Category: Brussels (Page 1 of 4)

Not to be missed! The combination of beautiful architecture and lots of chique shops makes this a must see when visiting Brussels. Chocolate lovers will be pleased to find here the highest concentration of chocolate shops in the whole of Brussels. My personal favorite: Marcolini.

This place has been photographed countless time. The symmetrie of the place is gorgeous and in the evening it is beautifully lit. Nice for some window shopping or perhaps enjoy a breakfast at Le Pain Quotidien.

Information
Les Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert
1000 Brussels
Belgium
http://www.grsh.be/en/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galeries_Royales_Saint-Hubert

Visited July 2017. You can find my review about Les Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert also on TripAdvisor.

Place Sainte Catherine went through some changes in recent years. A nice addition are the terraces on the square, where you can enjoy lunch or dinner in summer.

Since we were with a group of ten persons it wasn’t easy finding a place for lunch. We were lucky that the terrace of Italian restaurant I Latini on the square had just opened so we were seated in a very nice spot under some trees.

The Italian waiter who took our order did this with the kind of flair you’ll expect from an Italian gentleman. My friends and I all ordered a pasta dish. We had to wait some time before our order arrived, but weren’t disappointed. The pasta was served on warm plates and perfectly cooked (as should be expected).

I had ordered the trofie al pesce spada affumicato e pesto di pistacchi. Due to the combination of smoked swordfish and pesto sauce, I found the dish a bit too salty. But otherwise, we had a lovely lunch.

Information
Italian restaurant I Latini
place Sainte Catherine 2
1000 Brussels
Belgium
+32 2 502 50 30
ilatini@ilatini.be
http://www.ilatini.be/index.php?lang=en
http://www.facebook.com/pages/I-Latini/329689867153856

Visited July 2017. You can find my review about I Latini also on TripAdvisor. My scores: value 4/5, service 4/5, food 4/5.

Restaurant Saffron in the Viage Casino was a pleasant surprise, to be honest. Wasn’t expecting such nice food in a casino. The staff was efficient and I was really impressed by the roasted sea bream I ordered. Very good! The wonton soup I had as a starter was nice, but nothing out of the ordinary.

The menu is kind of eclectic, ranging from Asian cuisine, to traditional Belgian dishes to hamburgers. So everybody will find something to their liking. Also worth noting, this is one of the few restaurants in Brussels open until 2.30 AM. On Friday and Saturday they are even open until 3.30 AM.

You’ll need to pay an entry fee to the casino though, if you want to enjoy this restaurant. Minimum age for entering the casino is 21. The casino itself had too many slot machines to my liking. We visited on the French National Holiday and got offered some free pancakes and small appetizers.

Information
Grand Casino Brussels Viage
Anspach Boulevard 30
1000 Brussels
Belgium
+32 2 300 01 00
info@viage.be
http://www.viage.be/en/
https://www.facebook.com/viage/

Visited July 2017. You can find my review about Grand Casino Brussels – Viage also on TripAdvisor.

Had a lovely lunch on the cozy terrace of Humprey in Brussels, not far away from the historical heart of Brussels. The start of our lunch was a bit chaotic and we had to wait a while before our drinks arrived and we could order, but the waiter explained his colleague was sick, so he had to serve the guests all alone. He was very nice though, explaining the menu in Dutch although his mother tongue was French.

We were very charmed by the food Humphrey served us. The Humphrey’s concept is all about food sharing, which I absolutely adore. We ordered five different dishes: spicy ahi poke, Filipino beef tartare, cauliflower chimichurri, grilled zucchini bellpepper and accras with yuzu (fish cakes), which was enough for four persons. The food was inspired by the Filipino cuisine and downright delicious. Every dish was presented on a different plate (with the meat served on a dried ham being the most spectacular). When fusion is done right it is an absolute delight.

Lovely place I will definitely visit again.

Information
Restaurant Humphrey
St-Laurensstraat 36-38
1000 Brussels
Belgium
info@humphreyrestaurant.com
http://www.humphreyrestaurant.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Humphrey-177005805983919/
http://instagram.com/humphreybrussels

Visited July 2017. You can find my review about Humphrey also on TripAdvisor. My scores: value 5/5, service 3/5, food 5/5.

Marvelous Japanese restaurant.

I had dinner at Chez Oki with friends and we had an absolutely lovely evening. The French speaking waiter was very friendly and gave us the opportunity to choose the table at the window. He also recommended some nice wines with our food. The restaurant is very beautiful and stylish with a small pebble garden on the inside. Toilets were also very clean.

But enough about the decor, let’s talk about the food! Superlatives need to be used here. We all went for the four courses surprise menu and we were very impressed. Every course was very refined and beautifully presented. The taste reminded me of some of the best food I enjoyed in Japan. The chef really is an artist.

Highly recommended.

Information
Restaurant Chez Oki
Rue Lesbroussart 62
1050 Brussels
Belgium
+32 2 644 45 76
info@chez-oki.com
http://www.chez-oki.com/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Chez-Oki/143547759047782

Visited July 2017. You can find my review about Chez Oki also on TripAdvisor. My scores: value 4/5, service 4/5, food 5/5.

