The best bistros and brasseries Belgium

This is one of the most pleasant addresses with its large terrace on the banks of the Meuse in the summer. At the head of the updated sign, Max Guldentops and Gregory Franchi. Here the decoration is modern, very clean and bright, offering an absolute view of the river. A place that offers dishes ranging from the simplest brasserie dishes (prepared American, scampi friti, vitello tonato...) to the noblest such as lobster or cod back and other fresh fish, so that you can open their menu to all wallets and desires.

A bright and renowned neighbourhood brasserie, the cuisine features hearty cuts of beef and is also popular for its home-style dishes and its "banc d'écailler" (from September to May inclusive). Lobsters (in four ways) and fish take the lion's share of the menu. People flock here all year round, especially from the neighbouring RTBF (French-speaking Belgian radio and television) and take advantage of the conviviality of the half-floor to feel at home. And it's been going on for thirty years and still with Costa Loulas at the helm.

Completely in tune with the times, Djo defines itself as a "bistro-bar" where the preparations - like tapas - are to be shared. Hot, cold, meat, fish and vegetables, the dishes follow one another with Mediterranean accents or local flavours. The formulas are adapted to small and large appetites, with a particular attention to the quality of the products. Wood and raw materials for the decoration fit well in this old mansion. Nice cocktails for the aperitif or any other moment of the day.

At the entrance to the city, the tavern offers a variety of menus and daily specials. Pan-fried Irish entrecôte, vol-au-vent, homemade meatballs and old-fashioned knuckle of pork are just a few of the must-tries served at Champs-Élysées. Seafood is also a highlight. In fact, everything is homemade, in keeping with the traditions of an authentic brasserie. The owner is a sommelier by passion, and it's a pleasure to discuss wines with him. The dining room and veranda are spacious, as is the terrace, heated in winter and shaded in summer.

Jean-Baptiste and his team manage this magnificent old country house (^18th-century stonework). In a green setting in Soiron, one of the twenty most beautiful villages in Wallonia. Having worked for some of the world's top chefs, the chef now offers a new take on traditional, seasonal cuisine. The menu includes homemade croquettes, crispy sweetbreads with 5-spice caramel, grilled Holstein rib steak and pan-fried prawns with fresh herbs. For dessert, don't miss the authentic Liège coffee with Walloon peket.

With its location opposite the Manneken, you'd think this café was just another tourist trap. Not so! On the first floor, it looks like a good old café with an updated look. The beer list isn't too bad, and there's plenty of room for nibbles. The secret is upstairs, where you'll find the restaurant, which opens on weekends. And there, yum! The menu is very Belgian-Brussels, with white pudding in puff pastry, one of the best carbonnades we've had in a long time, and a mandarin, honey curd, lemon thyme and crumble. A real pearl!

The restaurant of Bob Delvigne, the friendly boss, is more than ever decorated with paintings and objects referring to Hergé's characters. The kitchen, for its part, continues a formula that works: simple, pleasant (in comics, it seems that the chef is a fan of the clear line!) and allowing you to eat as much as you want at a reasonable price. We just wonder when we'll find - at last - "Syldavian" specialities on the menu! Some of the salads are named after a "haddockian" swear word. Only 150 metres from its former address, we must remind you...

The brasserie setting, with its white tiles and dark mirrored banquettes, sets the tone. Olivier's grandfather was a beer merchant and wine taster before becoming a member of the sommeliers' guild... The menu is evolving, with French gastronomy with a local accent, some of which is offered orally. The autograph menu is already an invitation to a moment of quality! The service is professional, the plate is meticulous and the wine list boasts three hundred labels.

Just a stone's throw from the sea wall, this is one of the most charming addresses on the coast! Open from breakfast to aperitif, t'Koethuis is famous for its waffles (they're always among the best on the coast), but its brasserie menu doesn't leave you indifferent either. You can enjoy pasta, salad or solettes. While the interior is warm and inviting in winter, it's the courtyard - all decked out in flowers and lit up at night - that steals the show. Little do we know that the restaurant's rather banal façade conceals this marvel.

An institution in De Panne! This quality brasserie offers its sunny terrace or a cosy interior. You can enjoy traditional dishes, improved tapas, accompanied by delicious cocktails or a beer from the large variety offered. The planks of assorted tapas, but also the salads with generous and copious compositions, the meats cooked to perfection. Add to this a smiling team, good advice and low prices, which makes it a very popular address. It is better to reserve.

Annual closure from mid-June to mid-July Reduction of 20 % to take away Restaurant since 51 years Traditional cooking, service and kitchen of quality American prepared in room, mussels re-elected in season, meats of 1st choice Old dishes still à la carte: eel, calf's head to the green and calf brain

An institution in Evere for three decades, the Lion Belge owes its good reputation to its numerous wood-fired grills and its well-stocked brasserie dishes. Dimitri, the owner, mixes in his menu the classics of the French-Belgian, Italian and Greek cuisine. In addition to the menu, there are weekly suggestions that change with the seasons, without forgetting the mussels. For starters, the mezze are particularly recommended. Bar and terrace for the occasional sunbeam. Pleasant piano bar on weekends. Reservation recommended.

