A European triptych from the past week.

Croatia: Rakija is a distilled fruit liqueur, highly potent, and popular in the Balkans. When I showed up, late, at Rakia Bar (Bloor/Euclid) on a snowy Saturday night, my friends were already there catching up on one’s stint working at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Games. The waitress, in her Serbo-Croatian spiked accent, recommended the plum rakija to go with our appetizer plate followed by my stuffed peppers. I caught a whiff of the rakija before I saw it – potent indeed. But I’m committed to cultural experimentation so after that one I had a grappa (not just an Italian thing, it turns out). As we gossiped about Sochi, downed our drinks and savoured a great meal, I took a look around the bar. It’s been around since 2006, and was designed (I imagined) to look like a rustic-yet-stylish Balkan mountain hut, with wood-paneling and furniture. The young folks at the next table weren’t particularly rustic or Balkan, but seemed to be having a good, rakia-fuelled time.

Belgium: a classy experience (and the restaurant was great too). I almost ruined the date by telling the lady opposite me that she ran like an elephant. But it’s a credit to the high-quality fare and ambiance at the Brussels Bistro (Queen St. E in the Beach) that this was – I hope – forgiven. I ordered an obligatory moules Ostendaise avec frites, and we shared choucroute topped with top-notch bacon, which our waiter proudly claimed had been named one of Toronto’s top dishes. Belgian beer was also obligatory. Duvel pour moi, Delirium Tremens pour madame. Hers came in a glass dotted with tiny, pink elephants.

Greece: it’s always good to ask a local. So if you know someone who grew up half-Greek on the Danforth, you get them to pick the restaurant. And thus, the souvlaki-plus-blue-and-white-walled, Santorini-postered, experience. As with the Japanese sushi, Greek fare is no longer an exotic experience for Torontonians. But if you want a comfortable backdrop with hearty food for a catch-up with someone you haven’t seen in a while, this was the right sort of place.