Popular? A severe understatement. By 8:45 pm on a Saturday evening not only were all tables at this downtown restaurant full, so were all counter seats around the well-lit, open-style kitchen at the end farthest from the entrance.
San Brussels, in the Sablon quarter of the Belgian capital, emanates a refreshing, eclectic, loft-like atmosphere, with almost Zen-like décor: bare-brick walls, wood floor and a winding garland of metal leaves weaving its way across the ceiling. Central tables even feature iron-grill wraparounds.
The food, eaten only with custom-designed bowl and spoon, bursts with surprises, beginning with ‘pressed head,’ which was the amuse bouche on the restaurant’s tasting menu that we ordered. By origin, a central European dish, it's a miniature square of pig head terrine with a hint of nuttiness from a pea and carrot mousse. A topping of mustard seeds and a smear of basil loaned added freshness. A 2014 Clauses de Jo-Belles Pierres from Languedoc provided the perfect wine complement.
A small bowl of unfamiliar cuisine bedfellows arrived at-table next under the title ‘Charente-Maritime, a region in southwest France: an oyster on a bed of kiwi puree with a tapenade of Kalamata olives and a net of dill, the sea and the garden variety, and goat cheese snow. Breadcrumbs added a delightful crunchiness to the entire blend.