You've probably heard of Culinaria, an annual event that brings together (mostly) Michelin starred chefs and foodies at Tour & Taxis in Brussels. We have never attended because for the same amount of money we can sit down for a 4 course meal in a fine dining establishment, without having to wait in line standing and without disposable plates, plastic forks/knives and paper napkins.
For 2013, Culinaria's concept is that of "Street Food". They also organize a few "Culinaria on Tour" events, and this Sunday 4 August they were in Knokke. The setting on the beach was quite nice.
Notice the dress code at the bottom:
There were three restaurateurs and one chocolatier present:
• Bouchéry - Damien Bouchéry
• La Grappe d’Or - Clément Petitjean
• L’Air du Temps - Sang Hoon Degeimbre
• Pierre Marcolini
Of the 3 savory dishes, the lobster hotdog by Clément Petitjean looked the most appealing. Anyway it was almost 15:30 and we had eaten already so we just tried the dessert by Marcolini.
There was not much creativity - if any at all - going into this "dessert". I would rather call it mignardises and coffee. It consisted of 4 chocolates and 1 macaron that were already on a disposable plate. Three macaron flavors were available; I picked pistachio. When you order, they take out a small ice-cream cup (caramel au beurre salé) from a freezer, put it on the plate and hand it to you along with a voucher for a Nespresso coffee.We enjoyed the mignardises by a table overlooking the beach.
There was a small stand by Kalios offering tastings of their olive oils, which we had discovered through Gastronomiz last December. Fromages de Suisse was a sponsor and was showcasing Gruyere cheese at its stand next to Marcolini. Now, seriously, if you want your cheese to be discovered or further appreciated, would you charge 3€ for a handful of Gruyere cubes ? This PR approach was rather...cheesy.
For us, the best part about Culinaria Knokke, besides being on the beach on this warm sunny afternoon, was the event organized by Filigranes bookshop in parallel, called « La digue des Auteurs ». They had some writers presenting and signing their books, young cheerful employees were offering complimentary wines and snacks plus they had some beach chairs.
Missed Culinaria Knokke and still want to experience Culinaria on Tour? Don't worry, the next editions will take place in Antwerp (early October) and Brussels (end of November).
Culinaria on Tour
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