Inflight Magazine of Brussels Airlines

Indulge

Text Nina Lamparski, Victoria Larsson

Favourite restaurants and foodie titbits from Brussels Airlines’ short-haul network

La Truffe Noire

BRUSSELS
12 Boulevard de la Cambre, tel. , www.truffenoire.com

Growing up, most boys have a crush on the girl next door. Not so Luigi Ciciriello who, at the age of 13, fell in love with truffles. “It was written in the stars,” says the owner of La Truffe Noire.

The establishment opened its doors in 1988 and, judging by the busy tables on a Wednesday evening, it has lost none of its mythical appeal. Because of the truffle’s rarity, you don’t come here for a quick bite to eat.

Begin with the cholesterol-free beef carpaccio with sliced black truffles, prepared in front of you. Follow it up with the steamed Saint Pierre fish fillets wrapped in leek and served with black truffle mousse nectar – divine, but nothing on the Périgord Luigi Ciciriello, owner of La Truffe Noire, fell in love with truffles as a boy truffle. Cooked in truffle juice and port wine, it’s worth every single cent of its €150 price tag.

Choose between various menus ranging from €50 to €200. NL

Cloud Nine

STOCKHOLM
1 Torsgatan, tel. , www.restaurangcloudnine.se

Cloud Nine’s airy, yellow interior, complete with cool, tiled floors and ceiling fans, hints at the restaurant’s French leanings. Leanings seemingly confirmed by the menu, which offers classic bistro fare, but also features dishes inspired by former French colonies, like the African trio of salmon – three pieces of oven-baked filets seasoned with harissa, mango and tamarind – or the Vietnamese baby back ribs with tempura-fried veggies, parsnip chips and hot chilli mayonnaise.

But what really makes Cloud Nine a standout is the dessert room. It’s like a blue-painted, 40s opium den, or Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory for grown-ups. There are two dessert menus, which include three puddings and two sorbet palate cleansers. There’s also a cheese plate and seven kinds of cookie. Either way, you will float out of the velvety blue and into the night on Cloud Nine.

Expect to pay around €50/SEK 500 for three courses without wine. VL

Foodie corner

The Merano Wine Festival and the White Truffle Fair in Alba

Foodies should hotfoot it to north Italy this month. The Merano Wine Festival (until 9 November, www.meranowinefestival.com), based just under the Austrian border, makes a good case for the region’s mixed culinary heritage. Expect Tyrolean treats like Speckknödel (bacon dumplings), Kaiserschmarrn (pancake with raisins and jam) and chestnuts in everything.

Meanwhile, the White Truffle Fair in Alba (until 8 November, www.fieradeltartufo.org) sees the Piedmontese pay homage to the “white diamond” with an invitation-only auction and stalls selling all manner of truffle-centric produce. If you can’t get there, La Truffe Noire is the next best thing. It’s the only restaurant in Brussels where you can try the white truffle this season.

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