68 Best Restaurants in Brussels, Belgium

Finally, the mushroom-theme restaurant of your dreams … well, someone's dreams. And while diners might discover that it isn't quite as eccentric as they'd expect (mushrooms feature in all dishes but often as side ingredients), it is nonetheless quite out there, particularly the desserts: try the cakey flan diplomate and wood-ear fungus! The owners also run the impressive fine-dining French restaurant La Buvette and the excellent bakery Hopla Geiss, whose cinnamon rolls are utterly moreish, on the same street, but this is where the "fun guys" go (groan). 

Another example of a restaurant making the most of its appeal: charming Art Nouveau decoration, recycled tables, and a sustainable ethos. A pair of sisters are behind this admirable neighborhood eatery, where menus are short but sweet and limited by what is fresh and local that season (and day).  

With superb cuisine, excellent wines, and attentive service, this two-star Michelin restaurant remains a regal choice, with an interior (and prices) to match. Lionel Rigolet, who took over the reins as chef from his father-in-law Pierre Wynants in 2006, is a ceaselessly inventive character with one foot in tradition, dishing up elegant racks of veal dashed with sweetbreads or cockerel breasts crowned with crayfish. Earlier creations have been relegated to the back of the menu, but one favorite remains—fillet of sole with a white wine mousseline and shrimp. Book weeks in advance to guarantee a table.

What was once just a friendly fishmongers has evolved into one of the city's best, and most unexpected, street-food stops. It's set on place Ste-Catherine, which has been revitalized as the home of all things seafood, and visitors queue up at the counter outside, place an order, then grab it from the window when called. You eat at tables standing in the square, prodding with your fingers at sumptuous salt 'n' pepper calamari, scampi drenched in garlic butter, and fresh North Sea crab. A true gem rightly lorded by those in the know. It closes at 6:30 pm, though, so get there early. 

The city isn't short of good street food markets, not since Wolf opened in the center, but out in Laeken, where the options are not nearly as interesting, this new addition was a godsend when it opened in the Tour & Taxis center in 2021. The choice here is a mix of slightly more upmarket and downright crowd-pleasing, ranging from the frites of "140" (the perfect temperature for cooking fries) to the Ayurvedic veggies of Xgreen. The space is huge and you're not short of options. 

There are a cluster of bars and restaurants around the Cirque Royal. This "brassonomie" experiment is a cut above the rest, taking the usual brasserie fare and elevating it to a fine-dining bistro experience, and throwing in its own brewery for good measure. A beef-cheek carbonnade arrives drizzled in a silken gravy made from its house Santana beer; even the buerre blanc smothering the plaice and grey shrimps is jazzed up with its own brews. 

True Flemish cooking flourishes in this reliable old favorite. The low ceilings and benches around the walls remain from its days as a coaching inn during the 18th century, and little has changed since---including the menu. Choose from among 100 artisanal beers. The specialty here is the distinctively sour lambic variety of beers, which are also used in the cooking, such as lapin à gueuze (rabbit stewed in fruit beer). Go with an appetite, because portions are huge. The knowledgeable waiters can recommend beers to go with your food but can be on the brusque side.

This cozy café is the epitome of Brussels decor: bicycles hang from the ceiling, there are Tintin statues everywhere, and shelves overflow with books. It's sculpted chaos and part of a chain of cafés that is slowly taking over the city. This was the first branch, and is still the best. The bagels and ready-made sandwiches are always tasty, plus it stays open until 8 every day, by which time it's filled with busy students. 

The Maison Antoine frites stand sells the best fries in the capital, say some people, accompanied by a dizzying range of condiments; try either local fave "Bicky" or the indulgent vol-au-vent sauce. 

Hidden away in the streets just to the south of Parc Josephat, opposite the wine bar Ethylo, the local buzz is strong about this charming restaurant. The "market menu" is adapted in case of intolerances and geared around local producers. Its focus on gut-friendly fermentation, from kefir to sauerkraut, is explained knowledgeably, as amuse bouches are carted out with enthusiasm. 

