In Brussels you can find cafes on every corner. Typical, busy, good or bad: you have plenty of choice!

However only few serve something local, something typically Bruxelloise. One of them is “Het Warme Water”, near Place du Jeu de Balle in Marolles.

They have a few wooden tables, some old pictures, and an interesting menu. Breakfasts, brunches, meals, drinks, buffet on Sundays, all biological! You just have to choose. Everything is prepared in front of you in the kitchen open to the room. What I like about this spot is the opportunity to taste some Brussels food, like cheese, salami, beer… and to spend there hours chatting without being asked to leave!

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Het Warme Water | Bars, Coffee & tea, Restaurants (Bruxelloise) | Breakfast € 10
25, Rue des Renards | Center | +3225139159
Thu – Sun 09:00 – 17:00

In the middle of the Marolles on the border of Het Vossenplein you can find this cosy bar. Sit on the terrace, enjoy the sun &  try one of their great beers while you are watching the flea market activity.

On every Thursday evening from 20:00 to 00:00 Chaff is the epicenter of the Brussels board games world. Dozens of people gather together. The concept is simple: go sit at a table and you wait for one of the sympathetic organising dudes to pass by, you pay 3 euro and in return you can a name tag and you can choose from dozens of often less known but fun games. The organizers can help you choose the games depending on your preferences, well known or less known, with a lot of strategy or based on a lot of luck, speed or concentration and group size.

If you’re looking for game companions or when you think it’s fun to meet new people the tables might get mixed and you end your evening playing with complete strangers. Too lazy to read the game rules (or game rules in another language)? No need to worry, you get an almost professional live explanation of everything you need to know. 

Oh yeah, before I forget to tell you, they have great food too ;)

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Chaff | Bars, Coffee & tea, Relaxing, Restaurants | Boardgame evening € 3
Vossenplein 21 | Center | +3225025848
08:30 – 00:00 daily (closed Mon evening & Sun lunchtime)

Therese et Dominique is one of those places where ordering the regular would be a true crime.

Although this is ‘just’ a sandwich bar, it would be a pity to go for the baguette with tuna fish you always eat. Apart from the usual stuff they have a bunch of specialties worth to be discovered. Try for instance an adapted ciccio bello, mozzarella-tomato with sweet peppers and fried aubergine slices, divine.

When the weather is nice I like to take-away my treasure and eat it sitting in the sun of the Poelaert square while doing some tourist watching, but it’s also possible to eat at the place itself, inside or in the cute garden.

Measured by the queues that might appear at the entrance it seems I’m not the only fan of the place, make sure you’re in it. Don’t worry, they work fast, you never have to wait too long.

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Therese et Dominique | Coffee & tea, Snacks | Baguette € 3.50
Dejonckerstraat 23 | Ixelles
Mon – Sat

At Bonnefooi you can see a concert every day for free. They have blue painted walls with luxurious lighting and a matching coffee and tea set, served with a chocotof. Long bar with a piano at the entrance. A stairway makes way to another floor with tables that offer a birds eye view of the bar. Kitsch design in the bathroom and portraying some animals. Good venue where it’s nice to be.

Great for music jams, concerts, dancing and experiencing Brussels active young people. Opens at five ‘clock. There is usually more activity during the week. I like the fact that it has made a name for itself in such a short time. Out of nothing this place emerged and in a few months they’ve succeeded in converting their street into a ‘music street’ with regular vinyl and other music related sales in front of the place.

I like sitting at their terrace and enjoying the musical performances. I also enjoy the general positive intention of the place which must be something like bringing musicians together to make great things happen. To create a new dynamic and give Brussels a much needed revitalising therapy.

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Bonnefooi | Bars, Coffee & tea, Music | Beer € 1.80
Steenstraat 8 | Center
17:00 – 05:00 daily

I thought I knew quite a lot about tea after living in Japan. At least, I could have told you that tea came in three varieties: green, black and white. That’s what I thought, anyway, until I stumbled upon Cha Man in St. Gilles and discovered the existence of blue, red and yellow teas. Crazy!

Cha Man is that kind of place. You will find teas that you never even knew existed, ranging in quality (and price), from basic greens to outlandish and rare yellows, fit for an Emperor. If you’re looking for that rare blend you drank in Shanghai or just want to browse and discover, you won’t be disappointed. The tea is sorted and stored in colorful bags: red, yellow, green, white, black and blue. 

Although Cha Man is essentially a shop, they do have many tables, where you can try one of their teas on the premises. On a warmer day, the multicolored terrace spilling onto the square is just lovely. If you don’t think of tea as an ‘al fresco’ beverage, maybe Cha Man will change your mind.

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Cha Man | Coffee & tea, Shopping | Tea € 3.50
Parvis de St Gilles 49 | The South | +3225389888
Mon – Fri 13:30 – 20:30, Sat – Sun 10:00 – 18:30

There are times when I want to escape the noise of the city and ignore the corruptions of the 21st century. When a contemplative mood strikes and my inner Confucius rears its head, I head straight to Comptoir Florian. Housed in a beautifully restored art-nouveau townhouse, the tea shop at the front hides a miniature tea salon, with an incredible range of weird and wonderful teas, from white to green, and everything in between. 

