Food Review: NorthSea Genuinely Belgium @ Ipoh, Malaysia

Located right across the street from Excelsior hotel is the nautical-themed Belgium restaurant – NorthSea Genuinely Belgium. Originally owned and operated by a Belgian gentleman, it has since been sold to the current owners. With the interior decked out with beer bottles on wooden shelvings, the place had a pretty clean 1800s pirate ship vibe.

We started off with their Soup of the Day (RM15.00) which was a Homemade Mushroom Soup with Truffle. The truffle oil that they used was very strong and fragrant and I instantly fell in love with the soup. They also had nicely toasted olive bread that complemented the soup so perfectly.

Scallops

Moving on to starters… We had their Belgian Styled Scallops (RM29.00). The scallops had a nice sear to it, giving it an extra layer of texture. The dish was served with a herb garlic sauce which had a strong intensity that went really well with the scallops. The combination blends really well in your mouth.

Croquette

The Ostend Shrimp Croquettes (RM25.00) had a thin breaded layer which gives it a nice crunch. Inside was a creamy potato and shrimp combo. Although its flavour was rather flat, it really played well with the different textures.

Escargots

Their 12 Escargot (RM29.00) consists of de-shelled escargots in a very tasty garlic butter sauce and a side of bread. In my opinion, when the escargots are not cooked in their shells they lose some of their flavour. And when eating it, there wasn’t the usual distinctive flavour of the escargots. However, do not waste their garlic butter sauce! I highly recommend using those pieces of bread to soak up that really tasty garlic butter sauce. 😋

Meatballs

The Homemade Belgian Pork Meatballs (2 for RM29.00, 3 for RM39.00) is one of their two signature items on the menu. The huge meatballs are about the size of a snooker ball and they are super filling. It is also glazed with a very interesting stout reduction mixed with raisins, giving it a really complex taste. This dish really takes your palate on journey.. It starts off with a punch of bitter that slowly fades into a sweet sauce. It might be a bit too bitter for some, so the sides like the salad and the baked potatoes really helps to balance the dish.

Mussels

The other signature item is their Mussels & Fries (1/2 kg for RM49.00, 1kg for RM90.00). When the dish came, we were greeted by big succulent green mussels from New Zealand in a white wine sauce. I think the white wine sauce could use a little more oomph as when we soaked the fries, there was not much flavour coming from the sauce.

Waffles

Finally for dessert… We were treated to their Belgium Waffles and Ice Cream (RM25.00). It comes with two waffles, one made with their normal batter and the other chocolate. They usually serve it with Häagen-Dazs Cookies and Cream ice cream (which was not in stock on that day). So they served it with Häagen-Dazs Chocolate ice cream instead. It is also topped with real rum & raisins and some cornflakes at the side. The waffles were real crispy and went well with the strong flavours from the rum & raisins and ice cream.

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Overall it was a very enjoyable experience, from the tasty food to the good service. Although slightly steep in terms of pricing, it will be a good restaurant if you fancy something different from the local fare.

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