This tiny, modest, well-executed Flemish restaurant with a superb beer menu was quite the hit when it opened. The brasserie is named after the Dutch phrase for those who "can't get enough," and the city voted with its feet. Back then, diners lined up dutifully alongside its Art Nouveau facade, clutching beers from the bar for warmth; now there's finally online booking (one crumb of comfort from COVID). The food leans into the best of Belgian comfort food: stews slow-cooked in fruity beers, meat flaking off in gravy-soaked, hop-flavored chunks onto crisp frites and chicory. It's simple food executed well, and its selection of local lambic beers is a connoisseur's dream.

A short walk from place Jourdan reveals this elegant, modern French restaurant, its pared-down, neat decor broken up with colorful prints of animals and the bustle of the open kitchen. The choice of food is equally sparse but to the point: four-course set menus deliver with imagination and no little amount of skill, letting you mix and match from your pick of cold, warm, hot, and sweet dishes on the blackboard. Lunch is a great deal at €25 for a starter and main.   

There's plenty of debate as to Brussels's best ramen. This cozy little joint on rue St. Boniface is undoubtedly in with a claim. Diners cluster around the countertop as chefs boil up their stock, chop up the meat, and prepare each dish. The scents and aromas are reward enough, though the gyoza aren't bad either. That's your only choice really—the menu is tiny—but you don't come for anything more. No booking, just walk in and pray there's space. There's also a street terrace on warmer days. 

Head down into this 17th-century vaulted cellar restaurant (watch out for the low door frame) for traditional Belgian cuisine served at plain wooden tables. Mussels are the house specialty, but the stoemp et saucisses (mashed potatoes and sausages) are equally tasty. It's a popular place with locals and tourists, as it's open noon to midnight—but anything on the Grand Place is always going to be heaving with people. Like many restaurants in the center, Covid forced them to adopt a reservation system, so it's easier to grab a table than it used to be on busy nights. 

In a city of students, it's no surprise that something so simple as a "chicken and bread" restaurant would take off. But it is also a thing of beauty. It has been going since the 1960s but closed for several years, reopening to much nostalgia and a hipper new look (think cocktails and decent beer) among the boutiques of Mechelsestraat. At its heart, it's just a hunk of delicious marinated roast chicken with a selection of sides (salads, veggies, apple sauce, hummus), but to locals, it's so much more than that. 

A Brussels institution named after a card game called "Sudden Death," A la Mort Subite is practically unchanged since its 1920s heyday; and with its distinctive high ceilings, wooden tables, and mirrored walls, it remains a favorite of beer lovers from all over the world. Balancing a vast drinks menu with a choice of simple snacks (sandwiches and omelets), it still brews its own traditional Brussels beers (Lambik, Gueuze, and Faro). These sour potent drafts may be an acquired taste, but, like singer Jacques Brel, who came here often, you'll find it hard to resist the bar's gruff charm.

Matonge's St. Boniface area is a great spot to grab some food, and this Brussels institution (open since 1882) is as lively as any and a favorite among locals. The cuisine is decidedly Belgian, with anguilles au vert (freshwater eels in a green sauce) and hearty Flemish carbonnades on the menu, best accompanied by a draft beer. Naturally, everything is served with frites, and be sure to ask for the homemade mayonnaise. If you're too full to tackle a whole dessert, you can order a half portion.

Even when neighboring restaurants on Grand Sablon are empty, this one is always full. It's run by the Niels family, who have been restaurateurs in Brussels since 1915, and its short menu emphasizes local specialties; portions are substantial. Its iconic filet Americain—a popular local take on steak tartare and frites—was even invented by grandfather Joseph Niels. Ownership has passed to the next generation, but standards remain high and it still serves unusually good wine (the family also has a wine import business) for the price, by the glass, or bottle. It also has a sister restaurant, Au Savoy, is located in Ixelles.

