It’s no secret that Belgian cuisine is exceptional by any standard. My parents were foodies before that was even a term and moving to Brussels became an amusement park for all of our taste buds. Our first autumn in Belgium (while I was still getting my euro-footing) had my folks gleefully anticipating “Gibier”.

To the uninitiated, ‘gibier’ simply means ‘game’. As in wild animals. Not really a celebration for vegetarians, October and November typically have restaurants featuring and array of gamey dishes from the Ardennes that are not available any other time of the year. Think deer, boar, and fowl.

As my life shifts to consuming fewer meat products, gibier isn’t really a thing. However, it does take me back to memorable meals at Aux Armes de Bruxelles, St. Jean, et al and that time when everything was an incredible new discovery.