‘Made with love’ the logo says. And I’m tempted to believe this is true. The waitress’ wonderful smile makes me feel at ease right away.

Prélude is one of those hip restaurants, still un-reluctantly flooding many cities since the Teenies. The name in stylish capitals. Chalk menu on the wall. Liquids in jars. Wood all around. Soup decorated as if by an interior designer. Local beers from small breweries. A multitude of home-made desserts in forms you didn’t know existed. Lemonades in which liquid sugar must be poured. All things organic. As for me, I’m not much of a food-aficionado, nor an organic-bobo, nor do I have a special tendency for jars. But what the heck, Prélude does the trick for me.

Why? For lunch – between 12:00-15:00 – you can have bento (pronounced 弁当). A sort of lunchbox filled with healthy food and very popular in Japan. Normally it has three main components: rice, fish or meat and vegetables. But common variations include chickpeas, quinoa, fruit, eggs, tofu… The ‘bentos Bruxellois’ served in Prélude – they also have a vegetarian option – are just lovely, delicious, tender and sweet! And reasonably priced as well. Just try one and you’ll understand my enthusiasm. Just don’t forget to make a reservation.

Besides sitting inside, you can also enjoy the street terrace outside. With a view at – depending on your institutional preference – the back of Sint-Gillis’ grand city hall dating back to 1900 or the fantastic 1884 prison of Sint-Gillis with its lovely English Gothic towers.

Tanoshinde kudasai!