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After days of negotiations, a meeting with
two of the Order’s founding members was
scheduled. We were set to meet at seventeen
hundred hours at the Order’s HQ, a discreet
and slightly shabby bar located, strangely
enough, in front of the Manneken Pis. The
password had been set a few days earlier.
Bloempanch. I was to carry a magazine with
me for identifi cation purposes.
The Meet
On the day I am supposed to meet with our
Bloempanchers, I enter the bar, head towards
the counter and whisper the password
to a nervous-looking barman. His rapid
evaluation of me out of the way, he points to
a table removed from the bustle of the rest
of the bar. I sit and start to look for possible
emergency exits. A few seconds later the
same barman comes back and asks: “Can I
take your order ?” “One sparkling water”
I manage to say. He smirked: “Not a local,
are you ?” The atmosphere becomes slightly
nerve-racking. A man suddenly appears
and says: “That’s all right Jeff, she’s with me.
Bring us two Faros.”
The President of the Order, Bob de Backer is
standing right in front of me with co-founder
Jean Tondeur. Dressed in dark grey suits with
royal blue ties, both men wear what I soon realize
is the Order’s Emblem: a huge pewter
medal painted in black with white spots.
The Order of the Bloempanch was
founded in 1996 under the initiative of fi ve
friends who thought it important to stand
up for Brussels’ cultural, folk and culinary
culture. They also sought to give added impetus
to archaic and disappearing cooking
specialities such as Bloempanch, a typical
meal from the Marolles.
At its core, the Bloempanch was the daily
meal of white-collar workers from Brussels’
Marolles district in the late 19 th and early
20 th century. It is a black pudding made out
of buckwheat fl our, pork fat and blood. Initially
considered as the “poor man’s meal”
because of its popularity with the working
classes, it progressively disappeared from
plates, inversely proportioned to the rise in
post-World War II living standards. However,
since 1996 and thanks to the Order’s
relentless promotion of the delicacy, one
can once again quite easily fi nd Bloempanch
at selected butchers’ and restaurants.
But what about the recipe? I ask. Bob
de Backer and Jean Tondeur look at me as
if I am just about to overstay my welcome.
“Sorry Miss, the recipe is a well-kept secret,
the kind that is only to be transmitted from
02
father to son. But we’ll give you a few addresses
to buy or eat some.”
I realize that I suddenly am walking on a
thin line, and opt to change subjects…
The Order also deals with solemn matters
so as to perpetuate the cultural and
linguistic heritage of the city: up to now, the
Brotherhood has been able to have around
30 street-name signs installed in the historical
city centre. Wandering through the city’s
centre, it is hard to miss these white and blue
enamelled boards re-baptizing the offi cial
streets in Brussels dialect and describing
true or legendary urban stories.
Every year during spring, a Chapter
(or general assembly) takes place in
Brussels’City Hall, allowing the Order to
set up Honoris Causa members. They all
share a common feature: they have contributed
to exert the infl uence of Brussels or
their region on a cultural, political or artistic
level. Among the most famous of them
are Jazz musician Toots Thielemans, singer
Annie Cody, Minister Charles Picqué and
International Olympic Committee Chairman
Jacques Rogge. (The Next Chapter will
be held on Saturday 14 th June at 15h30 and
Operation Bloempanch the surreal
Where to Taste It
Restobières
Rue des Renards
/ Vossenstraat 32
1000 Brussels
La fl eur en Papier Doré
Rue des Alexienstraat 55
1000 Brussels
Where to Buy It
Boucherie Embourg
Place du Colonel Bremer
/ Kolonel Bremerplein 114
1030 Brussels
will be followed by a Bloempanch tasting
and a procession to the Manneken Pis. In a
bid to showcase the Brotherhood activities,
non-members are welcome).
President Bob de Backer tells me it is
also an ideal way to recruit new members, at
which point I can’t help but wonder what kind
of strange and obscur tests one has to endure
to be part of the Order. “Easy”, President de
Backer says. “All you have to do is send me a
mail and apply for membership! There are
various levels according to the subscription
you chose (from € 15 to € 25 a year).”
Our conversation nearing its end, it is
time to part, but not at the same time. Bob de
Backer and Jean Tondeur order Faro beers as
a pretext to stay longer. We shake hands and
I leave the fi rst so as not to attract one’s attention.
Mission accomplished, Bloempanch
infi ltrated.
www.bloempanch.be
01. The Mighty Bloempanch
02. Co-Founder and Committee Member:
Jean Tondeur
THE THIRD WORD — 73