Haute Cuisine and Babies at Li Cwerneu

Ever so rarely, when special times occur, we dabble in haute cuisine in these pages. This time partner-in-crime/blogger Oleandri and I ventured south, into river Maas/Meuse territory. It was one of those rare summer evenings, balmy -in the water near the city of Huy, a water-skier towed by a boat performed tricks in the setting sun.
In Huy our stop was Grand'Place 2, where chef Arabelle Meirlaen and husband Pierre Thirifays skilfully hold the reins. At Li Cwerneu - old French from Burgundy times for the bell man, while savoring a 5-course menu of cuisine intuitive, we had a gastronomic evening.
En route, babies were our main topic. How big our surprize then upon discovering that babies and haute cuisine are greatly married in Huy. Even before our starter, a series of color, taste, and hand-picked vegetables and flowers, we heard a small baby noise from the kitchen.
When next we tucked in a Tartare de Boeuf Bleu Blanc Belge with wasabi mayo and Belgian caviar, we realized that chef, husband, fellow cooks and personnel in betwixt work were all tending to a very small infant.
What a feat for mom and dad of this 1-star restaurant, we marveled, while savoring cod with artichoke mash, peas and red beet. Dad's approach was so relaxed, we murmured. This topic stayed on our plates of veal from Corrèze and seasonal veggies.
Around our plates of cheese and sweetness, dad answered our most pressing questions. Was this a girl? Check. Was this a new-born? Two and a half. Did mom breastfeed? Check.
We really thought we had seen or heard it all by the time boxed sweetness and a cup of hand-picked calendula in tea were rounding off our meal.
Not so. The pièce de résistance came at the end: by contemporary means, we were all connected to a number one - a 25-month old. The owners here had more plates to spin than just cotton candy.