De Noordzee – Brussels, Belgium

If there is one thing Belgians cooked really well it is seafood! So if you like fresh fish and flavours of the sea keep reading because today’s destination is one seafood lovers temple.

De Noordzee also know as ‘La Mer du Nord’ is a famous Belgian fishmonger and fish bar. At a corner of Place Sainte-Catherine, you will notice a crowd of people standing at high top tables drinking fresh white wine and snacking on mussels. You have arrived at De Noordzee!

Now this place is only for people eating fish as there are no meat or vegetarian options. Check the menu above the ordering counter and grab a table. This place gets really busy so make sure to arrive early or go there for a late lunch which is what we did.

The menu is simple and made of fresh fish, sea shelves and some homemade creations like the prawn croquettes and the fish burgers. They also have fish soup which smelled divine. I ordered while Andrew was saving us a table. Two glasses of white wines, of course, some bread and all we then had to do is wait for my name to be called.

By called I really mean yelled across the street, indeed the way it works is that you order at the main counter, they ask for your name and they give you your drinks straight away. You then wait at your standing table for the guy at the serving counter to yell your name when your food order is ready. Unusual but fun and charming!

We were lucky that it was a very sunny day in Brussels as there are no sits or tables inside.

“CLAIRE!!!” was called and Andrew rushed to get our order. On the menu that day we had some prawn croquettes. Deliciously crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside.

We also ordered two mackerels from the grill. Flavoursome, fresh and juicy – perfectly cooked!

The waiter also recommended the mussels and the tuna but we passed on these as 1) I had a huge serving of moules-frites the night before and 2) with the bread it was enough for the two of us. Plus we did have a waffle each an hour before…