Shopping in rue Darwin

What were you up to today? In the sales frenziness, I found a harbor of peace in rue Darwin, just behind Place Brugmann. This little street has been growing quite fast lately! There are plenty of nice shops - mainly home decor and fashion - to keep you busy over the weekend (because yes this is one of the few spot where places are opened over Sundays).

To begin with, I went to see my three year old niece's swimming class in Darwin Aqua Club a rather special little swimming pool in an Art Nouveau building (rue Darwin 15). If you have kids, that is a great place! 

Then, my friend and I decided to look for this Bonnie & Jane shop I have read of in Elle Belgique. And yes, I can confirm, whatever you have been reading, this is a unique place! It is run by two creative ladies who are not just selling you objects, they are proposing an idea, a lifestyle and a special atmosphere. You see, it is like entering into your best friend apartment, the kind of place you want to spend time in. You are surrounded by all sort of magical and delicate stuff, from old lamps, flea market-style furniture, retro clothes, selected pieces of jewelery and much, much more. I bought a lovely pair of socks and a unique pillow I already adore!

Bonnie & Jane shop. All photos via the Bonnie & Jane FB page

Next to it, there are three shops run by Lucia Esteves (Lucia Estevez, Mist and Moon), who presents an adorable selection of homewear and ready to wear woman fashion, with a great selection of labels (including Scandinavians).

We then walked up the road and visited a marvelous (and kind of exotic) boutique run by Anne Marie Witmeur which displays rugs, suzanis and special objects from all over the globe.

Next door there are the two Kelly shops, who are always surprising you with fashionable, yet uncommon accessories and clothes (mind you this season they have head band to die for ).

Kelly Boutique. All photos via Google

Bonnie et Jane

Rue Darwin, 34  

1050 Brussels

Lucia Estevez

Rue Franz Merjay,131 (at the corner with rue Darwin)

1050 Brussels

Must 

rue Darwin, 37

1050 Brussels

Moon 

rue Darwin, 38

1050 Brussels

Kelly Boutique
rue Darwin, 60

1050 Brussels

Anne Marie Witmeur

rue Darwin,52

1050 Brussels

New Chocolate Maestro in Sablon

Le Sablon tremble? Looks like the best Parisian chocolatier decided to shake the status quo in downtown Brussels by opening up last week his first shop abroad, a couple of meters from Marcolini, Godiva and Neuhaus....

And what a shop! The less one can say is that Patrick's choice for sumptuousness can olny cheers us up in a time of financial crisis.

True is, the place is beautiful and the chocolate divine. I got carried away by CORSICA, essence of orange rind, ALLEGORIE, caramelized almonds-oranges-raisins and last but not least AMITIE delight of almond praliné.

So I cannot help wondering: will our new friend Patrick make us forget about Belgian chocolate?

Patrick Roger

43 Place du Grand Sablon

Bruxelles

www.patrickroger.com/   

(PS you should really check out his website)

All photos by Bruxpat including the one of Patrick in his shop last Saturday while welcoming his clients

   

Cuisine d'Auteur

I am intimately convinced that Brussels is not sufficiently well known to the outside world for its large range of high level restaurants. I always become grumpy when people get surprised of the offer and quality we enjoy around here.

My favorite restaurant is Greek and is called Notos. Forget moussaka, I am talking of fine cuisine which mix flavors of the Mediterranean islands. It brings Greek food to the next level. Gosh, I would love to cook like that!

Since I first discovered it, I had dinner at Notos at least a dozen of times. Still, I just can't get enough....Last year I brought there my dad, who is well known for being (beyond) difficult when it comes to restaurants. Well...he said it was a "unique experience" and every time he comes back this is the only place where he wants to eat out. 

My very favorite picks are (in random order): the salade de poulpe, the assiette variée de la mer (crème de tarama, poulpe mariné, thon fumé, bar au citron, saumon fumé, Noix de coquilles St. Jacques) and the wine Gris de Noir d’Antonopoulos 2007 (honestly I think I could easily drink it all day long.....)

Recently I discovered that the chef and owner, Constantin Erinkoglou, is a fellow College of Europe student who at some point decided he had enough with its Eurocrat life and took a completely different path by opening Notos. True story, they say! 

You can bet I will ask him next time. What a star this Constantin!

Notos
Rue de Livourne, 154
1000 Brussels

Photo via Sensum

My favorite shop in Brux

Bonsoir lovelies! I'd like to share something special with you: my favorite shop ever in Brussels!  

Anytime I look for inspiration, harmony, beauty (or anytime I actually need to buy a piece of furniture) I visit Michel Lambrecht's antiquity shop, at a stone throw from the Sablon.

