Everybody knew Brussels Beer Project was building a big new brewery with a taproom near the Biestebroek dock, but the opening of BBP Bailli actually came quite unexpected for most of us. On Saint Patrick’s Day, the Michael Collins pub on the corner of the Rue Bailli and Avenue Louise was still very much an Irish pub—albeit closed, like every other bar in the country—but just three months later it opened with the bright BBP colours painted just about everywhere, and a whole lot more beers on draught!
To honour the building’s history, BBP Bailli serves a light, very drinkable, creamy Nitro MC Stout. The MC in the name is for Michael Collins, of course… At €8,30 for a 50 cl ‘pint’, it’s a tad more expensive than a Guinness, of course, so it remains to be seen if it can lure back some of the old regulars. The 30+ other taps however, already managed to draw in a lot of the Châtelain crowd! Knocking through the beer garden wall, giving it direct access from the street, probably helped a lot in achieving this.
So far we’ve noticed some of BBP’s beers were available here, before they were available at the brewery, which in turn also convinced BBP Dansaert regulars to leave their comfort zone and try this new spot. Strangely enough, some of these new beers were only available in cans or bottles, which surely can’t be because of a lack of available taps!
Some guests appear on the—rather quirky—beer board as well, but the majority of the available beers is their own. Unless there’s a tap takeover of course, like the recent Cloudwater TTO, and the upcoming Piggy Brewing TTO!
Pizza
In the new bar the fish and chips fryers had to make room for a flashy pizza oven. You can’t really miss it: it’s right next to the ordering counter, and it’s covered in mirrors like a disco ball! The menu lists about seven different pizzas, without beer pairing suggestions unfortunately, but that might come later. There are also some other Mediterranean appetizers and dishes on the menu. Perfect when an after-work drink runs a little late!
They’re still putting some finishing touches on the building—or at least they were during our last visit—but it already is a very attractive spot for an al fresco beer in an otherwise very busy area. The inside is shaping up nicely as well, and there are playful details everywhere, so do check it out!
tl;dr
Beers
- 30 beers on draught.
- Most of them their own, but some guest beers as well
- Some of their beers only available in cans or bottle
Bites
- Pizza straight from their disco pizza oven
- A couple of other small, mostly Mediterranean dishes
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What have people been drinking here recently?
- SW Lee is drinking a FOLK at BBP Bailli
- Josefin Sers is drinking a Shake Shake at BBP Bailli
- Johan Olausson is drinking The Future Is Europe at BBP Bailli
- Josefin Sers is drinking a Yeti Bang at BBP Bailli
- Fabio Almada is drinking a Galaxy NEIPA - Brewer's Edition at BBP Bailli
- Fabio Almada is drinking a Nørd Bliss at BBP Bailli
- Fabio Almada is drinking The Future Is Europe at BBP Bailli
- Gregory Steenbeek is drinking a NZ Micro IPA - Brewer's Edition at BBP Bailli
- Gregory Steenbeek is drinking a Sprtz IPA - Brewer’s Edition at BBP Bailli
- Stephen Beckwith is drinking a Chockablock at BBP Bailli