Greet place if you enjoy spring rolls (rice paper rolls with different fillings). The concept is fusion: of course spring rolls are Asian, but Knees to chin gives some of them a local touch. You order at the counter and the staff brings your order to your table. I tried the Peking duck and the smoked salmon, which were both freshly prepared and really excellent. The prices are very reasonable, so you can also eat one of them when you’re craving a healthy snack.

The interior is simple, but cosy. Loved the big chalkboard!

I’m a fan of the Knees to Chin concept!

Information
Knees to chin
Vlaamsesteenweg 28
1000 Brussels
Belgium
+32 2 503 18 31
info@kneestochin.com
http://www.kneestochin.com/
https://www.facebook.com/kneestochin/

Visited June 2017. You can find my review about Knees To Chin also on TripAdvisor. My scores: value 5/5, service 3/5, food 4/5.

Brasserie 28 is a fairly new place to have something to eat and (their specialty) enjoy a Belgian beer. The location couldn’t be better: the restaurant is situated inside of the Brussels Central train station. Ideal for travellers. They even have a little terrace outside. The interior is spacious with lots of light pouring in through the windows. I find the interior hard to describe, since it is such an interesting mix of styles. You’ll just have to experience it for yourself.

So, is the food any good? Since my company and I had to catch a train, there wasn’t enough time to try the food sharing formula, which sounded really lovely. I’ll have to come back for that another time. The concept of Brasserie 28 was developed by Caulier, the producer of the only naturally sugar free beers in the market. Since I don’t drink beer, I can’t comment on the quality of the beers, but I’m sure they’ll find a health conscious public for their product.

I can comment though on the Buffalo Burger I ate. The burger was really nice, with an unexpected combination of organic beef, mozzarella, tomato confit, basil and rucola pesto. I quite enjoyed it. With the burger came some very thinly slice potatoes, which were really to salty for me. The waitress recommended we order some extra fries with our burgers, but I actually had enough with the burger alone. A big eater would really need those fries, though.

I got the impression staff wasn’t trained well enough. The girl (who was friendly) didn’t know the wines on the menu. So Brasserie 28 can improve on that part. I would definitely come back here for a drink with friends though, because the wine was nice and not expensive at all.

Information
Brasserie 28 by Caulier Brussels Central Station
Boulevard de l’impératrice 3
1000 Brussels
Belgium
+32 2 511 05 31
http://www.brasserie28caulier.be/
https://www.facebook.com/b28centralstation

Visited June 2017. You can find my review about Brasserie 28 Caulier also on TripAdvisor. My scores: value 5/5, service 3/5, food 4/5.

Gatsu Gatsu is a Asian style restaurant which tries to emulate Asian street food. The interior really evokes the atmosphere of a traditional food alley in an Asian city. The concept is simple: you choose the ingredients for your wok (rice or noodles, meat, fish or tofu, vegetables) and the food is made while you wait. It is very nice that you can see the cooks do their magic.

If the weather is nice you can eat outside on the terrace with wooden tables and red plastic stools. When I went to Gatsu Gatsu, not long after they opened, I got the feeling that the staff was not yet used to the concept and they needed to streamline their process a little more.

The wok I had was very nice though. Love the fact that they offer udon noodles!

Information
Gatsu Gatsu
Rue du marché aux herbes 99
1000 Brussels
Belgium
+32 2 514 15 95
http://www.gatsugatsu.be/
https://www.facebook.com/GatsuGatsuBxl/

Visited June 2017. You can find my review about Gatsu Gatsu – Wok Alley also on TripAdvisor. My scores: value 5/5, service 2/5, food 4/5.

Intermezzo is a traditional Italian restaurant which serves great food. The place is always packed at lunch time, so that speaks for itself. A colleague and I had lunch on the terrace on a very hot spring day. The interior of the place is very nice, with a beautiful wooden floor and ceiling with a real authentic feel to it.

it was a bit of hassle to order, because the menu was written on a chalk board inside, so we had to go inside to see what our options was. After we decided on our order, the waiter returned after a few moments to tell us they run out of the dish my colleague ordered. Defeats the purpose of a chalk board, if you asked me, but she changed her order.

We didn’t had to wait long for our pasta, which was perfectly cooked. I really enjoyed my spaghetti cozze with large mussels. The combination with the tomato sauce was just perfect.

Information
L’Intermezzo
Rue des Princes 16
1000 Brussels
Belgium
+32 2 218 03 11
https://www.facebook.com/L-Intermezzo-1424337587799300/

Visited June 2017. You can find my review about Intermezzo also on TripAdvisor. My scores: value 5/5, service 3/5, food 5/5.

Great place to enjoy cocktails in the sun. The terrace is really lovely and in summer you’ll have a hard time finding a free seat on the terrace. The cocktail menu is extensive and the cocktails are reasonably priced (lots of cocktails at about 9 euro).

I enjoyed met daiquiri with basil and honey very much. A special touch to a classic drink. Since the weather was gorgeous my friend and I enjoyed our drinks outside (the cava was also very nice), but the interior of Skylab is also really gorgeous, witch nice sofa’s and a lovely bar. A classy place to enjoy a cocktail or two.

Skylab, Quai au Bois a Bruler 9 métro Sainte Catherine, Brussels 1000, Belgium
https://facebook.com/skylabloungebar/
+32 2 203 03 50

Visited June 2017. You can find my review about Skylab also on TripAdvisor.