Inflight Magazine of Brussels Airlines

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Belgium : Brussels - June 2010

Country Code: Dial for Belgium

In June you’ll see pretty legs whizzing rather than walking during the annual Roller Bike Parade (belgiumrollers.com), which now takes place every Friday evening until September. The city celebrates eco-awareness with the Environmental Festival (bruxelles environnement.be), while the 26th edition of the Fête de la Musique (fetedelamusique.be) sees hundreds of free concerts in Brussels and Wallonia to celebrate the summer solstice. Nina Lamparski sets off across hot asphalt to find out what else is happening this month

Getting around

Brussels Airport

Bus: The No 12 bus runs every 30 minutes between the airport and Rond-Point Schuman. The journey takes about 30 minutes. A oneway ticket costs €3.
Train: Trains from the airport run every 20 minutes at peak times. The journey takes 15 minutes and trains go to Brussels’ three mainline stations. Tickets cost approximately €2,80
Taxi: A taxi from the airport to the city centre will cost around €25-35. The journey should take about 25 minutes.
Tourist information: The main tourist office can be found on Grand’Place in the city centre (tel. , www.brussels.

LOUISE QUARTER

Boasting an intriguing mix of elegant boutiques, café terraces, skyscrapers and funky bars, the sweeping Avenue Louise and its surrounding streets is both a business and leisure hub.

Sleep soundly – The narrow façade of Emi’s Room (30 Rue Paul Spaak, tel. , emi-rooms.com, all rooms €100) hides an exclusive self-contained boutique hotel. The owner, Susan, has decorated each space with stunning wallpaper and unique pieces of furniture. The sexy Red Room boasts a small but romantic balcony, perfect for late-night serenades with champagne under starry skies.

Culture vultures – Spend the afternoon strolling around the lakes of the beautiful Bois de la Cambre, situated at one end of Avenue Louise. Spot the legendary Châlet Robinson: set on a little island, this lovely lodge was ravaged by a fire in 1991. After rotting away for nearly a decade, it finally reopened last year as a restaurant.

Must eat – Legendary restaurant Gusto (Corner Rue Fourmois/Rue du Page, tel. ) serves delicious homemade pasta and other Italian classics in a warm, unpretentious setting where booking is a must at weekends. Choose one of the dishes prepared with truffle oil and you’ll be in culinary heaven – and flash a dazzling smile at the charming waiters to get a free apéritif.

Must drink – On week nights, do as the locals do and sip chilled rosé at Le Châtelain (17 Place du Châtelain), a typical Belgian bar with a front terrace on the pretty Châtelain square.

Shop til you drop – The small window display belies the huge interior of luxury vintage temple Les Enfants d’Edouard (175 Avenue Louise). Inside a traditional maison de matre, with high ceilings and creaky floorboards, the store has gained cult status for its gorgeous second-hand designer clothes. From Chanel classics to modern labels like Zadig & Voltaire, the place sells men’s and women’s clothes across two large floors. The ethereal EM72 (72 Rue du Page), meanwhile, has delicate handmade fashion, pretty jewellery and gorgeous decorations for the home – a must for dreamy fairies.

PENTAGONE

Belgian fashion, art and a fiesta atmosphere to rival Barcelona – this gentrified boho neighbourhood is one of downtown’s top spots in summer. If you want to squeeze great shopping, culture and hardcore partying into a 24-hour period, this is the place to be.

Sleep soundly – Once the residence of the Spanish ambassador at the end of the 17th century, the lavish Le Dix-Septième (25 Rue de la Madeleine, tel. , ledixseptieme.be, rooms from €150) is now one of Brussels’ finest boutique hotels after a painstaking restoration in the early 1990s. Avoid paying steep prices by checking the website for excellent weekend deals offering up to 30% off.

Must drink – This area offers a mix of old-school cocktail bars, Latin joints, alternative hangouts for grungers and old-fashioned live music venues. Bring your day to a laid-back conclusion by sipping fresh raspberry juice on the terrace of the colourful Zebra Bar (33-35 Place Saint-Géry), or head to Mappa Mundo (2-6 Rue du Pont de la Carpe) for sinfully good mojitos. You can even finish off the evening by blowing all your money at the recently opened Viage (30 Boulevard Anspach).