This elegant dining spot has a charming terrace surrounded by a grassy lawn and trees. The menu is grandiose but not afraid of the more interesting rural delights of French cooking, from saddle of hare to fillet of fawn via a number of interesting pheasant dishes. Just as exciting is its new food-sharing menu, as it tries to capture the postgarden walk-in crowd, where baked sweetbreads, caviar, and Duroc pork belly offer a more classically French take on the format. 

A couple of miles west of Gaasbeek is the rather bijou little town of Lennik, home to a fair number of high-priced dining options. One of the finer is August, a wine shop-cum-restaurant that oozes class and is set in an 18th-century wine merchant's premises. Paired set menus aren't cheap, but they pack a lot of flavor in, arriving immaculately presented. 

Meatballs (or ballekes) are Belgium's current fast-food obsession. This restaurant chain is everywhere now but began here in Saint-Gilles, even if it's looking its age these days. The meatballs are offered with a choice of sauces, from classic tomato to a range of beery takes, all served up in cast-iron dishes. To this you add a choice of sides, ranging from frites to chicory salad. There's a definite Ikea vibe to the decor, but it's quick, delicious, and Ballekes even has its own craft beer—you don't get that in McDonalds! There's another branch in the Grand Place as well.

The novelty of this Italian pizza and food-sharing restaurant is proving pretty enduring. Set on the busy food street of Tiensestraat, this is one of few restaurants here not part of the usual Belgian chains (Wasbar, Balls & Glory, Bavet, etc.). Instead, you'll find good drinks, an array of tapas ranging from stuffed baos to pizza bites and oysters, as well as pastas, risottos, salads, and, of course, good pizza. The food is served on wooden boards, steamer baskets, and on paper. It's just fun and it probably won't be long before they're found all over Belgium. 

With former lives as a convent and a restaurant, this place along a side street in the Marolles now makes good use of its cavernous interior as a rather flash club, where deep house music and jaegermeisters flow freely.

Moules (mussels) and steaks, along with a small handful of the usual standbys, set the pace at this much-adored brasserie. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks—it's pretty much all things to the large contingent of expats who have made this a popular local spot. There are plenty of burgers to keep the kids happy, too. 

Café Belga, in an ocean-liner-like Art Deco building, is a favorite among Brussels's beautiful people. Sip a cocktail or mint tea at the zinc bar, or sit outside on a deck chair and gaze at the swans on the Ixelles ponds.

A much-revered Italian restaurant that has been remodeled in recent years to be more of a meal out. There's a nice garden terrace, the wine selection is proficient, and the cooking is never less than spot on. It's been a local favorite for years, and you can see why: a good choice of seafood (particularly lobster) accompanies pasta that reliably conjures the scents and tastes of Italy. 

Even in Belgium, where meat tends to feature pretty high on the agenda of most menus, Colonel is something different. It's all about the steak here—marbled, aged, and kept on display like a treasured memory in a cabinet by the bar counter. Choose your own cut of traceable and personally sourced French beef, typically served with thick beef-fat frites on the side. There's more than just meat here, with a well-finessed bistro menu, but why fight it?

This beautiful mid-18th-century town house was redone in the Art Nouveau style in 1904, adding an elegant bow window and balcony. It's been a brasserie since the early '80s, but remained empty for years after the previous owners went bankrupt. Mercifully, it's been resurrected and restored to its former glory. The menu is solidly Belgian, with not an ounce of desire to add anything to the classics. Well-made beer stews, moules, américains, and Liège-style meatballs accompany the one international caveat: an array of tagliatelle dishes. 

This cheap, satisfying neighborhood café-restaurant never fails to please. Slightly removed from the center, on Hogeschoolplein, it's as much a lunch spot as a restaurant, but its cheap pastas and salads make for a good, filling meal on the go. Given the prices, it's no surprise that it's a student hot spot with a large terrace that fills up fast on warm days. The fact you can get its desserts from a vending machine seems to delight many a local customer.