While EU governments still mull over introducing a cap on gas prices, some businesses are more in a hurry for solutions to the energy crisis.
In Brussels, the epicenter of the EU, a group of restaurants owners have imagined how a future without gas and electricity would look like for gourmets.
The guests at the dinner served at the Brasserie Surrealiste and cooked by Racines employees this week were the first to experience it: No ovens, no stoves, no hot plates, no coffee machines and no light bulbs.
Still, great food.
Just cold, or slightly grilled over the flaming charcoal grill of a Japanese barbecue, served at candle-lit tables.
On the menu: brioche with anchovies, porchetta and focaccia cooked on a wood fire, raw white tuna, grilled pork with beans, and ricotta cream with pumpkin jam and pistachios as dessert.
But what sounds like a romantic atmosphere and a one-off experience is actually what customers could face more permanently if energy bills keep increasing.
The dramatic rise of inflation in Belgium could have been a deterrent, but some 50 guests took part in the dinner Thursday organized as part of the "Brussels in the Dark" initiative involving a dozen restaurants.
