New Year’s events at Petite Abeille have been ongoing for 8 years since the first of 4 locations first opened in 1996. However this year marks an additional cause for celebration at the newest and biggest location. Expect to start off with a casual and savory meal either at the first seating at 6:30pm or the second seating at 8:45pm. Petite Abeille is known for maybe having the best hot chocolate and burgers in town. The later dinner will lead you into a special night with musical artists Marka and accordionist Aldo Granato. As they kick things into gear for the night expect things to turn a little wilder because Yves Jadot and company will only be celebrating the way they know best. Bring on the Hoegarden!!

You’ll find 30 somethings who may just end up dancing on the tables while others could be die hard fans of French comics and have come to see part of the biggest collection of Tin Tin memorabilia in the US.

Live music will be performed from about 11pm by Belgian artists Marka and Aldo Granato

MARKA

Marka recorded his debut solo album "Je vous dis tout" in 1992 with his old friend Riton Liebman. The album proved to be an iconoclastic, eclectic affair, with Marka dipping into a wide range of different musical styles and experimenting with weird and wonderful fusion sounds. The artist had already made a name for himself on the Belgian music scene in the early 80's so he had no trouble promoting his new album. On the contrary, he soon had a hectic tour schedule lined up with dates all over Belgium and France. He signed with the major international label Sony/Columbia soon thereafter. This new contract allowed Marka to shut himself away in the studio and immediately get to work on his second album "Merci d'avance". The songs on Marka's second album (released in 1995) were almost entirely a collaboration between Marka and Robberecht. But Marka did pen one solo effort, which turned out to be an absolute classic - "Accouplés". This wacky, and often extremely comic, track consisted of Marka reciting a list of famous names (Benazir Bhutto, Chou En Laï, Rika Zaraï etc.) over a backbeat of catchy Arab-style rhythms.

The success of the single "Accouplés" encouraged Marka to begin work on a new album, "L'Idiomatic", which was released in 1997. By this stage in his career Marka had earned an excellent reputation on the Belgian music scene. While his off-the-wall eclectic style had never really proved commercial, Marka had nevertheless established himself as an integral part of the Francophone music world.

In 2001 Marka released a new album "Avant Après". Influenced by the artist’s age (forty), the album featured a mixture of seriousness and comedy. The theme of death recurred in most songs. The CD was only released in and was released again in 2003 and re-entitled "L'Etat Des Choses". Three of the previous version’s titles were replaced with four tracks co-written with MC Solaar.

Aldo Granato

Yves, Chrisophe and David Jadot, the brothers behind Petite Abeille, will surely be an entertaining trio as they celebrate the latest expansion of their Belgian bistros.