Inflight Magazine of Brussels Airlines

FOOD & DRINK

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

Beccofino ITALY

Piazza degli Scarlatti, Florence, tel. 

Perched on the south bank of the Arno, just over the Ponte Santa Trinita, Beccofino is perhaps Florence’s chicest restaurant. The cool, minimalist interior – all stripped pine floors, bleached linen and underfloor lighting – is dominated by a huge horseshoe-shaped bar, which is reputed to serve the best Martinis in the city. But it’s the food that’s the real draw here. Melding modern
Mediterranean cuisine with more typically Tuscan dishes, the menu features lots of pasta, meat and, unusually for Florence, fish. The wonderfully robust Chianti rabbit with baby lettuce is the most obvious nod towards the region’s rustic culinary tradition. For something a little more refined, you could try the delicately flavoured roasted veal with artichokes alla Romana. Puddings are equally accomplished – the chocolate fondant is meltingly rich, while the almond mousse makes a light, fragrant finish to a meal. Added to this, the service is brisk and charming, while the menu is augmented by an extensive, reasonably priced wine list.

Expect to pay around €60 per person with wine. TL

Foodie corner

If you’re in Stockholm this month, make sure you visit Taste Delights (24-26 August), Sweden’s biggest food festival. You’ll be able to sample local delicacies such as salmon, sprats (pictured), elk salami and cloudberry wine. Otherwise, you can pay homage to all things Scandinavian within the confines of your own kitchen – try Sweden’s most famous dish, ‘Jansson’s Temptation’:

Take one large onion, slice and fry until golden. Cut 500g of floury potatoes into julienne strips. Layer in a buttered casserole dish with 125g of drained Swedish anchovies (sprats preserved in sugar, salt and spices). Pour over two tablespoons of anchovy liquid with 125ml cream and bake at 200ºC for 30 minutes. Then pour over another 125ml of cream and bake for a further 20 minutes. Cover with foil if the top is browning too quickly.

Restaurante Guggenheim Bilbao SPAIN

Abandoibarra Avenue, Bilbao, tel:  , www.restauranteguggenheim.com

While Bilbao is strewn with incredible eateries, lunch at Frank Gehry’s museum offers something special. Martin Berasategui – the three Michelin-starred chef – holds the culinary reigns at the Guggenheim, while his protégé, Josean Martinez Alija, pulls the strings.

The Gastronomic Restaurant is pure Berasategui – vine tomato stuffed with baby squid; curd of pistachio in coffee – but the menu del día is the real reason to visit.

Starters include avocado with sautéed prawns, and seafood and cabbage terrine; the main course of choice must be the glazed leg of lamb, and the caramelised pancake with cheese ice cream is worth the trip alone.

It’s the perfect introduction to high-end cuisine if you haven’t the funds to enjoy the region’s Michelin restaurants. The only downside is that you eat in a canteen-like area. But, as it’s the Guggenheim, off-the-wall is strangely fitting. Price: €14.05 + VAT during week, €18.40 + VAT weekends. MW

Sacacorchos SPAIN

Calle Alamos 18, Málaga, tel.  www.sacacorchosmalaga.com

Signature cuisine at off-the-peg prices is what’s on offer at Malaga’s latest dining hotspot, Sacacorchos. Situated close to the Cervantes Theatre, it makes a perfect pre- or post-show dinner spot.

Fresh ingredients bought from the city’s central market provide daily inspiration for owner and chef Gonzalo Morales, who prides himself on creating inventive but uncomplicated dishes. Don’t miss the huevos rotas or ‘broken eggs’, a traditional egg and potato dish transformed by Morales into something more sophisticated by adding ingredients such as foie gras and sweet onion, chilli and garlic langoustines, or slivers of Serrano ham.

The creativity doesn’t stop in the kitchen. Wafer-thin TV screens and changing art works line the all-glass walls, and the menu comes in Braille. In the pipeline, too, is a kind of happy hour wine-tasting – which is only right, since ‘Sacacorchos’ means ‘corkscrew’.

Tasting menu, approx €17. Three-course lunch menu, approx €10. Meal for two with wine, €40. TOS

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