Inflight Magazine of Brussels Airlines

FOOD & DRINK

Our round-up of favourite restaurants from Brussels Airlines’ short-haul network

Sésame ITALY 20r Via delle Conce, Florence, tel. , www.sesame.it

In this Renaissance city, a departure from the norm is daring and risky, but this is precisely what Osvaldo Mellini has done at his Sésame Fusion Restaurant and Oyster Lounge. He has created a space that enchants you the moment you walk through the door. Furnishings from Morocco and eclectic artifacts conjure an atmosphere of elegance, exotica and a touch of mystery.

The two-part menu is equally beguiling, with international offerings that include traditional North African filo pastry with meat, apricot, prune and almond fillings; the wonderfully named zaalook (zucchini, eggplant and tomato speziati); the signature filet de veau (veal medallions with lobster and truffle); and some mouth-watering tajine and cous cous dishes.

For palates seeking a more local flair, the di casa nostra (house speciality) menu offers creations such as black ravioli with rocket, mussels and lime, osso bucco and the city’s signature repast bistecca alla Fiorentina. Naturally there are oysters, plus a range of tantalising desserts.

For a four-course meal for two, with one of Tuscany’s delectable wines, expect to spend about €90. DC

Foodie corner

Herb and toasted pitta salad: Middle Eastern cuisine is perfect hot-weather food, especially if you’re eating alfresco. Try Anissa Helou’s traditional fattûsh

Toast one pitta bread and break it into bite-sized pieces. Mix in a bowl with three tablespoons sumac (a deep red

spice) and six tablespoons of good olive oil. Shred a small gem lettuce. Peel, quarter

and then slice a cucumber. Slice 100g of spring onions. Add 300g chopped tomatoes and toss. Top with 100g each of chopped mint and purslane, and 200g of flat leaf parsley. Season with sea salt and serve straight away. Taken from Anissa Helou’s Modern Mezze (Quadrille, €29.31/£18.99)

Temple

MALLORCA 11 Plaça Trogreso, Palma, tel. There’s something about the rowdy drama of a produce market that makes the surrounding area ripe for gentrification. In Palma, it’s Santa Catalina, a run-down neighbourhood that’s very much on the up – but only if you know where to go.

Down the road from a vintage store and a lot of nothing you’ll find the recently opened Temple, one of the city’s hottest restaurants. An olive’s throw from the market, the restaurant takes its cues from Philippe Starck, with ghost-style chairs and daubs of bold colour. The food is decidedly upmarket and modern – there’s even a Beluga caviar pizza (priced at €239) on the menu to prove it. But there are also surprisingly affordable options for a less decadent customer. A seven-course tasting menu with foie gras costs a mere €29.

Whereas most restaurants in Palma don’t start up until later, Temple (only open for dinner) opens its kitchen from 6pm, but make sure you call ahead. TC

El Pimpi

SPAIN 62 Calle Granada, Malaga, tel. 
Belying the seedy resonance of its name, El Pimpi is a favoured feeding zone for Malaga’s in-crowd, as signatures from Antonio Banderas, Pedro Almodóvar and Picasso’s grandkids scrawled across the well-aged wine barrels testify.

Duck into this spit-and-sawdust bodega down a cobbled Malaga side street and you’ll find yourself facing a wall-length bar, fronted with dark wood and crowned with the head of an ornery looking bull. If the throng is ferocious here, head for the rear room whose walls, plastered with bullfight posters, echo to the finger-clicking strains of modern flamenco music.

To make like the locals, order blood-dark copas of sweet Malaga dulce from the barrel, then snack copiously on circular wooden tablas of Serrano ham, sheep’s cheese and strips of chorizo. Alternatively, nibble daintily on tapas of avocado and anchovy (campesinos) or ham and black pudding (pringas).

Don Francisco Campos, owner of El Pimpi since the swinging 60s, describes it as “the city’s last traditional taverna”. Traditional or not, this is the place where feisty Andalucians come to fiesta, so don’t expect any kind of ambience before 10pm – and expect to have trouble getting a table after.

The average price of tapas and wine for two is €18. HFL

* If you know a great restaurant that you want to share with other b.there! readers, let us know. Email:

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