Beef Fondue Bourguignonne
in Brussels
One pot, four sauces, and all the time in the world
Premium beef or Black Angus tenderloin, cooked at your own pace in simmering oil. On the edge of the Sonian Forest, in a hunting lodge dating from 1683.
The meal with no timer
A pot of simmering vegetable oil in the middle of the table, raw cubes of beef, long forks, four homemade cold sauces. From then on, nobody decides for you: not the chef, not the person beside you, not the clock. Everyone dips at their own pace, lifts their piece out when they judge it ready, pats it dry, dips it in a sauce, starts again.
It is one of the rare dishes where opposite tastes coexist without negotiation. Whoever likes their beef blue pulls it out after fifteen seconds; whoever prefers it well done leaves it to turn. Nobody waits for anybody, nobody compromises, and yet everyone eats at the same time. Around a table of six, that is a rare kind of peace.
You also have to accept that fondue keeps your hands busy. You spear, you watch, you look up, you put your fork down to finish a sentence. That constant half-pause produces something plated meals have lost: silences stop being awkward, conversations restart on their own, and nobody reaches for their phone because nobody has a hand free.
The meal stretches to two hours without anyone noticing, and that is exactly what it is for. In a house that has been seating guests since 1683, on the edge of the Sonian Forest, this format is not a trend: it is simply the oldest way there is to make a dinner last.
A history far more recent than you would think
1699, Zurich — 1699, Zurich — fondue is born from cheese
The first known fondue recipe appears in a Zurich cookbook: cheese melted in white wine, with bread for dipping. The word itself comes from the French fondre, to melt, and is first recorded in 1735.
The 1930s — Switzerland makes it an emblem
The Swiss Cheese Union promotes fondue to the rank of national dish; it would conquer North America in the 1960s.
1956, New York — the meat version
Konrad Egli, a Swiss restaurateur in New York, introduced fondue bourguignonne at his Chalet Suisse restaurant: cubes of beef cooked in hot oil. It was an immediate success, and the shared pot spread to other dishes.
So what about Burgundy
The name is a nod to Burgundian beef and its famous stew, not to any particular village. The story goes that Burgundian grape pickers cooked their meat in a cauldron of oil so as not to leave the vines — a fine legend, never documented. Fondue bourguignonne is in fact a Swiss-New Yorker invention of the twentieth century.
Watermael-Boitsfort, today
In our Espace Carnot, equipped for this service, it finds the setting that suits it best: a house from 1683, a long table, and guests who are in no hurry.
What happens inside the pot
100% vegetable oil, and nothing else. Chosen for its high smoke point and neutral taste: it carries the heat without ever inviting itself onto the plate.
Cooking by immersion. Unlike a grill, the oil wraps the cube on all six sides at once. The golden crust forms everywhere at the same moment — the Maillard reaction, source of those roasted aromas — while the centre stays pink. Twenty to thirty seconds are enough for rare.
The right move: two or three pieces at a time, no more. Too much meat at once drops the temperature of the oil, and the beef boils instead of searing.
Four homemade cold sauces, a green salad and fresh-cut fries: every bite can be different from the last.
Our Beef fondues menu
Beef Fondue — Bœuf premium € 32,85 €
250 g premium beef, four homemade cold sauces, green salad, fresh-cut fries
Mixed Beef Fondue € 27,95
125 g premium beef and 125 g free-range chicken, four homemade cold sauces, green salad, fresh-cut fries
Beef Fondue — Tenderloin € 44,85
250 g Uruguayan beef, Black Angus Certified, four homemade cold sauces, green salad, fresh-cut fries
Beef Fondue — All you can eat € 35,95
Friday evening and Sunday evening, service at 06h00 PM or at 08h30 PM
Service of the Beef Fondue
Tuesday to Friday (dinner only), Sunday lunch and dinner
The room that fits the dish
The Espace Carnot is equipped specifically for beef fondue and the hot stone grill: adapted tables, dedicated ventilation, and service paced by you rather than by the kitchen. Guests who prefer a classic plate keep access to the full bistronomic brasserie menu.
Birthdays, team dinners, family reunions: it is the format that gets people talking to each other again.
Your questions about the Beef Fondue
No. The dish was created in New York in 1956 by a Swiss restaurateur; the name is a nod to Burgundian beef. The tradition of the shared pot, however, is genuinely Swiss.
Fondue cooks by immersion in vegetable oil; the stone grill cooks by contact on lava stone, with no fat. Same conviviality, two very different results.
It is offered on Friday evening and Sunday evening, with service at 6:00 PM or 8:30 PM, by reservation.
Yes, it is highly recommended! Reservations can be made by phone at +32 2 660 46 72 or online on our website.
The mixed fondue combines premium beef and free-range chicken.
Yes, the fondue pot is placed in the center of the table. Only the parents dip the meat into the bubbling oil. We have a children's menu (up to 12 years old).
Count 2 hours at the table.
Avenue Charle-Albert 13, 1170 Watermael-Boitsfort, at the edge of the Sonian Forest. You can park your vehicle along the avenue, in front of the establishment.