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Brussels: A "Grand Place" for Beer - Page 2

© Paul Ruschmann

Another member of the lambic family, called kriek, is served here. Kriek is further fermented by the addition of cherries; in fact, its name comes from the Flemish word for "cherry." One word of caution: the last time I visited, I found out the hard way that a large glass of kriek is a one-liter mug. It'll set you back about $10...and put a serious crimp on further pub crawling. Really good, though.

Another celebrated drinking place not far from the Grand' Place is Le Falstaff (19-25, rue Henri Maus, just south of the Bourse, the city's former stock exchange). This busy establishment has an huge canopied patio, and plenty of seating inside in Art Noveau-style rooms. While it offers a good selection of draft beers, its main attraction is a pages-long menu of bottled beers covering nearly every style imaginable. Part of the fun of Belgian beer is its whimsical brand names, many with religious overtones. As I savored Forbidden Fruit, a chewy brown beer with more alcohol than some wines, other labels came to mind: Delirium Tremens; The Last Judgment; and, best of all, The Eleventh Commandment.

On the north side of the Bourse is another classic café, Le Cirio (18, rue de la Bourse). Like Le Falstaff, it offers a wide beer selection along with turn-of-the century ambience--aproned waiters and all. But its atmosphere is more sedate, which pleases the upper-middle-class townspeople who come here. Le Cirio, it is said, is one of the best places to observe that stereotypical Brussels habitué: "a woman of a certain age," carrying her attentive little poodle.

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