From the outside Pomme Frite looks every bit Californian, the soaring temperature and a sidewalk patio bustling with activity, but step inside and you may be transported straight to a café in Brussels. Although the name literally means deep-fried potatoes, it is a well-known haunt for mussel lovers who flock in to savour the nine different ways in which they are prepared.

You'll find an array of all those fabled Belgian and French dishes from the oven baked French onion soup covered with Gruyère cheese and sautéed tiger shrimp 'scampi' with garlic butter, lemon and parsley, to beef stew simmered in Belgian beer with onions and carrots. The chef's special of pine-crusted mahi mahi comes with sun-dried tomato beurre blanc, mashed potatoes well laced with butter and sautéed broccolini.

Desserts may include classics like Belgian chocolate mousse with crème anglaise and Anjou pears poached in Burgundy wine. Seek out for a pint of Sint Bernardus Wit, a thirst quenching white ale, when summer is at its peak.