BXL Café in the Theater District, NYC, New York

image of BXL Café in the Theater District, NYC, New York

BXL Café is a Belgian restaurant located in the Theater District. The last time I went to a Belgian restaurant besides Le Pain Quotidien was B Café on the Upper West Side: disappointing experience. Few years ago, I use to go to Café de Bruxelles that had these fantastic escargots au roquefort (snails with a blue cheese sauce), but unfortunately, it closed. So we decided to try BXL Café (BXL is short for Bruxelles). When we arrive, the place was not that crowded, but when we left, it was packed, with people not only eating in the dining room, but also at the bar.
image of BXL Café in the Theater District, NYC, New York

It is a small place in fact with a rustic feel: wood everywhere, from the floor to the tables and chairs. 
image of glasses at BXL Café in the Theater District, NYC, New York image of salt and pepper at BXL Café in the Theater District, NYC, New York

In term of menu, they propose traditional Belgian dishes such as moules frites (mussels and fries), waffles, as well as American dishes like cheeseburger. Interestingly, they also propose a beer and cheese tasting!

We decided to try few dishes. First, we shared the Croquettes aux Truffes or Truffle mushroom and cheese croquettes:

image of croquettes aux truffes  at BXL Café in the Theater District, NYC, New York

It was very hot! But the first bite was divine: the croquette itself was crunchy, not greasy and light.

image of croquettes aux truffes  at BXL Café in the Theater District, NYC, New York

The inside was made with potatoes, cheese and a tiny bit of truffle mushroom that gave a very subtle taste. I really enjoyed it with the salad that came with it.

Jodi ordered a Salade Verte au Fromage de Chèvre Chaud or warm goat cheese salad:
image of salade de chèvre chaud at BXL Café in the Theater District, NYC, New York

There was some honey that gave a nice sweetness to counterbalance the sour taste of the goat cheese.

On my side, I ordered the mitraillette sandwich:
image of mitraillette sandwich at BXL Café in the Theater District, NYC, New York

A mitraillette is a traditional Belgian sandwich that can be found in the North of France, made of steak, fries on a French baguette with a tangy sauce. I am sure you are wondering what this sandwich has to be special as looking at the photo and description it would be just another steak sandwich. Well, normally, the fries are with the steak, in the sandwich itself! 
image of mitraillette sandwich at BXL Café in the Theater District, NYC, New York

So here I am, disappointed at the sight of my dish that is not really what I ordered. So I proceeded to put some fries in it, but I admit that it was a bit fought to eat, because the meat was cut into two and fell all over...
image of mitraillette sandwich at BXL Café in the Theater District, NYC, New York

Too bad, because I really like the nice char on the burger meat, the sauce, as well as the crispy fresh bread. 

I liked my brunch at BXL Café, even if my dish was not exactly what I was expecting. The service was courteous, but the kitchen quite slow. We also noticed that the prices on the menu were not the one billed ($1 to $2 difference), that is something I do not like as it is a bit deceptive; if they change the prices, they should reprint the menus.

Enjoy (I did)!

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Restaurant Information

* Restaurant Name
BXL Cafe
* Overall
★★☆☆☆
* Neighborhood / Cuisine
Times Square / Belgian
* Street Address
125 West 43rd St., New York, NY 10036
* Phone
212-768-0200

Petit Déjeuner at Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York

image of Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York

If you recall, few weeks ago, I posted about a chocolate tour in New York City. Well, the tour started at 12pm and we decided to have breakfast in the city earlier that day. Our place of choice was Le Pain Quotidien, one of our favorite places. Don't be fooled: Le Pain Quotidien is not French but Belgian! This franchise is present all over the city and they have fantastic breads and viennoiseries such as croissants or pain au chocolat (chocolate croissant).
image of Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York
I love this place also because it has this rustic feel with all this wood and the communal table in the center of the room.

Jodi simply ordered a pain au chocolat:
image of pain au chocolat at Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York

I admit that the pain au chocolat at Le Pain Quotidien is one of my favorites in the city: flakey and buttery, it has a bit of crunch on the outside that is divine.

She had it with tea:
image of tea pot at Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York

On my side, I ordered the petit déjeuner: choice of croissant or pain au chocolat with an assortment of organic breads, juice and a regular hot beverage.
image of coffee pot and orange juice at Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York

I decided to order a pain au chocolat, an orange juice and some coffee.
image of breads and pain au chocolat at Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York

The bread that day was 5 grains (flax seeds, rolled oats, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds and sunflower seeds with raisins for some added sweetness), wheat and baguette.

Besides butter, they brought speculoos, that is a spread made from a cookie (Belgian in that case).
image of speculoos at Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York

It looks like peanut butter, but definitely tastes like cookie which is not really something I like to taste on a piece of bread...
image of bread with speculoos at Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York

In France, speculoos is extremely popular and people even eat it in crêpes! 

They also brought some red berries jam:
image of red berries jam at Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York

It was fantastic with the 5 grain bread that was definitely my favorite or with the wheat bread.
image of wheat bread with red berries jam at Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York

But I admit that the 5 grain bread with simply butter was perfect.
image of 5 grains bread with butter at Le Pain Quotidien in NYC, New York

This was a good breakfast: good price and great bread. Le Pain Quotidien is definitely an address I keep whenever I want to have a nice breakfast or just a pain au chocolat...

Enjoy (I did)!

Le Pain Quotidien on Urbanspoon

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And Remember: I Just Want To Eat!