Beer

Beer is one of the things Belgium is known for and they sure have reasons for it. In every restaurant or bar you go to, in whichever city, you can find a good selection of beers for all tastes. And it's common that you see all kinds of people appreciating them in said places, from youngsters to more senior aged couples. Here the beer-lovers have no specific gender or age and beer is something everyone can enjoy together. Also, in the supermarkets you can find a great selection of beers, or course more affordable than if bought in a bar and good if you want to try a few before deciding on which is your favorite treat. In case you buy them there, don't forget to return the empty glass bottles, as you will get back the deposit you paid.

As I am a beer appreciator myself, here it is paradise. I have been trying to experiment different ones everytime I go to a restaurant or a bar and one day I will be able to decide if I have a favorite (a hard task so far!). I have already tried the following beers (even if just a little sip from my boyfriend's glass):

Bush
Brigand
Chimay Bleu
Chimay Blonde
Chimay Rouge
Cookie Beer
De Koninck
Delirium Nocturnus (by Delirium Café)
Duvel
Gauloise Amber
Grimbergen
Hercule
Hoegaarden Rosé
Houblon Chouffe
Jupiler
Kasteel Brune
Kasteel Rouge
Kwak
Kriek Max
La Chouffe
Leffe Brune
Leffe Honey
Leffe Printemps
Leffe Radieuse
Leffe Royal
Leffe Ruby
Leon (by Chez Léon)
Maes
Martin's Pale Ale
Mc Chouffe

Morte Subite
Oude Lambik Girardin
Pink Killer
Piraat
Principale (by La Quincaillerie)
Rochefort
Rodenbach
Seef
St Feuillien
Stouterik
Tourtel
Vedett
Waterloo

Westmallen

Chez Léon

Chez Léon is one of Brussels' most famous restaurants. It has a history of 120 years, always kept as a family business, always accostumizing its clients to the best of Belgian food. Indeed, it started in the same place where it is today (right in the heart of the city, next to several tourist traps... but don't be mislead into thinking Chez Léon is one of them!), with just five tables. With its growing fame, however, there was the need to expand the space to correspond to the clients' demand and the houses near by were bought to create more room. Nowadays it has the capacity to receive 400 clients and counts with the work of 100 committed staff members.

Their most famous dish is the moules (made in all different ways ans styles) with frites. The moules come directly fresh from Zeeland and the best months to eat them are the ones finishing with -bre (Septembre, Octobre, Novembre, Decembre). However, that applies only to the moules served in a cocotte, as the others served in plates are of a different type and their season is all year. Even for the cocotte ones, they are served all year, but out of season they come from a different place.

Additionaly, the menu offers you many more delicious traditional dishes, not just the moules. I had the opportunity of spending a nice lunch there and this is what we ate:

Moules à l'escargot and Léon beer (yes, they brew their own beer!)

Vol au vent avec frites

Boulettes sauce tomate

Gaufre bruxelloise chantilly

The lower floor is open for the general public and the upper floor is reserved to groups.

If you're looking for a typical Belgian atmosphere, a cosy place with great dishes made by those in this business for many years and who know what they are doing, don't forget to pay them a visit! It is a great place to go with friends when sightseeing in the center, to take your relatives if they're in Brussels for a visit, or to organize a group dinner.

Chez Léon 

Rue des Bouchers 18, 

B-1000 Bruxelles

Tel.: 02/511.14.15 

Fax: 02/514.02.31 

welcome@leon1893.com 

Bier Circus

Bier Circus is a bar close to Madou, where you can not only try a big variety of beers, but also eat typical Belgian food (and desserts!). It has a very colorful decoration and the walls are covered with beer capsules, which make the place look very cheerful. We went there in the evening (it is not crowded) and this is what we ordered:

The Chocolate Mousse à la "Chimay Bleue" Trappist Beer

The "Dame Blanche" with Crunchy Speculoos Biscuit Ice Cream and Hot Chocolate and Oude Lambik Girardin  (Sint-Ulriks-Kapelle) beer

The staff was very friendly and the place has a calm atmosphere (the kind of bar you can go with some friends to talk).

Bier Circus
Rue de l'Enseignement, 57
1000 Brussels City 
02 218 00 34

Delirium Café

Delirium Café is known for being the biggest beer bar in Brussels. And it is not only big in terms of size (two large floors, one of which underground, that can fit hundreds of people), but also when it comes to the offer of beers (they entered the Guinness book in 2004 for having more than 2.000 different types of beers). Indeed, they have a book that you can look into in the bar or buy for 5€ with a list and a small description of all the beers they have available (not only Belgian beers, but also a huge selection of beers from all over the world). In the most crowded nights, you may just want to stick to the upper floor and try some of the beers they have on tap (and it's nice to see live how they "cut" the beer's foam coming out of the glass). However, in less crowded days (usually during the day it's fine and they are open in the afternoon), you can give your try on going downstairs and trying some of the bottled ones (where you can find all the classics and also some strange ones like the Cookie Beer - which I have tried! - or a coconut one, for example).

The bar is all decorated with beer related motives and is located in the heart of the city (in a dead-end street suggestively called Impasse de la Fidélité). Everyone (beer lovers and not-so-convinces-ones-yet) should pass by there to pay them a visit... even if just for the great beer-overdoses atmosphere!