Yati

Belgian Trivia

Peter Goossens

The only 3 Michelin star chef in Belgium and thus considered the best chef in the country (3 stars is the maximum you can get btw). He is always rather arrogant about it when he appears in the media. His restaurant is called ‘T hof van Cleve. Eating a menu there including wine would cost you 490 Euros (575$) a person.  So I cannot tell you anything about the taste because it is a bit outside of my budget and nobody has ever been generous enough to invite me.

Mari Nade’s POV

I woke up after hearing the door of my apartment close. That’s right Tory! I could not believe all of that actually happened yesterday. But it did, didn’t it?

Oh no! What just happened? Did she just leave so she wouldn’t have to face me? I wanted to make her breakfast. I sighed. I guess I should be prepared that it probably will just be left at a one-night stand. Not everyone went into these things with the same intentions. I had been hurt like that before. I always expect too much. I should know better than to invite someone to my apartment just after getting to know them.

Well, anyway, time to get up! As soon as I opened the door of the bedroom, I noticed the smell of oriental food coming from my kitchen. It seemed like Tory had helped herself to breakfast. I looked around and noticed that there was a note on the table.

Hi Mari

Sorry, you were so cute sleeping that I did not want to wake you. 

I had to leave to go to class.

I made you a Japanese breakfast. I hope you’ll like it.

You just need to bake the okonomiyaki batter in the fridge.

See you later at work!

Xxxxxxxx….

Tory

She just had to leave for school. I felt so relieved. All the depressing feelings I was having immediately left my mind and I was back on cloud nine daydreaming about my new adorable girlfriend.

I turned the note and saw she also left me her line ID.

I immediately added it to my phone and sent her a little message to thank her and took a little selfie of me in my negligé, baking the okonomiyaki. To be honest, I was surprised she was able to make this with what I have in the house and even more surprised that I did not wake up from the noise when she was making the batter. Well, I did fall asleep really exhausted last night. Images of everything that happened last night went through my mind and I felt myself starting to blush heavily. I put the okonomiyaki on a plate and started eating breakfast. Knowing that it was Tory who made the batter made it all taste even better.

It seemed like my life was finally getting in order. If yesterday was anything to go by, I would learn a lot in that kitchen even if it was only a brasserie. Frank was a great cook, but his sister Claire seemed like a prodigy to me. I think even Mr 3 star chef, Peter Goossens, would leave the establishment crying in disbelief if he ever got to eat one of those éclairs.

I had to make sure she taught me some of that culinary magic. She looked like a really nice girl so I am sure she would not mind me asking her for some pointers when we were both in the kitchen.

After all, I left home and moved to Brussels to get some experience in a real kitchen. I was a certified chef but I needed some money and wanted some more experience before opening my own business. I wanted to learn the trade from people who worked in the business for years and had respectable restaurants. At least that was my intention. 

That, and if I am honest I have to admit that I was happy to leave my parental house. My parents and I got along fine as long as there was some distance between us. Living under the same roof just wasn’t working out. Especially after they found out that I swing the other way.

 I was so happy when I got hired in the Fruits de Mer, but I learned soon that the owner just hired me for my looks and expected a lot that I was not prepared to give to him. The second he pushed it too far I kneed him in the balls as hard as I could and left. Men are such disgusting pigs. I hope he suffered.

After that, I tried getting a job in several restaurants in Brussels but they all refused me immediately or asked for sexual favors in return for hiring me. I later heard that that asshole from the Fruits de Mer had called all the restaurant owners he knew to ruin my chances of ever finding a job in a kitchen again.

Just when I was about to give up, I met one of my old colleagues from the Fruits de Mer and he told me that the Femme Fatale was hiring. It was only a brasserie but according to him, the chef was really good. Apparently, it was a family business and the chef in question, even though he was still young, had had plenty of job offers from great restaurants, but always refused them in favor of working in his family's brasserie. 

The only downside was that you had to take a test to get the job and so far he had refused anyone that had ever applied for the job. 

I really needed a job, I really did not want to move back home. So I decided to go to the Femme Fatale to investigate. I talked to the regular customers to find out if they knew anything about that test. One of them told me that Frank usually asks to make him an omelet but nobody ever got it right.

So I just decided to eat an omelet at the place. That way I would know what it is he wanted.

After eating that omelet, I had to say I was surprised. It was not burned, not completely solid but not too runny either.

I was amazed at how rich a basic omelet could taste. So I went home and practiced for the job interview and it paid off because I was now a sous-chef.

My phone buzzed me out of my thoughts. I took a look, Tory had sent me a little video where she was playing the piano. “God my girlfriend is so adorable!” I could not wait to see her tonight at work.

Yati

That was it for the Y-files this week. I hope you enjoyed getting to know the new staff of the brasserie a little better. Next Tuesday the adventures of  Claire and Ms. Lyst will be back. Claire will be facing the prince for the first time in person, so be sure to tune in on Tuesday to find out!

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