Other Belgian, Brussels

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As you enter this brasserie, the bar seating is surrounded by magnificent horror sculptures. The beer well priced. It easily became the meal and entertainment for that evening. As we moved to a table in the back rooms to eat, the atmosphere is tastefully dark. Look into the openings in the floor boards and you will see things like vampires in coffins.
We sat near the back of the restaurant. There is a special room that smaller parties may reserve that is a torture chamber. Not my thing, but hey, it was booked and the bottles of wine kept going in.
As we drank our belgian beer a magician came to our table. The charming french flirt did a number of tricks for everyone, and made an exit when the meals started coming.

I am a poser foodie and a lover of cooking. I'm a cook. A self indulgent cook. I was happy that were were all so entertained; although, I wanted to taste the food. The food was decent. Better than the pub we ate at for lunch. My husband ordered a cheese platter and loved it. You can't go wrong with cheese. I ordered salmon to share w/ the kiddie. It was ok. I felt with the atmosphere, it was worth it.

Favorite Dish: Salmon was decent. The fish was prepared well but the sauce was too heavy and bland. My husband's cheese platter is the way to go if you're not too hungry and want to nosh.

Descend from the Grand Place into this 17th-century vaulted cellar restaurant for traditional Belgian cuisine served at plain wooden tables. ATMOSPHERE

Favorite Dish: Portions are generous and mussels are the house specialty, but the stoemp et saucisses (mashed potatoes and sausages) are equally tasty. Wife had the mussels I had the sausages. Good hearty fare provides a base for the outstanding Belgium beer.

Warm wooden interior, very Belgian style. I think its very best one for a belgian kitchen. Meat is great

Monday & Thursday : 18.30 - 23.30
Friday & Saturday : 18.30 - 24.00
Sunday :12.00 -15.00 & 18.30 - 23-30

Favorite Dish: Filet d’agneau, bouquetière de légumes & gratin dauphinois. The lamb is just great, tastes really good, and tender. Well done.

This picture clearly shows what you can expect: artisanal breads and jams, cookies, in a wooden decoration.

What you do not see on the picture is the small or large tables with jampot for convivial atmosphere and the pies, filled sandwich or soup you can order. For breakfast, lunch.

See Le Pain Quotidien for the explanation of the concept and the addresses of
the several shops in Brussels or elsewhere.

Favorite Dish: Having breakfast: different breads with jam, orange juice and milk-chocolate.

Having lunched on the touristic side of Grand Place I was looking for a nice dining experience. I wandered past the Greek and Italian restaurants on Marché aux Fromages and stopped outside this rotisserie/restaurant on the corner. I liked the look of it and I liked the look of the clientele - they seemed local. When I entered and saw the chef in front of me carefully tending meat on a giant grill and when, on a Tuesday night, I was asked if I had a reservation I was sure I was on to a good thing. I was not disappointed. If meat is your thing this restaurant has a very decent menu and the food was cooked to mouth watering perfection. I dined with a friend who likes his steak well done. I was very impressed to see that the chef had complied but managed to keep the moisture in the meat - an impressive feat. With two glasses of wine and two beers we paid about €75 which was less than we'd paid for a unremarkable lunch in the touristic quarter. I'll certainly be dining here every time I return to Brussels.

Favorite Dish: The Filet Argentin was magnificent. If you like a rare steak then this is the one at €22. If, however, you like a well done steak go for the rib eye as the depth of the filet makes it impossible to cook well throughout.

Cozy & dark with marvelous colors and smells wafting all around. A huuuge pretend-Degas on one wall, and the otherworldly neon-blue glow across the yard outside, from another club perhaps, or some nearby aliens. Oh yes, the food. European with a capital E. Always a good thing.

Favorite Dish: No froid appetizers for us on such a freezy night, we both went with choices off the tiede list. Who knows what was in the sauce, but the scallops in my St Jacques starter were fist-sized and to-die-for. Continuing that trend were the blessed little lamb chops on their bed of pea pods and real haricots verts. I ordered the lamb medium but it came as just the perfect shade of rosy...better for melting in one's mouth!

While you can get Belgian Waffles many places this little restaurant really is named from them. It is very convenient, has great sandwiches, and good waffles. Skip the McDonald's nearby and head for Gaufre de Bruxelles -- for Frites, a sandwich, or a waffle at a good price. Much travel money is spent on food. I looked for a place to just take care of my hunger. La Gaufre de Bruxelles had good frites or fries and good choice of cheese for a low-cost sandwich (not the American style perhaps but tasty by European Standards).

Favorite Dish: Frites -- fresh and tasty!

We call them 'baraque à frites' in French, 'fritkot' in Dutch, they are definitely part of our Belgian culture...
Unfortunately they now have to fight against the fierce competition of Mac-Do or other crappy fast-food and the pitta places we now find everywhere (they are replicating worse than mushrooms!)...

I had heard about this fritkot for a long time, I decided yesterday to give it a try!! 'Une baraque' is some kind of weak, temporarely building. First surprise when I saw this one, this is an elegant rotunda in the middle of the square... Even more crazy, it is made of marble!! Apparently quite a prosperous business: the prices are far from being exagerated but the place is quite popular, be ready to queue up (at least, that was the case on a rainy friday night).

Favorite Dish: You could simply order "un cornet de frites" (1.7/1.9E), they would expertly wrap up your fries in a cone made of paper (I'd order that one just to see them in action, it's definitely impressing!).

I went for a traditional 'Vol-au-vent / frites', huge portion and simply delicious, warmly recommended!!