Food & Beer Culture

At the estaminet, beer is part of the house. That's the name in the north for the simple tavern serving hearty home cooking, alongside beer and usually a portion of fries. Guests sit at wooden tables, the menu is short, and the portions are generous.

The best-known dish is carbonnade flamande. Beef braises for a long time in brown beer with onions and a slice of spiced bread that thickens the sauce. The beer lends the dish its subtle sweetness, and a Bière de Garde Brune in the glass pairs well, echoing the caramel notes in the sauce.

Almost as popular is the Welsh. It's a toast baked with cheese and beer, served especially generously in the north. The name comes from the English Welsh rarebit; the Ch'ti version sometimes uses Maroilles, a pungent, spicy soft cheese from the Avesnois. A Bière de Garde pairs well here too, its sweetness balancing the cheese.

Things get cooler with Potjevleesch, a terrine of several kinds of meat eaten with fries and a beer. Here too, the beer's carbonation helps cut through the richness of the meat and fat. All these dishes are served with Bière de Garde in glasses smaller than a German beer stein.

Celebrations in the north happen at the Ducasse, the village festival usually held on weekends. On such occasions, beer takes its place on the table the way wine would elsewhere. People drink it in moderation, in company, and alongside food, as a companion to conversation and the meal, not as a dare.