French and Italian food

Belgian Frites are now part of the American Pastime

With the two new Stadiums in New York this spring they are both offering more upscale food. Be prepared to empty your wallet though.

Box Frites is located in the outfield concourse across from the Shake Shack and Blue Smoke. There specialty is probably self explanatory, but in any case they serve Belgian fries....at $6.50 a pop for a small box.

Thou Shalt Not Buy too Much of our Beer

The Trappist monks at St. Sixtus monastery have taken vows against riches, sex and eating red meat. They speak only when necessary. But you can call them on their Beer Phone.

Monks have been brewing Westvleteren beer at this remote spot near the French border since 1839. Their brew, offered in strengths up to 10.2% alcohol by volume, is among the most highly prized in the world. In bars from Brussels to Boston, and online, it sells for more than $15 for an 11-ounce bottle -- 10 times what the monks ask -- if you can get it.

For the 26 monks at St. Sixtus, however, success has brought a spiritual hangover as they fight to keep an insatiable market in tune with their life of contemplation.The monks are doing their best to resist getting bigger. They don't advertise and don't put labels on their bottles. They haven't increased production since 1946.

They sell only from their front gate. You have to make an appointment and there's a limit: two, 24-bottle cases a month. Because scarcity has created a high-priced gray market online, the monks search the net for resellers and try to get them to stop."

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Fiesta Latino this weekend

A Latin festival in Brussels? ¡Pero sí! Fiesta Latina gets hips gyrating every year on Place du Châtelain, with parades, live concerts, dancing and the odd mojito or two...
The programme includes live concerts and jam sessions, dance groups, DJ floors and a mercado latino with Spanish, Caribbean and Latin American specialities. Brussels' trendy Place du Châtelain is an appropriate venue for the event - the usual buzz of the popular bars adapts easily to the burst of sound and colour from the best Latin bands Belgium has to offer. Please visit the comprehensive festival website for the latest news and up-to-the-minute information. Saturday and Sunday, August 25th and 26th.