent experiences. The staff was helpful and friendly. I very much appreciated the thorough alcohol lists. I definitely recommend going there when in Belgium. Enjoy the rest of these pictures.

Tequila Bar

Rum Bar

Different view of the absinthe bar with absinthes on full display