Breakfast at Le Matin Liègois

Tchantchès and I enjoy a breakfast out now and then.  We'd heard about "Le Matin Liègois" and decided to check them out.  Before going we agreed to put them to the English-test (meaning we'd speak English while there to see how those without French-language skills might be served,) and away we went.

It would be fairly easy to miss this place from the outside, given the low-key sign.

A flashy sign isn't necessary for business here, though.  Le Matin Liègois is known to locals who stop by for breakfast, to pick up bread or a freshly-made sandwich for their day, or who might settle in at some point in the day for a pastry with coffee or tea.

Situated in La Place du Marché, (which is an elgongation off the Place St. Lambert,) it is an easy walk from most places in the centre of Liège.

 Place St. Lambert

 Place du Marché

Le Matin Liègois is a few buildings further walking in this direction, on this side of the street.

A friendly woman behind the counter greeted us, and when asked, answered that yes she was able to speak English.  When we arrived the downstairs was rather busy and so we asked if we could sit upstairs to take breakfast.  We were given a cheerful yes and made our way up a wooden spiral staircase at the back, discovering a quaint and quiet space upstairs with red walls and coloured glass windows.

Menus were already placed at most tables and as we settled down our waiter joined us.  We asked and found that he did not speak English, but he indicated that if we showed him what we wanted on the menu he should be able to help us.  As we hadn't looked over the menu just yet, Tchantchès asked for a coffee (€1.70) and I asked about teas.  I was brought a tea-menu, which showed the restaurant carries a variety of Lipton teas and infusions.  As I'm not partial to the brand, I asked for a cappuccino (€2.00) to everyones confusion I think, but mine.

One note about cappuccinos here: I have yet to find one that comes with steamed milk atop.

Ordering a cappuccino in Liège will often result in the receipt of something like this:

(an espresso topped with sweetened whipped cream and cinnamon.)

Tchantchès pointed to the "complet" (€8.00), which is a breakfast consisting of a regular croissant, a chocolate croissant, a white-bread roll, slices of cheese (a middle-of-the-road gouda in this case,) butter, a selection of spreads including honey, jam, nutella, and sirop de Liège, a soft-boiled egg and an accompanying coffee or tea.

I pointed to the "2 oeufs sur le plat" breakfast combination (€5.00), which includes 2 sunny-side-up eggs, buttered bread, and a coffee or tea.  At least it should have.  When our waiter brought our meals, he presented Tchantchès with his plates and coffee, and then placed one tiny plate in front of me.  A single sunny-side-up egg.

I apologized and explained to the waiter that my breakfast was supposed to have 2 eggs, and pointed again to my desired meal on the menu.  He apologized explaining in French that his colleague had misunderstood that I'd wanted just one egg, and said he'd get right to fixing it.  Another egg was quickly brought to me, and at this point I had to try again and explain that I'd really wanted the full meal pointing to the bread and coffee in the meal description.

Fortunately another couple were eating upstairs with us and when I said "toast" one of them tossed a "pain grillé" to the waiter, at which point he realized I was still missing part of my meal.  I never did get my bread, but Tchantchès had actually been given an extra roll along with his soft-boiled egg, so he gave it to me and we called it even after the waiter returned with my coffee.

Overall we felt the quality of the food was good, but not outstanding.  Tchantchès has a taste for fine pastries and thought the croissants weren't bad, but were also nothing special.  The bread roll was reasonably fresh, though rather tasteless.  My eggs were correctly cooked and well seasoned, tasting lightly of butter, salt and pepper, though Tchantchès' soft-boiled egg was bizarrely overcooked in one part while being completely undercooked with a transparent white in another part.  We noted as well that the spreads provided with his breakfast were likely placed in their pots the night before or possibly even earlier, judging by the skin that had developed on the (normally semi-fluid) sirop de Liège.

Part of Tchantchès' breakfast.  (Hungry bugger had already eaten his croissant and soft-boiled egg before I'd gotten my camera out!)

Despite the wrinkle in service, everyone was unfalteringly friendly, tried their best to get things right even with the language difference, and service was fairly quick.  The woman minding the counter downstairs seemed eager to practice her English as she rang us up, making small talk with us and wishing us a good stay in Liège on our way out.

Le Matin Liègois

Place du Marché, #20

Open 7am - 6pm Monday - Saturday, 9am - 12pm Sunday.

Sláinte! Guinness in Liège

It's true, it is St. Patrick's Day as we're posting this, but we know we can't possibly be the only ones who (no matter the date,) like to know where in a city we might be able to find a good pint of Guinness.

There are several restaurants and pubs in Liège that offer Guinness, but most of them serve it from the can.  If you're looking for Guinness on-tap, here are a few places we've found it:


---The Shamrock - Located at the intersection of Rue St. Gilles and Rue Louvrex (about 5 minute walk from the Pont D'Avroy.)

---The Celtic - After a lengthy closure for renovations, this pub has just re-opened.  Located at 143-145 Blvd. de la Sauvenière (at the Pont D'Avroy.)

---Mad Murphy's - Located at 21Rue St.-Jean-en-Isle (in the Carré.)


Please do let us know if you've found another pub pouring Guinness in Liège, and we'll add the listing here!

Artefum

We passed by Artefum the other day, and felt it only right to mention them here.  Yes, Artefum is rather unimpressive on the outside...

They receive mention here, however, because this little shop, (located at #1 Place St. Lambert,) carries Liège-specific souvenirs, such as shot-glasses, scarves, postcards and even Tchantchès and Nanesse dolls.  As well, there is a selection of "Belgium" souvenirs and the typical "Brussels" and Mannekin Pis paraphernalia.  They manage to pack a lot into a little space.

Being a "Tabac", Artefum also carries a variety of tobacco products, as well as gum and candies, magazines and newspapers.

Next time we pass by, we'll try to get the store-hours to put here.

Cucinella

Fine Italian fare with a modern influence.  Situated on rue de la Casquette, on the edge of "the Carré", this restaurant is one we love.  Judging by the full room the past few times we've visited, we're guessing the word has spread on Cucinella, and how could it not with food like theirs?

Salads, scallops, tartars, and carpaccios are handled with great skill - we feel it's one of the best places in Liège for these.  The "salade folle" is a delicious showcase for the chefs talent with these items.

Cooked fish and meats are well handled, though occasionally left 20 seconds too long on the grill or in the pan.

We've yet to meet a pasta we don't like here.

Deserts are house-made, and finely executed.  (We try to save a little extra-room for them!)

We've always found the service to be warm and professional - They leave you time to talk and enjoy the meal without needless interruptions, but they never leave you for very long with an empty glass or waiting for your next course.  We know that at least some of the servers are comfortable working in English; we've never seen an anglophone table experience difficulty making their order known nor have we observed a different standard of service for English speakers.

The restaurant's web-site includes a map, contact information, listing of the (prix fixe) menu for the day as well as the full carte for food.  Sadly the wine list and cocktail menus are not presented, and French is the sole language of the site at the moment.  The site is relatively new however, so hopefully these small oversights will be corrected.

The restaurant is a stone's throw from the Hotel Mercure as well as the Crowne Plaza and the Ibis Opera Hotel for those out of towners craving a good meal close to their 'base of operations'.  In any case, if you find yourself on the Boulevard de la Sauveniere craving an excellent meal, this is a safe bet.

Cucinella, Liège.