Beer & Food

Brussels has a lot of watering holes but not that many are worth a drink. Belgian beers are good, strong and plentiful yet service can vary, especially in restaurants. After years of being asked for recommendations Higgins decided to compile this list and will try to keep it up-to-date in between two hash trails.

If you have any suggestions, pleas let us know so we can add them!

1000 Bruxelles

  • Moeder Lambic Fontainas (place Fontainas 8), next to Anneessens pré-metro station. Quiche and cheese plate available. Open from 11:00 to 1am Sun-Thu, 2am Fri-Sat. [13-NOV-2015]
  • Poechenellekelder (rue du Chêne 5), just across from Manneken Pis statue. Full of atmosphere yet limited space. Spaghetti bolognese available. Closed on Monday. [13-NOV-2015]
  • Little Delirium (rue du Marché aux Fromages 9), off Grand Place. About 30 brews on tap and nice mojito as well. A very central spot to meet downtown Brussels, conveniently located in the middle of pitta street. No idea when it opens or closes, we still haven't found it out ;-) [13-NOV-2015]
  • Scott's Bar (rue Montagne Aux Herbes Potagères 2), just off Galerie de la Reine, behind the "cat on a bike" sculpture. Beers and cocktails plus DJ set on weekend nights, G&T paradise. If undecided what beer to choose take a peak at the fridges behind the bar, great choice of specials at €4 or under! Lounge music a tad loud. Upstairs mezzanine available for party rental. WiFi available. [20-NOV-2015]
  • Chez Toone (impasse Sainte Pétronille, just off rue du Marché aux Herbes 66), at the end of a blind alley off Grand Place. Formerly a puppet theater (now moved upstairs) it's one of the oldest "estaminet" in Brussels, full of atmosphere and worth a visit. Open Tue-Sun from 12:00 till late, closed on Monday.
  • A L'imaige Nostre-Dame (impasse des Cadeaux, just off rue du Marché aux Herbes 8), at the end of a blind alley off Grand Place. One of the oldest "estaminet" in Brussels, recently renovated and worth a visit. Live music on weekend nights. Open till late. [13-NOV-2015]
  • A La Bécasse (rue de Tabora 11), a mere 100m from Bourse pré-metro station. The place to try lambic served from old-style clay jugs as well as lambic-based fruit beers. Open from 11:00 to midnight.
  • Monk bar (rue Sainte Catherine 42). A lively place with a great choice of beer for a chat while standing, usually packed in the evening. Chimay Bleue on tap! Room available for party rental. Spaghetti bolognese and other tastes available. Open Mon-Thu from 11:00 to 1am, Fri-Sat to 3am, Sun from 13:00 to 1am. [11-DEC-2015]
  • Brussels Beer Project (rue Antoine Dansaert 188). The newest kid in town, by the canal. Yummy beers brewed on-site with 4 brews available all-year long and many seasonal pop-ups, all on tap of course. Open only on Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 14:00 to 22:00. [11-DEC-2015]
  • Bier Circus (rue de l'Enseignement 57), not far from Parc metro station. Extensive beer menu. Open Tue-Fri from 11:30 to 14:30 and 18:00 to midnight, Saturday from 18:00 to midnight, closed Monday and Sunday.
  • Le Coq (Auguste Ortsstraat 14, 1000 Brussel). If you're talking about a classical brown pub....  Nice beer menu, great atmosphere, but no food.
  • Bizon (Karperbrug 7, 1000 Brussel).  If you like rock/blues/... this might be your favourite.  Live music every now and then, good beer selection, great staff, no food.
  • Walvis (Antoine Dansaertstraat 209, 1000 Brussel). Very cosy, has a nice terrace but you'll have to take the street noise with it. Serves pub food, and nice beers.
  • La Porte Noire (Cellebroersstraat 67, 1000 Brussel).  Very cool underground (literally) pub, alternative music, nice beer menu.
  • Nuetnigenough (rue du Lombard 25), a mere 200m from Manneken Pis statue. NIce place for typical food and craft beer, small (seats 24, largest table for 6) and extremely popular but not taking bookings. Service is slow since all products are home-made and the waiter usually has a dry sense of humour yet it's definitely worth the experience. Open Mon-Fri from 17:00, Sat-Sun from 12:00 noon.

1060 Saint-Gilles

  • Moeder Lambic Original (rue de Savoie 68), at the back of St Gilles city hall. Open from 16:00 to 3am.
  • La Porteuse d'Eau (avenue Jean Volders 48), near Porte de Halle metro station. A jewel of Art Nouveau with a great beer selection (80+) and extensive menu of Belgian fares. Space for large group upstairs. Worth a gastronomical and architectural stop if in the neighbourhood. Open from 11:00 to 23:00. [31-OCT-2015]
  • Brasserie Egalité (parvis de Saint-Gilles 47), next to Parvis de St-Gilles pré-metro station. And now for something competely different! A wide selection of beer you can grab yourself from the huge refrigerated display. Must try!
  • La Maison du Peuple (parvis de Saint-Gilles 39), next to Parvis de St-Gilles pré-metro station. Beer of the month. Live music on weekend nights. Weekend brunch served Sat-Sun from 11:00 to 15:00. Open from 8:30 (breakfast served until 11:00) to 1am Sun-Thu, 3am Fri-Sat.
  • Brasserie de l'Union (parvis de Saint-Gilles 55), next to Parvis de St-Gilles pré-metro station.

1040 Etterbeek

  • Kitty O'Shea's (boulevard Charlemagne 42), next to Schuman metro station, in the shadow of EU landmark building "Berlaymont". A typical Irish pub that also offers a decent selection of Belgian beers. Food available. Live music on Friday. [18-DEC-2015]
  • Hairy Canary (rue Archimède 12), near Schuman metro station and EU landmark building "Berlaymont". A typical English pub with a crap selection of Belgian beers but fantastic real ales (bottled) such as Hobgoblin, Doombar, Spitfire and Marston's Pedigree. Sooo British!
  • Le Jourdan (place Jourdan 41), across Brussels-famous fritkot "Maison Antoine". Fancy some great Belgian frites? You might have to queue up to one hour for securing your Belgian gold at the local chippie. Then sit down and savour a fresh beer from the Haacht range (th*nk Brussels 2014) while eating your greasy spoon at the same time. Lekker!

1160 Oudergem

  • l' Avant-Première (Square Jean-Baptiste de Greef 7, 1160 Oudergem).  Cosy pub with a nice terrace on a little square just off Chaussée de Wavre.  Serves decent food, friendly staff.
  • Friture Mamy (Watermaalse Steenweg 98, 1160 Oudergem).  If you're talking about a Belgian frietkot, this is the perfect example.  Great frites (or chips for people from the empire), friendly staff, only takeaway.

1170 Watermaal-Bosvoorde

  • Le Club (Léopold Wienerplein 7B, 1170 Watermaal-Bosvoorde).  Proper local pub, no food, but plenty of atmosphere to make up for that!
  • Friture Le Tram de Boitsfort (Andrée Payfa-Fosseprezplein, 1170 Watermaal-Bosvoorde).  Ever ordered frieten on a tram?
  • Ciccio Bello (Léopold Wienerplein 4, 1170 Watermaal-Bosvoorde).  Italian, nice pizza, always has space for a little group.