Keep on Toasting: Redefining Croque Monsieur

Redefining your typical croque monsieur and pioneering in the food truck culture: these are Keep on Toasting‘s biggest contributions to the food community in Belgium.

Before the end of last year I received an email from Jean-Baptiste. I didn’t know who he was, but when he mentioned the words ‘food truck’ he caught my attention. I was already familiar with (and fascinated by) the food truck culture since my recent to trip Panama last year. During my visit I was invited to several food trucks and witnessed how fun, creative, and innovating they can be. I found it a bit disappointing not being able to see the food truck culture blooming as much, here in Belgium. Here, street food consists mainly (if not exclusively) of waffles, fries, pancakes, etc. Yes, they are all delicious, but the offer is limited.

Last week I finally set up an appointment, took a train to Brussels, fought against the rain, and made it to the Keep on Toasting food truck. We met up on a Tuesday, so the truck was parked at the Nerviens Avenue, closeby the Cinquantenaire Park in Brussels. I had never been to that area, so not only was I curious about the truck, but also about the location (the truck changes location everyday so make sure to take a look at the site for an updated schedule).

Jean-Baptiste had already set up most of his things before my arrival. My first impressions were: an adorable location surrounded by nature, quiet and old-school buildings which added to the whole cozy vibe; extremely clean kitchen facilities inside the truck, which is a must for me when it comes to any type of restaurant; enough variation on the menu, which even included a vegetarian option and dessert (not to mention biological and organic drinks).

Let’s dig deeper into the menu. Keep on Toasting has taken croque monsieurs to the next level, JB even refers to them as ‘croque gourmet’. You’ll encounter 4 different croque options to choose from, which you can find listed on the online menu here. Out of those 4, I picked 2 favorites:
1. Croq Francais: Combination of Entremont cheese, chicken breast slices, baked leek and honey-rosemary seasoned bread.
2. Croq Indien: Vegetarian option combining tandoori-spiced cream cheese, sweet-sour carrots, lemon grass and cardamom-curry spiced bread.

I had the honor of choosing which dessert I could have during my visit (which would then become that day’s general dessert for all customers) and went for the Panna Cotta (the other options were: tiramisu, rice pudding and cherry crumble). JB made my panna cotta extra special by adding candied violet petals to it, lovely touch!

I would like to add how much eye JB has for detail. The bread he uses for his croques is especially prepared by a Brussels-based baker. It is made out of spelt flour, is organic and very crunchy! You can easily notice it is not your regular supermarket toast bread.
The menu is quite seasonal. JB rotates it every couple of months and tries using the vegetables and ingredients which are common at that time of the year.

I can totally understand how a menu consisting of one of these croques + dessert + drink can become a meal that will carry you through the rest of the day. I had at least 3 of them and was completely full and, of course, satisfied. The trip to Brussels had been worth it.

Cool news! For those of you who can’t make the trip to Brussels, Keep on Toasting will be making its first appearance in the Antwerp scene next Valentine’s Day. It will be parked at the Paul Smith flagship store from 6-10pm offering a British twist to its regular menu. Find the details here.

Tips:
- Your 1st Foursqaure check-in at the truck will grant you a free dessert.
- Your 10th check-in will gift you a free croque.

Thanks a lot to Jean-Baptiste for welcoming me at his food truck, the friendly foodie talks and fun afternoon in general. It was a really pleasant visit!

Find more information about Keep on Toasting, its schedule and parking spots at:
http://www.keepontoasting.be/
Facebook: Keep on Toasting
Twitter: @KeeponToasting
Tumblr: Keep on Toasting

Tagged: belgium, biological, brussels, brussels food truck, croque gourmet, croque monsieur, food truck, gourmet food truck, Latest, organic, spelt, spelt bread