Lunch at The Dominican Hotel Brussels: An Exquisite Experience

It was love at first sight. A glass door opens up to two fireplaces and you can either access the hotel from the right side and head straight to the restaurant or the left side to reach the hotel's reception. Recommended on the Net, the Dominican has a restaurant lounge down on the ground floor. 

A classy space with a very high ceiling, black carpets and perfectly set tables wait to seat you. The food book, as they call the menu here, is loaded with choices. In an old fashioned, yet new decor blending many decades together, the restaurant hosts low square and round tables surrounded by sofas. I loved the lounge music.

Walking around the hotel I couldn't but look into the little details that constitute it. The high ceiling, beautifully colored sofas, the wooden elements next to the toilets and the grey carpet covering the restaurant, all while a certain finesse and touch of class is felt everywhere you look. 

Glass facades, rusted metallic poles, decorative structures, chandeliers... I'm surely coming back to stay at the Dominican.

The menu:

• Classic dishes
• Starters
• Soup and vegetarian
• Meat
• Fish
• Sweets
• Appetizers
• Coffee, tea and wine

 The first impression:

• It was the first time I saw a salmon risotto.
• The menu is varied and caters to all desires.
• The table setup showcases some luxury.
• Bread was served, fresh and tasty bread that's different from the ones we had already tried in Brussels. Not chewy but airy and fresh.

Time for lunch:

• Niçoise salad is beautiful to look at. A deep plate filled with a mix of greens, colorful bell peppers, slices of eggs, black olives, onions, green beans and a generous portion of tataki tuna. Warm tuna topping a cold salad; interesting textures of soft and hard combined and matching perfectly well in a flavorful sauce.
• Caesar salad: One of the world's few garlic-free chicken Caesars with a juicy chicken, homemade croutons, fresh Roma lettuce and anchovies. The sauce is what makes it unique, an anchovy sauce without garlic, fresh, acidic and well seasoned. Exceptional! 

Starters are great, main plates are heaven. 

• The plates speak for themselves. Huge portions of ultimate pleasure. Mushroom risotto is a loaded portion of rice with fresh Portobello mushrooms, Paris mushrooms, onions, tomatoes and melting cheese. A new approach to mushroom risotto I've never experienced before. Just look at the cheese slices posed on the risotto and melting on the fork. Ouf! I wished I could have dinner here the same night.
• My salmon risotto was a piece of eye candy. Bathing in olive oil with slices of cooked salmon, perfectly cooked rice Roquettes and cream. The olive oil adds an exceptional flavor to it. I really can say, that's one of the finest risottos I've ever had, and that's cafe food, not fine dining. 
• The club sandwich, that's more of a dream. No chicken added, this club is not chewy at all, tender and airy, stuffed with three layers of fantastic bread, fried eggs, vegetables and a rich, strong mustard sauce. Ham, cheese, tomatoes enforce the sweetness... Bravo chef, you rock! The fries on the side were also memorable.

Good to know:

• The portions are huge.
• The food is superb.

Now for dessert, something caught my attention. The chestnut cream creme brûlée. A fine chestnut cream topped with caramelized sugar. It was a new flavor, like everything in here. A brown cream of intense chestnut flavors topped with a crispy sugar layer, served cold. 

What a lunch! I was expecting to eat good food, but not exquisite food. I recommend it for sure.