Friterie Tabora
200g Frites with Sauce Bearnaise
Frikandel
Perhaps the only thing more ‘famous’ about Belgium than Chocolate it seemed as though a trip to the country without sampling their famous twice-fried potatoes would be anything but complete, and having done a bit of digging to sort which of the many “Friteries” received the most praise four names rose to the top of the list in Brussels, the second a tight space near to many other restaurants and in the ultra competitive tourist district entitled Friterie Tabora.
Literally just a stall with a counter, the ‘dining area’ a 25cm Standing Room Only space where those entering are forced to squeeze by, Friterie Tabora is best taken as a grab n’ go establishment and although Sunday’s non-stop rain shortened the line substantially it was still to a small wait that customers were greeted around 17h00, the location and bargain-basement prices no-doubt part of the appeal as rude servers and substandard product leaves much to be desired.
Not the sort of place to do anything ‘above and beyond,’ the sauces all straight from commercial can or bottle, Fries at Tabora seem to be treated to a combination of both longer frying and shorter drying which leads to greasiness and softened textures, the pump-bottle “Bearnaise” nothing like handmade stuff with an odd sourness and too much thickener – fried meat fairing a bit better as the snacks are made-to-order, though neither the taste nor texture managed to match the standard set by either Café Georgette or Maison Antoine.