The Fat Belgian is a small restaurant located near the corner of John St and Adelaide St. I read their menu once and longed to try it. They are only opened on Tuesday - Saturday, 4:30 pm to close (Sunday and Monday private functions). On Friday, I finally 'dragged' Darren there for dinner.
I made a reservation just in case, but when we got there it was relatively empty. We got seated at a nice cozy corner. Surprising, since I didn't request it, but why would I complain? The place was lit by dim lights and candles, setting a very nice mood. The crowd was made up of either couples or business groups. It seemed that they had a seating system where the bigger crowds were seated below while the top was reserved for more intimate people, so that all the large tables and noises were confined downstairs. Also, the second floor was more of a chic/lounge type while the the ground floor was more of an upscale-pub.
Darren was going to order some wine, but upon seeing the long list of beers offered, he changed his mind. I wasn't planning on drinking, but seeing the list, I changed my mind too. The waitress came right on time to ask for our drinks. Darren ordered the Affligem Abbey Ale and I ordered the Dekoninck Amber Ale. At first, it was hard for us to decide as they had a lot of good things on the menu. Inspired by the person at the next table, Darren ordered a large portion of the Fat Belgian Mussels with fries. Due to my new found love for ducks (see Bistro 990 entry), I ordered the Raspberry Duck.
The food took a while to arrive, but the waitress was kind enough to inform us about the wait. What she said was, "The duck is just coming out of the oven, and the mussels will be served at the same time." It was a minor thing, but I really appreciated things like that. The food finally arrived, and the plating for my duck was very nice. The mussels came in a pot with some bread. My duck came with bok choy and rissotto. The fries came with Dijon Mayo. I really enjoyed my duck. Although the raspberry and red wine sauce was strong, the taste did not overpower the duck in your mouth. The risotto had dried cranberries in it, which was delicious. It was also VERY buttery. Not buttery in taste, but in texture. Darren said it was the most buttery risotto he ever had. He seemed to enjoy his mussels. I tried some of it, and the seasoning and ingredients were very subtle, so that you could actually taste the mussels. We both enjoyed the fries with Dijon. You could never go wrong with fries and Dijon. Although there were a lot of food, we somehow finished everything without being overly stuffed. We asked our waitress for the dessert menu. Compared to the dinner menu, it was less exciting, so we just got our bill. The waittress was extremely good-nature about us getting the dessert menu and not ordering anything. The bill came and was settled very quickly, which was always a plus.
Although the Fat Belgian is a small place, it embodies a great atmosphere, great services and great food (at a decent price too). I really had a great time at Fat Belgian and am looking forward to the next time I visit. Am already trying to decide what I'll order next :)
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