Lobsterfest at Belgo Centraal, Covent Garden (Photoblog)

Note: I was invited to sample Belgo's Lobsterfest by Sally Bishop of Relish PR, so therefore did not pay for any of the food or drink consumed.


Each year for the past decade or so, Belgo (who label themselves 'The World's greatest Belgian restaurants') have been running Lobsterfest. It's a month-long affair which celebrates all things lobster - with a Belgian twist, naturally. I've been a fan of the Belgo chain for a few years now, trying out their lobster dishes in past Lobsterfests and also being a regular consumer of their excellent express lunch: £7.95 for moules frites and a glass of Belgian beer? Not bad at all. The Lobsterfest event I was invited to gave me and a few others a chance to see Muir Picken, the executive chef at Belgo demonstrate some of the dishes that would be on the menu.

The preparation area. The lobsters had been cooked before our arrival, just to save time and under the assumption we know what a pot of boiling water looks like.

The cooked lobsters, complete with rubber bands holding their pincers together. Pictured on the left is some béchamel sauce, chopped peanuts, a Thai red curry sauce and some chopped leeks.

After taking off the claws off the cooked lobster, Muir demonstrates how to cut Sebastian in half, allowing you to scoop out the meat whilst keeping the shell in tact, for later presentation.

The Thai red curry lobster dish. Surprisingly, the curry topping didn't detract from the lobster at all, and instead the spicy sauce complemented the sweet lobster meat. A bit of a bargain at £8.95, if you ask me; you get a few good bites of lobster for your money.

Lobster salad (£17.95). A whole lobster, chopped up and served with spring onions, green beans and carrots, then topped with a light port and lemon dressing. An unbelievable salad dish (and you'd expect so, from the price, I suppose). It's well worth it though, arriving in a main course sized portion. The dressing is a light and summery accompaniment to the lobster meat, working together and allowing the lobster to shine.

The whole lobster (£17.95) preparation. Straighten the lobster's tail, knife through the head and all the way down, turn him and then cut in half. Simple. Perhaps, but I made a bit of a mess of mine to be honest. Luckily Muir saved it, and applied some garlic and Pernod butter on top before grilling.

This preparation also comes as part of a 'surf and turf' (6oz ribeye steak) - half a lobster with steak is £17.95, whilst a whole lobster comes in at £24.95 if you fancy a bit of red meat on the side. Who doesn't?

The ever-reliable twice-cooked frites. Crunchy on the outside, pillowy potato inside - consistently great fries at Belgo, especially when dipped into some of their mayonnaise.

Of course, you may read this and consider that I didn't pay for any of the food, but in perfect honesty I can say that I'll be back soon for some more lobster and those delicious frites, as well as their great selection of beers.

See also: Londonist post on Lobsterfest