La Maison du Cygne is my personal favourite amongst all the eateries at La Grand-Place to dine in: elegant 19th-century dining room, classic French cooking, and warm, friendly service. A piece of trivia oft-repeated to its patrons - Karl Marx used to dine here when he was writing the 1848 Communist Manifesto.
What I had this evening: La Maison du Cygne’s Grey Shrimps Croquettes
I adore these croquettes - golden-fried globes of sheer deliciousness. The crisp shell of the croquettes shatter at the lightest bite, revealing moist, creamy shrimp filling underneath.
The restaurant also has the obligatory al fresco dining section, very popular with diners on warm summer evenings. But I think La Maison du Cygne’s room is perhaps the most appealing on the square at La Grand-Place.
Fancy place, looks nice inside. I didn’t know it was this restaurant where I saw the swan. I made a photo of the swan above the entrance before and recognised it straight away when I saw it on their website.
Made Belgian shrimp croquettes recently. A lot of work. After 2 times I thought it was enough. Average price per croquette is 6 euros in Brussels. The North Sea shrimp are costly, not to mention time and labour to make the croquettes. Unpeeled shrimp’s taste is superior to over-processed peeled version.
They are quite easy to peel. Hold the head and tail, push towards the middle and twist slightly, then pull the shell apart. The shell is used to make the stock which is added to the roux (photo 2).
