Even if you are planning to stay in Brussels for a short time, you should visit at least one of the restaurants located in the capital of Belgium which are known for its delicious cuisine. Since Brussels can hardly be called a huge mega polis with its population of nearly a million of citizens, some types of food here might be unavailable, whereas others can be extremely popular. If you want to know more about eating out in Brussels, this article will be very helpful for you.
The most popular types of restaurants in Brussels
The food in the Brussels restaurants comes mainly from Belgian, French and Italian cuisines, however you can come across more exotic places to eat out as well.
French restaurants in Brussels
French cuisine is one of the most popular in Brussels. The reason for it is the fact, many descendants of French Belgians as well as the citizens coming from the French speaking parts of the country live in Brussels. Those of them, who happen to own restaurants or work as chiefs are making their best to serve the meals of French cuisine of the highest quality.
Actually, so far, there are nearly 600 French restaurants located in Brussels. Thus, you will be able to find a place to enjoy French cuisine of absolutely different price range in various locations of the city. For example, some of the most expensive French restaurants with the highest quality of food and service are Jaloa and Rouge Tomate. Malte is an example of a restaurant with quite moderate prices.
Italian restaurants in Brussels
Fortunately, you can easily find Italian restaurants in Brussels which do not limit their offer to pasta and pizza. Undeniably, Italian cuisine is far richer and a number of Brussels Italian restaurants will let you try some of more mainstream dishes.
If you would like to taste Italian food cooked in Belgium, one of the best area to eat out is right near Place Chatelain. Some of the best Brussels Italian restaurants are located at the intersection of Rue du Page and Rue Americaine. Pay your attention to the fact that the nights of Wednesdays are the Place du Chatelain drinking nights. This means that during this time the restaurants located in this area might be overcrowded. Note that the majority of restaurants won’t hurry their visitors, so you should be prepared to look for a free seat among several places.
Asian restaurants in Brussels
Some of the most exotic cuisines one can find in the capital of Belgium are Vietnamese, Chinese, Thai and Japanese ones. Thai, Chinese and Vietnamese cuisine is served in the noodle shops and restaurants which are offering meals primarily for casual dining. A great number of Thai and Vietnamese restaurants of this type are located on the Jules Van Praet street, whereas Chinese restaurants are mostly available on Rue de la Veirge Noire.
Note that the Japanese restaurants located in Brussels are a bit more expensive. There is no one centre of Japanese cuisine in the city, so you can find these restaurants spread around Brussels.
Brussels vegetarian restaurants
If you are looking for a place to eat exclusively vegetarian dishes, you will not have a particularly large choice of vegetarian restaurants. Some of the purely vegetarian places in Brussels are Exki which is a self-service fast-food with healthy organic dishes, Dolma which is one of the best vegetarian restaurants in Brussels serving Tibetan dishes, Arcadi with its vegetarian pastas, quiches and desserts as well as Tsampa combining a vegetarian restaurant with an organic shop. You should also pay your attention to Element Terre which offers mainly vegetarian food but also serves seafood and fish. Undeniably, this is a good option for people who want to eat out with their non-vegetarian relatives or friends.
Even though the list of purely vegetarian restaurants in Brussels is not particularly large, the majority of Italian restaurants located in the capital of Belgium offer more than one vegetarian options to their visitors.
Brussels restaurants – general information
Now, when you have learned about the most popular types of cuisine available in Brussels, you should also learn several important facts about eating out in the capital of Belgium.
First of all, you should know that the day when the majority of restaurants are not overcrowded are Sundays. During the work week, you will find a lot of people in the Brussels restaurants after 8 pm. That is so since many Belgians visit restaurants at 8 pm for dinner. Before that time, the majority of places are empty. In fact, the majority of restaurants do not require any reservation, however, if you are planning to visit a place in a group of more than three people, it might be sensible to make a reservation beforehand.
When it comes to tips, they are usually included into the price of the service, so Belgian waitresses do not expect you to give them anything extra. Yet, if you want to leave some tips, they can be one or two euros. The tips can be left with the bill or at the counter, where a special glass container for tips is usually located.