Dish · 5 kitchens in 4 cities
Mussels
Mussels steamed open in a pot or a soup, with wine, cream, tomato or spice.
Nobody paid to be here. Each kitchen is described from its own menu where it publishes one, unranked, so each note says how that kitchen makes it.
In London
Linguine, mussels & bottarga
Founder PickClipstone · Fitzrovia · ~£45 pp
Linguine with mussels and bottarga, cured mullet roe. To share before the lamb.
In Brussels
Moules Marinières
Le Zinneke · Schaerbeek (Place de la Patrie) · ~€35 pp
Mussels cooked marinière, white wine and shallots, a big pot each, with the house's own mayonnaise and fresh frites. The card has dozens of versions; the classic comes first for us.
This version: A named mussel grower, a big pot a head, homemade mayonnaise and dozens of preparations.
Pick it if: You'd rather eat in a residential neighbourhood away from the centre, or try a less usual preparation, the Brabançonne with chicory or the Bruxelloise with Cantillon gueuze.
Moules de Zélande marinière
Le Pré Salé · Sainte-Catherine (Rue de Flandre) · ~€35 pp
Zeeland mussels cooked marinière, with white wine and shallots, in a pot to yourself. The dish the house built its name on, and our first pot.
This version: Four decades of mussels, with house-made shrimp croquettes before them.
Pick it if: You're in the centre near Sainte-Catherine and want the classic marinière; phone ahead.
In Edinburgh
Shetland Mussels
Fishers in Leith · Leith (The Shore)
Shetland mussels steamed open in white wine, cream and garlic, one of the dishes the house keeps on while the rest of the menu changes. A starter to share or a bowl to yourself.
In Naples
Zuppa di cozze
'A Figlia d'o Marenaro · Foria
Mussel soup
Zuppa di cozze, mussels in their own soup, to the family recipe. We'd begin with it.