Brussels’ Little Italy: Part I – Posto al Sole
The next months in Brussels are going to be hot. Very hot.
You’ll sit in your office, on the second or third floor of the building, in an airless room while looking out of the window and dreaming about a holiday far, far away. Maybe somewhere by the beach or next to a turquoise, clear pool. I have the solution for you! No, I can’t offer you extra holidays, nor do I want to take over work from you. But I have some great Italian food spots for you around town that will, at least for some hours, make you forget you’re in the middle of a European concrete jungle.
Today starts Part I of a culinary journey to the country in the South of Europe that has it all: great ice-cream, pasta and pizza. Oh yes, that round piece of yeast dough, topped with anything your heart is longing for.
The place I am talking about is located in the heart of St Gilles, close to Gare du Midi. Posto al Sole (Italian for ‘ place in the sun’) doesn’t look fancy at all, but it’s the stone oven in the left corner of the restaurant that takes up all of the attention. When I got there with a group of friends last Saturday, all the tables from inside have been moved outside to the terrace, thanks to the great weather. We luckily had made a reservation in advance for 21:30 o’clock. Even though it was quite late for dinner (yes, I’m German), the place was packed.
We barely couldn’t decide what Pizza to order, because one sounded tastier than the other. We made our choice: 7/8 people chose Pizza, 1/8 went for pasta. 7 were more than happy, 1 was less. The Pizza was great, Neapolitan style, elastic yeast dough, thin base and thick, fluffy and delicious crust. Me and me friend Merri decided to share two different ones, so we could try a bit of everything.
Unfortunately they had run out of Ricotta, so we had to choose another Pizza instead of the Ricotta and spinach one. We went for the one with tomato sauce, Mozzarella di Bufala and eggplants and the ‘Filetti’ one with Mozzarella di Bufala, Parma ham, basil and fresh tomatoes…AND…truffle oil. This one was delicious up until the last bite and I would definitely recommend it to all truffle lovers out there! 8-12 Euro for the Pizzas are very fair for the taste and quality you get.
If I were you, I would skip the pasta. 11 Euros for a very simple pasta that (I think) I could’ve prepared way better myself. I would also not recommend the house wine as it tasted quite watery.
A true hidden gem, and one of the places to go to if you’re looking for great Pizza in Belgium’s capital.
Good to know: 1060, Chaussée de Forest 122, no website, just call: 0484 70 89 58
Prices: 8-12 Euros for a fairly big Pizza.
