Belgium Train tickets Q
 

I'll be in Belgium for 4 days in January and will be doing some daytrips from Brussels.

On the Belgian Railway website, I see that they offer 50% off tickets for weekend roundtrip travels. Is such offer good for everyone? Can I get this discount at any local train station?

http://www.b-rail.be/nat/E/tarifs/tickets/weekend/

Yes and yes. Belgian train prices are quite reasonable to begin with, so the discounts make tickets an even better buy.

BT-

I ate at Belga Queen (one of your rec's) this past May when I was in Brussels and really liked it. I'll be in Brussels for a few days and would like to get some more restaurant recs from you, if you don't mind!

Cut and pasted from another thread, but these are some of our favorite restaurants in Brussels.

*Notos (Greek haute cuisine, this is NOT your typical taverna) on rue Livourne. Take the 93 or 94 tram to the rue Bailly stop (there is an Irish pub on the corner, I think it's called Michael Collins, get off there, walk down rue Bailly, turn left on rue Livourne and it's just a few doors down). Reservations strongly advised.
*Brasseries Georges (good lunch specials on weekdays, a classic spot to meet for Sunday lunch, French bistro food, all good). On the Uccle/Ixelles border on the Ave. Winston Churchill where it meets Chaussee de Waterloo.
*Canterbury's (by the Ixelles lakes [ponds IMHO]--best chicken dishes in town, terrific frites, nice fireplace, most diners are residents of this upscale neighborhood.
*Les larmes du Tigre (21 rue de Wynants near the Palais de Justice), excellent Thai
* Lola--fashionable spot (after all these years) on the Sablon
* La Tour d'y voir---also on the Sablon but only if you're feeling adventurous...you tell the chef what kind of meal you'd like (meat, fish, vegetarian) and he takes it from there. Excellent food but not for the picky eater or for those who like to choose from a menu.
* Le Chalet de La Foret--way out in Uccle (next to our health club), but a classy spot in a pretty wooded setting
*Shake Hands (weird name, isn't it?)--A French brasserie in the Stockel neighborhood of Woluwe St. Pierre. Nice spot for lunch, one of the least expensive choices here. If you're out that way.
*Le Jaco--similar to Shake Hands but out at the end of the 92 tram line in St. Job (Uccle). Again, only if you're out that way. A casual, local hangout, good food.
*Les Etangs Mellaerts--next to the lovely Woluwe Parc in Woluwe St. Pierre (on the 39 and 44 tram lines). Very popular for lunch. Surprisingly good food for a park location.

All of them are moderately priced but can become expensive if you go all out with wine choices, etc. Reservations strongly advised for all of them for dinner...you can probably get by without reservations for Canterbury's or Shake Hands at lunch. Le Jaco is probably fine without reservations, but I doubt you'll get out that way.

Finally, Au Vieux St. Martin--not for meals, for drinks or light snacks only. A prime spot on the Sablon. I love going there in the middle of the day, sitting at Bill Clinton's table (a table in the back corner of the front section) and having a tea with fresh mint or decadent cappuccino (comes with a bowl of homemade whipped cream topped with dark chocolate shavings and served with a palmier cookie).

If you want pastries that rival anything from France, Germany or Austria, go to the Wittamer cafe on the Sablon (or pick out one of their luscious pastries to take with you). Don't go too late or the most popular pastries will be gone...

Most of these have web sites or go to www.resto.be and type in the names for contact info, photos, and links to web sites (if available).

BTilke, have you ever eaten at Rist. Bocconi in the Amigo Hotel? I'm interested to know about their business lunch.