The name of ER PU.RE Restaurant gives you a hint about the chef's inclinations. It plays on the French words for "pure air" and the Chinese Pu'er tea variety. No surprise then that tea aromas find their way into the dishes of Chef Vincent Vervisch along with some East-Asian influences.
ER PU.RE Restaurant has been on the Brussels culinary scene for less than a year, having opened in August 2011. A while back a discounted coupon site offered a five-course Menu découverte at ER PU.RE for a reasonable price, so I grabbed the opportunity to discover this new restaurant.
The restaurant is towards the end of Avenue Louise, not too far from the Bois de la Cambre.
There are various tea containers in the entrance corridor, so diners can have a sniff of the tea flavors that will be present in the dishes.
We were seated between the bar counter and the window. To our right
and to our left, where we could see the street traffic and trams
This is the main dining area (photo taken before we left). They also have a terrace at the end with tables.
Amuse bouche: shrimp in Asian bouillon, goose foie gras purée with red wine sauce. The foie gras was delicious, while the bouillon had so much salt that it was inedible.
Bread and butter. The tiny home-made bread was simple yet delicious. Too bad we were offered a second one only 15 minutes later.
Gazpacho au 'thé des enfants' with watermelon and kriek-flavored mousse (picture taken after eating a few spoonfuls). Refreshing.
Sabayon au Saint-Jacque au thé Matcha, mousse au vin blanc, encre de seiche. Delicious combination.
Main dish: Filet mignon de boeuf, sauce Romeo & Juliette with cigar flavors, sauteed vegetables and grilled onion. The smoky sauce went well with the beef although if felt a bit like Worcestershire sauce. The yellow mashed squash was a nice discovery. If only the chef had put a few more 'droplets'.
Alternative main dish: Rouget with broccoli-wasabi purée, with the same sauteed vegetables and grilled onion as the beef dish above. The red mullet - cooked without any seasoning - was unimpressive.
Duo de fromages du maitre affineur Van Tricht, from right to left: some aged goat cheese, Epoisse, strawberry jam. Well presented but the portions were too small.
Sorbet: yuzu and Thai red curry. Interesting flavors, too bad the sorbet was already melting by the time it was served.
Overall, our experience at ER PU.RE restaurant was mixed. The food was innovative and we enjoyed discovering some new flavors. The chef clearly has potential. Unfortunately, service was lacking. There were only two employees in the dining room that evening: a lady receptionist/bartender and a waiter. The young waiter was polite and efficient but he obviously could not keep us with the workload once the restaurant got half full. For example, after we had finished our main dish, we waited 35 minutes before we managed to draw the attention of the lady and the plates were cleared.
Finally, our last memory at Er Pure restaurant is not so positive: after having paid the bill, we made our way to the exit alone and left the restaurant without any greetings. No one had noticed that we were leaving.
We are glad that we had a discounted coupon and did not pay their regular prices, which are on par with some Brussels fine dining restaurants. Unlikely to return to this restaurant.
ER PU.RE Restaurant
Avenue Louise, Ixelles
http://erpure.be/
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