Dance the night away – Carve up the floor to hot salsa and merengue beats at Le Meteko (Boulevard Anspach) or Montecristo (25 Rue Henri Maus). Or famous gay bar Homo Erectus (57 Rue des Pierres) boasts a glittering disco ball, 1980s cheese and drag queen Regina, who usually performs on Thursday nights.

Shop til you drop – Fashionistas will be in style heaven on Rue Antoine Dansaert. From Ann Demeulemeester to Dries Van Noten and Dirk Bikkembergs, pretty much all of Belgium’s biggest fashion designers are available to buy on this strip. And gals after Marc Jacobs flats or Chloé wedges will be well-served at the tiny two-floor boutique Hatshoe (89 Rue Antoine Dansaert).

PLACE DU JEU DE BALLE

Home to Brussels’ oldest flea market, this vibrant cobblestone square represents the social, cultural and artistic epicentre of the medieval Marolles neighbourhood.

Culture vultures – Make sure to peak inside the stunning Notre-Dame- Immaculée church (Place du Jeu de Balle). Built in 1861, it served as a hiding place for Belgians persecuted by the Nazis during the early 1940s.

Must eat – It’s small and might not look like the most refined restaurant you’ll come across, but Chaff (21 Place du Jeu de Balle, tel. ) is a bistro renowned for its delicious hot and cold Mediterranean dishes, and cheap prices.

Must drink – Early birds keen on experiencing Belgium’s yesteryear should take their coffee at Chez Willy (10-12 Place du Jeu de Balle), an institution only open in the morning. Or you could imitate the locals and order a white beer to quench your thirst.

Dance the night away – A brisk five-minute walk from the Jeu de Balle square lies Belgica (32 Rue du Marché au Charbon), a groovy bar-cum-mini house club that attracts an eclectic metrosexual, gay and high-heeled lady crowd. The address’s pièce de résistance is its decorative bust of the king. Open from Thursday to Sunday, 10pm-3am.

Shop til you drop – From tinsel, dolls and vases to cupboards and beds, the daily flea market on the Place du Jeu de Balle is the number one address for bargain hunters and antique lovers. Get here by 8am if you want to get your hands on seriously precious items.

FORT JACO

This leafy area in the city’s posh Uccle neighbourhood is home to wealthy expat families, the International School and some exclusive boutiques. You’ll also find an excellent Thai supermarket right next to the Fort Jaco bus stop, as well as various gourmet food stores scattered around.

Sleep soundly – A 10-minute cab ride from Fort Jaco, the sumptuous Manos Premier (100 Chaussée de Charleroi, tel , manoshotel.com, rooms from €315) is an art lover’s paradise featuring expensive sculptures, paintings and other collector’s items.

Culture vultures – Featured in the new Wallpaper* Brussels City Guide, the lovely Van Buuren Museum (41 Avenue Léo Errera) is indeed a must. The stunning art deco house once belonged to banker and patron David van Buuren and his wife Alice, and is bursting with rare furniture, stained glass windows, sculptures and international masterpieces.

Must eat – Mingle with politicians and celebrities at Brasseries Georges (259 Avenue Winston Churchill, tel. ), famous for its seafood bar. Carnivores should go to rustic De Hoef (218 Rue Edith Cavell, tel. ), one of the city’s oldest restaurants and located in a 17th-century farm.

Must drink – A star among the exploding wine-bar trend in Brussels is the Wine Square (1142 Chaussée de Waterloo). Whether you decide to drink here or take away, the staff’s expertise and friendly attitude make this place a winner.

Shop til you drop – Just past the massive urban park of Bois de la Cambre and only minutes away from the International School lies a row of funky designer shops located at 950 Chaussée de Waterloo. Antwerp fashion label Essentiel sells pretty dresses with prints and bright pop colours, while Clair de Lune is a boudoir-style shop specialising in jewellery, sensual candles and rare perfumes. Next door you’ll find Belgium’s only Maje boutique; a Paris label famous for its slinky, barely-there clothes made from exquisite materials such as silk. For an edgier look, pop into Rue Blanche (1091 Chaussée de Waterloo), one of the hottest designer names around at the moment. But note that none of these stores are very kind on the wallet.

Compiled by Nina Lamparski