This restaurant-brasserie, with its contemporary furnishings, is housed in a perfectly renovated former grain market. The premises are pleasant, bordering the Sambre and overlooking the Citadelle, and popular with tourists in fine weather, especially on the terrace. The menu features regional and local cuisine in a busy atmosphere. A tempting selection: shrimp croquettes, veal bread à la namuroise, braised sweetbreads, salmon au gratin or linguine with scampi. Sauces are plentiful, so ask for them on the side.

At Brasseries Georges, they know how to turn sauerkraut into a moment of pure bliss. And their seafood platters are second to none, as are their traditional dishes in general, which, without being creative, are beyond reproach. What's more, the fries are old-fashioned, and their shrimp croquettes have been voted the best in Brussels. What else? A veritable institution that continues to attract a new clientele of well-born gourmets, as much as it retains the loyalty of Ucluse's fine pedigree. A fine traditional address!

In Brusseleer, Schieve lavabo means "crooked sink". Burgers, pasta dishes, salads, etc. are all (r)-safe preparations such as parmesan fondues, dumplings in tomato sauce, vol-au-vent and suggestions that change all the time. Not forgetting the famous Schievelavabolo, which is an ogre in its XL version! As in all the other "Schieve" (Altitude 100, Place Jourdan, Uccle, Auderghem and La Hulpe), the brocante decoration (woodwork, numerous enamelled plates...) is inimitable! What more could you ask for?

Here, the menu oscillates between local and refined cuisine, following seasonal trends. Classics include roast camembert and ham with old-fashioned mustard. Salads and pastas complete the menu, with a variety of suggestions that can be accompanied by regional beers. A lively place, it sometimes hosts concert evenings in an artistic setting, depending on the artist's work on display. An ideal spot for a good time, the brasserie is located near the famous stag sculpture, L'Appel de la forêt.

Want to try this speciality of Nivello that is the pie al djote? Head for the Union! Right on the Grand Place, this tavern-restaurant can boast of having won the prize for the best pie, you can go there with your eyes closed. Moreover, it benefits from the Walloon label of Bistrot de Terroir® which rewards the establishments on the quality of the products, the promotion of local products and the conviviality. The wooden interior evokes the brasseries of yesteryear.

This is the gourmet brewery of the Hostellerie du Peiffeschof. In the kitchen, Miguel Giltaire follows the seasons and alternates traditional recipes in the grandmother's way and creations of the moment. No fixed card, nothing but inspiration. The chef is sometimes accompanied by Thierry Neyens, head of the Hostellerie, who offers you "his" wine list from over 500 labels. A reference in the region. This table d'hôtes has only a few tables and a nice friendly fireplace, so reversion is recommended.

This Art Nouveau house looks like a gigantic dollhouse! The trademark is the scaling bench where each sea creature looks as if it has just come out of the water. You can share a Maris platter and a bottle of muscadet or a Jumbo pan with a bottle of champagne. Or the other way around... The menu offers other classic but well-made choices, such as poultry vol-au-vent and beef onglet à l'échalote. And the lobster in duo with fresh pasta. The wine list is good and allows you to choose them by the glass.

Nestled on Chimay's Grand-Place, where it's always a pleasure to stroll, the Grand Café is an ideal place to stop for a drink or a bite to eat: burgers, fresh pastas, pizzas and salads (the table's strong point), at reasonable prices and in gargantuan quantities. Escavèche is also on the menu. Not great cuisine here, but a good place to stop after a visit to the château, 150 metres away. What's more, its gigantic summer terrace is undoubtedly the most beautiful in the city center, so you might as well make the most of it!

The Brasserie Binchoise was founded in 1986, but the Brasserie tavern arrived 14 years later. Here, you can taste and buy the beers brewed on the premises, and take a guided tour of the Brasserie, but you can also eat and drink. The menu features regional brewery dishes: shrimp croquettes, ham on the bone, onglet, entrecôte bûcheron... The dishes are rustic, hearty and generous. Sauce brasseur recommended, of course. In short, the assurance that you won't die of hunger or thirst, and that you'll leave satisfied.

For a good quarter of a century, this small restaurant has been offering hearty and tempting brasserie dishes in a nice Parisian bistro decor where the walls are initialled by comic book authors. Efficient cooking with these grills (their great classic "single-sided", served with a butter-mustard-scallion sauce and a gratin dauphinois), fish, pasta, salads without forgetting some canaille dishes: roasted marrow bone, cassoulet, andouillette 5A. Everything is homemade, some wines are organic and the menu respects the seasons.

With its tired mirrors, murals and weathered woodwork, the Cochaux brewery exudes an atmosphere that is half Art Nouveau, half old-fashioned. The regulars come back and the faithful stay, a guarantee of quality and authenticity. For those with small appetites, the menu offers a choice of omelettes and salads. It's good, it's prepared with fresh products and it's a bit expensive for a classic cuisine. But it's close to a zero-fault menu... To shine in the evening, tell them that Felix Cochaux was an engineer and invented a new type of drag boat.

