LA BOHEME

Disappointing dinner at la Bohème. Pretty restaurant on the main square in Kortrijk - it had the appearance and atmosphere of a quality restaurant. Was seated quickly by friendly staff and ordered the cheese croquettes as a starter (€21) and the Vol-au-Vent as the main course.

The croquettes arrived quickly and were decent. Not hugely flavourful but fine. The accompanying salad was not helped by an overly acidic salad dressing, so I left it alone

The main dish, the Vol-au-Vent was a disappointment. Normally it is a hearty and creamy chicken/mushroom ragout, livened by black pepper and calmed by cups or sheets to puff pastry to carry the flavour.

Instead I was a presentation with a large plate of yellow sauce smelling largely of boiled chicken and eggs (probably due to the unnecessary addition of the mousseline) Floating in the sauce were a number of dark pellets which appear to have some meat base… but they were not listed on the menu and their taste provides me with no further information.

I moved the Vol-au-Vent to the side and snacked on the french fries side dish which was not bad, though they had a ‘previously frozen’ quality to them.

The side salad I also left untouched…it appeared to have the same dressing as the lettuce leaves of the appetiser described above.

I was surprised that the staff at no time during the dinner asked me about the un-eaten plate. Only once I was running through the credit card it came up - though that did not illicit an interest in correcting the situation. I paid €52 for a dinner for one (including two coca-colas) and was on my way. What did I actually get to eat… 2 cheese croquettes of middling appear, a leave of lettuce, and half a bowl of what appear to be store bought french friens.

FYI, there is a big ‘American Express’ sticker on the front door. For you business types on expense accounts, please note that the restaurant in fact does NOT take AMEX

Too bad, place looked pretty and really wanted it to be a good experience. But regretfully…

Goeie bediening, lekker eten en een aangenaam kader om te zitten

Prachtige zaak, aangename sfeer. Zeer vriendelijke bediening, lekker eten en mooie muziek.

Geen idee van eten en drinken duurt heel lang

Cuisine de belle qualité et portions généreuses ; super accueil (on se sent bienvenus même ne parlant pas néerlandais et l'équipe est professionnelle et semble très soudée) ; ambiance très agréable (éclairage, musique, décoration, propreté). Belle adresse !