I always try to get a table in the tiny back room, where one of the comfortable armchairs is the perfect place to sit and read. The main space is equally relaxing, though, with a colonial allure that evokes bygone centuries of trade winds, tea clippers and opium dens. 

Tea is taken seriously here and once you’ve tasted it you’ll understand why. What you get is worlds away from the usual bag in boiling water fare. Instead, loose leaves are slowly brewed in filtered water, to give the taste that so delighted Chinese emperor Shennong when he accidentally discovered the beverage way back in 2737 BC.

I don’t go there if I feel like a frenetic gathering of friends, or if I just need a quick drink. But, if I have some time to read or I want a pleasant conversation with a good friend, in hushed tones naturally, this is the place I choose. I can even be sure that nothing will disturb my serenity: a sign on the door reminds customers to switch off their mobile phones!

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Comptoir Florian | Coffee & tea | Tea € 5.00
Rue Saint Boniface 17 | Ixelles | +3225131903
Tue – Sat 11:00 – 20:00

Just a step away from the Manneken Pis you can find this relaxed bar, the “travellers club”. This is the place where I met Sanne and Bart (founders of Spotted by Locals): it felt like the most appropriate place to go to with enthusiastic travellers.

What fascinates me is its laid back atmosphere with soft music and comfortable armchairs. I always enjoy some of their teas of the world together with a piece of the dessert of the day, which normally corresponds to chocolate cake with whipped cream for me.

While you are there you can read travel magazines and travel books (unfortunately mainly in French or Dutch), but you can also have a look at the always changing photo exhibitions or check out the bookstore.

A couple of evenings a week they also have conferences, diaporamas, concerts or movies (in French or English or Italian,..). Every time I get out after one of them, I feel like setting off for a new travel adventure!

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Le Cercle des Voyageurs | Bars, Coffee & tea | Tea & cake € 8.00
Rue Des Grands Carmes 18 | Center | +3225143949
Wed – Mon 12:00 – 23:00

After bargaining for fruit at the Midi Market it is a cheap reward to sit at one of those hidden tables and taste Maroccan flavours. Along the sides of the station, in Avenue Fonsny in front of Hotel Continental, behind the huge display of olives and spices… there you have it, a corner of Morocco.

On the menu: pancakes with olives, vegetables, cheese, honey, and any combination requested. Be careful, they are huge! And don’t forget to get a glass of that sweet Moroccan tea, very good on a warm winter day.

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Moroccan pancakes | Coffee & tea, Snacks | Pancake € 2.50
Avenue Fonsny | The South
Sun 08:00 – 15:00

As many other bars in town, this one is famous for its good location, big space and lots of activities but not for it’s charm and singularity.

However, as a local there’s always a moment I’ll end up here: for a DJ set, a drink with a friend who had no other idea, a rest after a walk in the area,… So it’s not really possible to avoid speaking about this place, as you may hear of it after a very short while in our city and noticing that we do not mention it, will probably disappoint you.

So I can’t say that I love the place and will pick it as a first choice, but it’s one of the “Giant” bars of the Capital, and you always know why you end up here, what you’re looking for and you find it easily.

I also remember that I met a girl here while dancing who shortly became my “partner in crime” in the Brussel’s nights fever and other funky dance floors!

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Café de la Maison du Peuple | Bars, Coffee & tea, Music
39, Parvis de Saint-Gilles | The South | +3228500908
Sun – Thu 08:00 – 01:00, Fri – Sat 08:00 – 03:00

Do you know this feeling? You want to eat this particular dish that you use to eat when you were still living at your parents’ place… but you know the preparation takes long, you’re not sure about the recipe and you don’t see yourself calling your mum (who’s not living in the same town by the way) to ask her to prepare it…

Fortunately, I found out in my neighborhood a snack offering salads, soups and… traditional Moroccan food! And I found exactly what I was looking for: the taste from my childhood.

Obviously, I’m not the only one: many Moroccans eat there as well. It’s true that in the neighborhood there’s a Moroccan community: and some of them use to go there to drink the traditional tea, have a chat altogether, listening to the traditional music…

Sometimes, I have the feeling I’m in one of the many snacks in Casablanca… and it’s even true, when the waiter starts to sing an Arabic song while serving everyone!

I’ve tried nearly everything and was not disappointed, but I especially recommend the “Tagine Kefta” (ask for ‘la totale’ with potatoes and eggs), the “Soupes de lentilles”, or for dessert the “Raïb” (a home made yogourt).

Oh, and did I tell you? Yes, they have Couscous, of course!!!

Bsaha (Arabic word to say ‘bon appetit’)

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Perle D’Orient | Coffee & tea, Snacks, Restaurants (Moroccan)
rue Malibran, 23 | Ixelles | +32483422401
11:00 – 23:00 daily