City of Brussels Archives - Page 9 of 9 - Beers 'n' Bites in Brussels

KICK tap’ASS

7 August 202128 May 2016

UPDATE: Closed permanently…

The Rue de Laeken doesn’t seem to be the best of places to open a bar for some: geek bar Schrödinger’s Cat didn’t last very long, and Tapas Soif? didn’t remain open for very long either. However, the latter has risen as a phoenix — apparently there even was some actual fire involved — with a little help from crowdfunders, and is now serving Belgian tapas and beers again under the name KICK tap’ASS. Time to go back to try the tapas we missed out on during its previous incarnation!

Scott’s Bar

14 October 201720 May 2016

Scott’s Bar is a place we’ve been visiting every once and again for a while now. They have a nice beer selection, it’s quite nearby for us, it’s often open when other places are closed already, and when it’s sunny, the terrace is great – if you’re not bothered too much by this typical example of Brussels facadism!
Not too long ago, they installed an open kitchen next to the entrance and expanded the menu, so it was about time for us to try some food there as well.

Le Bier Circus

15 May 20168 May 2016

Le Bier Circus is one of those places you’ll find in a lot of tourist guides, offering exactly what a tourist would expect: typical Belgian dishes on the menu, and lots of Belgian beers to choose from. Coulrophobes be warned though: this place is full of clowns, as you would expect in a ‘circus’!

Viva M’Boma

12 July 202225 March 2016

Update: Out of business…

Viva M Boma DSC_0651 Viva M’Boma is not your typical restaurant, since it is specialised in offal dishes: livers, kidneys, tongues, intestines, cheeks, udders… For the less adventurous eaters, there are more familiar Belgian dishes on the menu as well, like stoemp saucisses and carbonnades Flamandes with chips.

We decided to have a mixed starter dish, consisting of boudin blanc, dry pork sausage, and bread with rillettes, followed by the ‘safe choice’ stoemp saucisses, and the fried liver with cream sauce and bacon. We thoroughly enjoyed al dishes served, and are curious to try some more!

Fin de Siècle

25 March 201618 March 2016

20160318 Fin de Siècle IMG_1866_web When you pass by Fin de Siècle in the evening, there are usually a couple of people standing at the bar. They’re not there just to have a drink, but they’re waiting to be seated. It’s a logical result of their no reservations policy, but it’s always a good sign if you see people are willing to put up with the wait, isn’t it?

We were lucky when we went for dinner there this week, we only had to wait for a couple of minutes before being shown to ‘our’ table. ‘Our’ between quotation marks, since you’ll rarely have the table to yourself here: you’ll be seated where ever there are some places left at the long, communal tables.

Bia Mara

25 March 20164 March 2016

“Eat more fish” is the motto of Bia Mara. “Good luck with that”, was my first thought, when in 2013, I first walked past the now famous chippie. And foreigners from a soggy chip country selling chips to Belgians?
I’m not a fish eater at all: in most restaurants I usually just skip the seafood section of the menu. But after the first time I tried the Classic at the lively fish and chips shop on the Marché aux Poulets, I was hooked — pun intended. Because of Bia Mara, I’ve eaten more fish in the last three years, than in the preceding thirty years!

The fish and chips at Bia Mara — seafood in Irish Gaelic — are nothing like the fish and chips you might have eaten in the UK. Simon and Barry made their own version of the classic dish, using herbs and spices from all over the world and Japanese tempura or panko for the fish, making it more crispy than usual. The chips are more like potato wedges than ‘normal’ chips, and nicely seasoned with seaweed salt. If you really want vinegar, just ask for the spray.