Three mills, but above all a pepper mill in this brasserie which opens its window to snack lovers. Inside, the tables show that it is always possible to enjoy the dishes on the menu, which are mostly steaks and other butchers' pieces served with great generosity, in every sense of the word. Here, it's "à la bonne franquette" and that's also why we like this small restaurant, very nice. Fries are obviously king here, cooked according to the rules.

Thanks to its independent management, the EHN (Eau d'Heure Nautique) clubhouse is now open to all. And we're not going to complain. The place is particularly pleasant, with an outdoor terrace adorned with rustic tables and benches, and an indoor terrace overlooking the small marina and lake. On the menu at any time of day: tagliatas, entrecôtes, meatballs with homemade tomato sauce, filet américain, burgers, pastas and salads, a jumbled menu of dishes that aren't too fancy, but are good, hearty and reasonably priced.

Impossible to miss Rubens, this great restaurant, brasserie, tea room, with the imposing terrace (180 places) and with the majestic façade. Here, each one will find its happiness. That it is right to drink a drink and to eat a waffle the afternoon, or to appreciate a full meal, you will be welcome. Grilled meats, fish, croquettes with shrimps and mussels in season, a french cuisine of good level. Do not hesitate to taste the house speciality: the coast with the bone roasted on stone of lava, Béarnaise sauce, with a beautiful view released on the sea.

A homemade beer, a snack or a real meal, everything is possible at the Taverne de l'Homme Bleu. This attractive brewery in the former stable of the Château de La Hulpe Farm (1833) owes its name to the main character in Folon's work. The place has kept its original decor: red brick walls and floors, high vaulted ceilings and of course the bucolic terrace, a real added value in good weather. Seasonal suggestions escort the brewery dishes and some emblematic Belgian specialities.

A real institution in Saint-Gilles, the Porteuse d'Eau has the charm of an Art Nouveau brewery with its stained glass and woodwork. Thibaut Lepoivre, passionate about the national drink and a true connoisseur, offers a traditional Belgian menu (summer and winter) and no less than 100 special beers. You can enjoy the specialities of this place with appetite, the beer service is important and done in the rules of the art and this last one is gladly accompanied by cheese in board, sliced by the customer. The staff are professional and friendly, and the atmosphere is very pleasant.

The De Helleketel in the village of Watou is the oldest bistro in the area, having opened in 1895 - over a hundred years ago! It not only serves local beers, but also small snacks (country bread sandwiches, pâté, etc.), all in a rustic, traditional setting. The wooden tables, sometimes covered with waxed tablecloths, plunge us into an atmosphere worthy of our grandmothers' cooking. In fine weather, you can gather around the large wooden tables on the sunny terrace.

The establishment's reputation is based on its various local distinctions: ambassador of Orval (the region's famous Trappist beer), ambassador of Maitrank (flavored wine and Arlon specialty) and recognized as a "bistrot de terroir". Not far from the church of Saint-Donat d'Arlon and its famous belvedere, the restaurant serves snacks and brasserie-style dishes in a friendly troquet-style atmosphere. The Gilles d'Arlon, sponsored by the Gilles de Binche, took refuge here to stage their carnival. A lovely discovery to share.

De stokerij is translated as "the distillery" and, obviously, this pre-industrial building used to be a brewery-distillery. You have to admit that the walls are quite magical, as are the plates. Fusion cuisine in a trendy place, where the little icons on the menu indicate tapas and dishes that are vegetarian, dairy, gluten-free, sugar-free and so on. Their specialty is a twist on carbonnade. Instead of beef, pork cheek is used with a sauce made with Sint-Bernardus 12 beer, a real treat! And don't forget to try one of the house beers.

A historic bar in Kraainem, a commune bordering the Brussels region, the New Inn has been enjoying a second lease of life since 2019, when it was transformed into a brasserie. The menu features honest brasserie dishes (spaghetti, veal kidneys, duck breast, etc.), but the chef also offers suggestions from other cuisines (linguine vongole, Argentinian meat) or seasonal dishes (mussels, game, etc.). In fine weather, the terrace is very pleasant, with a rural view of the church, while in the evening, it is illuminated with colorful garlands that give it a festive air.

Pushing the door of the Sanglier, it is to find oneself in a little Ardennes café with its rustic furnishing (not surprising that it carries the name of boar). Martine and Marc Roeland have been running the place for 14 years and it is a popular tavern in the noble sense of the word: you come here to drink a coffee, a beer, eat a croque or an omelette when the kitchen is closed, and when it is open, you can find good old specialities (solettes, American, grilled steak). At noon on weekdays, dish of the day at good price. Covered terrace and discovery as a bonus.

Located at Belgian Beer World (formerly the Brussels Stock Exchange), this new brasserie is situated on one of the most beautiful spots in the city center. And already the public is flocking here, thanks to the majestic setting of the former stock exchange, as well as the atmosphere and Belgian accents of the short menu. Carbonnades, Liège-style dumplings, mussels, entrecote steak... Special mention for the thick-cut steak tartare and fresh French fries. The only downside is the drinks, with very few wines and a dearth of Belgian beers. But what a setting!