Paris, 20 May 2012

Leon of Brussels is a chain of restaurants with outlets in Belgium, France and England.  Their speciality is mussels which are available in approximately a dozen different variations - all of them delicious.  Having eaten moules earlier this week at another restaurant and spent a sleepless night as a result, I felt the need to "get back on the bicycle."  And what better place than Leon.

What makes Leon de Bruxelles exceptional is that every order is prepared on demand.  When the mussels arrive at the table they are in a cocotte which is too hot to touch and when the lid comes off you are enveloped in a cloud of fragrant steam.  My own preference is for moules mariniere, a dish consisting of the moules, white wine, onion and parsley.  So simple - so delicious.

For anyone wishing to try these at home, here is a recipe.

Ingredients

    1kg/2.2lbs fresh mussels
    115g/4oz unsalted butter
    1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
    2 shallots, peeled and finely chopped 200ml/7fl oz dry white wine
    1 bay leaf
    large handful fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped

Preparation method

•  Prepare the mussels: Pull away the hair-like strands (beard) around the shell and scrub with a stiff brush under cold running water.

•  Heat 50g/2oz of the unsalted butter in a large saucepan. When hot and foaming add the garlic, shallots, wine and bay leaf. Cook over a medium heat until the shallots are soft and translucent.

• Bring the shallots and wine mixture to the boil. Add the mussels, cover the saucepan, gently shake the pan and cook over a high heat for 2-3 minutes, until the mussels open. Discard any mussels that remain closed after cooking or are shrivelled.

• Strain the mussels over a large saucepan using a colander and set aside. Place the mussels into a large bowl. Retain the mussel liquor in the pan and return to the heat. Add the parsley and remaining butter and bring to the boil.

• Pour the mixture over the mussels and serve immediately with plenty of fresh crusty bread.

Leon de Bruxelles

Leon is not a posh restaurant and has a very unimposing entrance.  Nonetheless it appears to be well known as it was crowded this Sunday lunchtime.  The wine list is limited and the  dishes other than seafood are unimpressive.  Nearly everybody was having moules in some form and if this is what you are after, Leon de Bruxelles is definitely the place to go.

Moules Mariniere

It has been pleasant to have two days of peace without the scaffolding going up but we expect that to end tomorrow morning when they will be here for an early start.  C'est la vie!