Coolinairy

In this picturesque street of the most beautiful town in the Netherlands, Maastricht, you will find this unconventionally placed gem of a Belgian restaurant. You could ask why you would find a such a restaurant in the city center of Maastricht, but just like Belgian politics, it’s best not to make too much sense of it. In the absurdity of all things related to Belgium, there is just one thing that matters: that the food is good and the drinks are plenty. This restaurant will show you why Belgians are known as ‘Bourgondiërs’. The name refers to the vegetable also known as “white gold”: the Belgian endive! When it comes to branding, this place absolutely “slams the nail on the head” as we would say in our little country.

Once you enter the restaurant, you will be greeted with a polite welcome of the owner. If you speak Flemish, just like him, you might notice a sense of comraderie. This is the kind of connection that you would feel with any Belgian landing in Maastricht, of all places, to enjoy our amazing food. Once you walk inside, it’s very hard to make sense of the decor. It looks like a grandma and hipster fighting for territory inside. All I know is that it works beautifully and that it feels familiar.

Depending on where you sit, you will see a replica of Manneken Pis in its small grandeur. The size is actually very accurate. People usually get disappointed when they find out how small Manneken Pis is in real life. However, if you thought that a country would have a human-sized statue of a dude peeing on people, I’m questioning whether that is something you were expecting or something that you were looking forward to.

The menu of this restaurant is Belgian through and through. Belgian cuisine is a funny concept because many of our dishes are actually… French. Unlike the French though, our portion sizes are bigger than what you would serve someone who recently underwent a gastric bypass operation. Whenever we plan to go to Witloof, I make sure to wear my loosest pants. This is not the place to test how the button of your old pair of jeans is holding up. You have been warned.

A major asset of Witloof is the enormous beer list. I will have to disappoint you: i’m not a beer connoisseur and even less of a beer drinker (I write carefully in the hopes that Belgium doesn’t take away my passport). All I can say is that the variety is gigantic, even with some nonalcoholic options! My boyfriend followed the suggestion to drink a Blonden Os, low alcoholic beer that foams beautifully as we were told. I can say that he was more than satisfied.

Pictured below is our shared starter, a strategic choice. My boyfriend and I are able to eat a lot, but the portions at Witloof are very generous. We went for croquettes: a grey shrimp one and a cheese one. You see, I think that a good croquette should taste like a trip to the cardiologist and these croquettes do exactly that. The breading was so crispy, like a wall containing all of the goodness that was about to ooze out of the center, like it was holding back its potential. The shrimp croquette was very fragrant with a good bite due to the whole little shrimps swimming through the ragout. The cheese croquette was well… very cheesy. I don’t think you can say more about a cheese croquette to be honest, it either has it or it doesn’t. The crunchy parsley on top layered the ensemble by bringing a different kind of fresh crisp. Chef’s kiss.

After having a delight of a starter, we were onto the heavy duty: the main dish. A meat and potato galore: what else could someone ask for? My boyfriend went for the pig cheek stew with fries and mayo. I will tell you this: the knives next to the plate were only for decoration because it only took a spoon to take a bite out of the meat drenched in an umami bomb of a sauce. Matter of fact, let me stop right here. This is something you need to experience FOR YOURSELF!
I went for my childhood favorite: a vol-au-vent. If there is a culinary Nobel Prize, the inventor of this dish should win three times in a row with a honorable mention in his speech for Witloof. Imagine a ragout… with tender chicken… with mushrooms… oh, wait there’s more: meatballs and all of that contained by a puff pastry? I’m just hungry again by writing it out. It takes us 45 minutes to drive to Witloof and as I’m writing this my hand is itching to reach for my car keys. Whenever I take a bite of this vol-au-vent, I see my happy childhood flash by in front of my eyes: laughters of children in a cafetaria in elementary school. It feels like this vol-au-vent grew up with me: a childhood classic adapted to a grownup palate. On top of that, the fries and mashed potatoes were terrific. I claimed my girlfriend tax by stealing some of my boyfriend’s fries. At the end of the day, there’s nothing more Belgian than taxes.

If you think that we would’ve tapped out by this point: you’re wrong. Partially, because if the dessert options at Witloof weren’t that inviting, we would’ve! This classic pictured below is the notorious dame blanche. Just ice cream, whipped cream and a dark chocolate sauce coming together to make absolute magic. The napkin under the glass isn’t for decorative purposes: you WILL make a mess when pouring the chocolate sauce. It kind of makes you feel like an artist: maybe we’re all a bit Peter Paul Rubens? The dark chocolate really cuts through the sweetness and richness of the ice cream. Like many things in Belgian cuisine, it’s pretty straight forward. What a way to end an already decadent night.

The service at Witloof has always been cool and laidback and the owners are friendly. This is my favorite type of restaurant: just people taking pride in sharing the food of their culture. If you come there frequently they will actually recognize you and even remember your order from last time!

Bonus point is that the toilet is clean and that it looks really cool! (+0,5 points for Place & Setting)

For bread and butter, a shared starter, two main courses, a shared dessert, still water and a beer we paid around 80 euros for the both of us. This is more than what you would pay for your typical brasserie. Witloof however is about offering quality that is better than your average brasserie on top of having generous portions. I say it’s a fair price for the quality that you’re getting.

Food and flavor 8/10
Place & Setting 4,5/5
Service 4,5/5
Price/Quality Ratio 4/5

Total score: 21/25 => 17,0/20

Witloof feels like a home away from home that offers high quality comfort food. If you happen to be in Maastricht and feel like having a glimpse of the burgundian lifestyle: this is the place to be!

Witloof (from Belgium), Sint Bernardusstraat/Helstraat 12, NL-6211HL Maastricht (the Netherlands)

(Note: This post is not sponsored. All food was paid for by my boyfriend 🙂 )