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© Sarah Eechaut
Bouchéry,
Brussels
Tastes and textures. Herbs and happiness.
Gastronomic restaurant Bouchéry, a recent
opening in the suburban south of Brussels is all
you could want for in a gourmet experience. “My
inspiration comes when I am cutting the herbs
I need,” explains Damien Bouchery of his locally
sourced seasonal menus. And local means
local, with herbs culled from the terrace garden
upstairs. The menus are short, with only three
starters and three mains, but varied; the threecourse
lunch (a snip at ¤ 24) stands shoulder-toshoulder
with the à la carte choices. The cooking
is outstanding. Veal cheeks, a set menu option,
glisten darkly on the plate; “melt in the mouth”
good, enthuses my dining companion. The firm
white flesh of the sizeable chunk of Iberico Pata
Negra pork fillet is succulent and flavoursome.
But the real pleasure is to be served food evidently
prepared with passion and sourced with
knowledge. The herbs and unusual vegetation
The Food Special
crop up throughout the menu. Nasturtium petals
plucked from a plant growing on the tree-shaded
terrace outside decorate an amuse-bouche.
A platter of cheeses arrives before dessert with a
side of sharply dressed salad leaves. Some look
prickly as if they might sting, but their slightly
bitter taste cuts through the butteriness of the
cheeses. Bouchery also gives plenty of textural
contrast both through his choice of ingredients
and their preparation. A cappuccino of lobster
bisque, the second amuse-bouche, is topped with
an airy celery foam. Hidden is the surprise of
little cubes of crisp, Granny Smith apple. Slices
of pure white radish or organic beetroot add
crunch to the juicy Pata Negra and veal cheek.
Similarly to The Word, colour plays its very own
part at Bouchéry: a mash of violet potato swirls
across a plate and the orange nasturtium petals
sit lightly beside the crispy carroty spring roll.
Bright, really bright yellow egg yolk captures
the attention in a starter served in a bowl with
Trumpet de la Morte, black chanterelles, and
crunchy bits of Jerusalem artichoke. There’s
that texture thing again. Interiors are simple
but classy and thought through. The timeless
blond wood-framed Wishbone chairs by Hans
77
Wegner front tables pert with crisp linen. Cream
leather banquettes opposite are accented with
spherical pale turquoise pendant lamps. This
is the only colour besides a simple red wild
flower amongst a vase of green grasses. The
lunchtime dining room receives light from two
sides and looks towards the terrace. The additional
main dinning room with high ceilings is
overseen by twin Spanish landscape images of
‘escape’ taken by Bouchery’s actress-partner
and the restaurant’s charming host, Bénédicte.
Bouchery from Breton leads the kitchen of his
eponymously named restaurant. Sharp readers
will have picked up the accent on the restaurant’s
name. This was added by Bénédicte to lend a
bit of glamour to the name that also references
boucherie, a butchers. Having earned a Michelin
star at his last restaurant, Bistrot du Mail in
Ixelles/Elsene, the cuddly men from Michelin
will doubtless be deliberating on Bouchery’s
Bouchéry soon. (GD)
Bouchéry
Chaussée d’Alsemberg 812A Alsembergsesteenweg
1180 Brussels
bouchery-restaurant.be