This place is truly an Ali Baba's cave for beautiful things, specialized in antique, eclectic lighting and furniture. The palette of color is calm and relaxing and you get an amazing choice of styles and objects. 

The Flemish owner is highly professional. He has an exquisite taste and believe me, he has always the right tips for everyone. Plus, it makes delicious coffee! 

I discovered his shop was also suggested in the Brussels Wallpaper - where it says he collaborated with Olga Polizzi from the Rocco Forte chain (Hotel Amigo). 

I do not know about you, but having a pleasant home is pretty important in my life. I do enjoy after a long working day to find myself surrounded by beautiful things. If you share this feeling, then have a look at it:
Rue Watteau, 18 
B-1000, Brussels
(it is opened on Sundays too!)


PS If you are a really good client, you get to visit his secret shop....

All photos via Michel Lambrecht

Cuban Rhythm in the Fiords

By guest blogger John Drink Doe.

“A drink is just a drink… a bit of alcohol to alleviate the pain of the daily life.” If this is what you expect from an aperitif after an intense day at work, this is blog is NOT for you.  On the contrary, if a drink is a cozy interlude to share your quest for taste with friends, then you may be on the right path towards bar heaven." 

Walking downtown Brussels is always a pleasant experience. The rectangular gothic of the Grand Place brings you back to the old splendor of the city and very lively alleys around offer you a wide choice of bars. Should you feel for something different than beer and wine, here the cocktail universe is ready to embrace you in all its dimensions. And if you are the type who orders lobster in Alaska and deer in Sharm el Sheikh… well also your unusual habits can be satisfied.

Few hundred meters away from the Grand Place, in Rue de Fosse aux Loups 47, the Radisson Blue Hotel hosts the Bar Dessiné. Honoring the Belgium comics traditions with thematic decorations, this bar offers a good selection of international cocktails, but probably gives its best in the preparation of Mojitos and rum based drinks. Enjoy your nightcap and take it easy.

Link to Bar Dessiné

Do not miss the next drink!!

John Drink Doe is a blogger for Bruxpat. He is young enough to remember the 80s and old enough to enjoy Lady Gaga. He shares his life with two wonderful Scandinavian girls: the one he married and the one born 3 years ago. When he does not spend tenths of hours working in one of the Buildings in Schuman, he enjoys  exploring urban jungles around the planet and writing thriller novels.

Photo by John Drink Doe 

The Aperitif Quest: A Bloody Hunting

By guest blogger John Drink Doe.

“A drink is just a drink… a bit of alcohol to alleviate the pain of the daily life.” If this is what you expect from an aperitif after an intense day at work, this is blog is NOT for you.  On the contrary, if a drink is a cozy interlude to share your quest for taste with friends, then you may be on the right path towards bar heaven."  

The international crowd brings to Brussels the richness of diversity. Whether you are a newcomer or a long-time resident you are probably already aware that you won’t have trouble to satisfy your taste. Arabic meze, Napa Valley wine, Oriental delights, Japanese whisky, Mexican fajitas, American burgers, Serbian Rakja, Kosher salami, Turkish Raki, English pudding, Italian buffalo mozzarellas. Nothing is out of reach in Brussels.  However, your quest may get by far more complicated if you are looking for a well manufactured long drink to meet a sophisticated but relaxing atmosphere. Well – at this point – it may get difficult. But since you are reading this blog, you troubles end here.

It is hopping from shop to shop walking down Avenue Louise that just one step away from Place Stephanie, discreetly concealed in the Conrad Hotel you will find one of the local cocktail paradise. “Loui”, a wood and leather urban bar, embraces you with his art pieces and its heterogeneous clientele. It is not only the usual business crowd. It is not the everywhere present European Union officials. It is not only Europeans. It is not only for youngsters as it is not just for older. A place for everyone with sometime to invest in relaxation.

In the footsteps of Lucius Beebe, who for first mentioned the Bloody Mary in a New York City gossip column in 1939, my last visit to Loui was dedicated to this cocktail. Carefully stirred, it scored particularly high on my personal carnet as much as Loui’s warm cigar lounge.

Loui Lounge & Bar 
Avenue Louise 71
1050 Brussels  

John Drink Doe is a blogger for Bruxpat. He is young enough to remember the 80s and old enough to enjoy Lady Gaga. He shares his life with two wonderful Scandinavian girls: the one he married and the one born 3 years ago. When he does not spend tenths of hours working in one of the buildings in Schuman, he enjoys  exploring urban jungles around the planet and writing thriller novels.

Do not miss the next drink!!

Photo by Bruxpat

 

Potemkine bar, welcome in boboland

I am a St-Gilloise and I love that part of the city. I could not live anywhere else if you asked me. St-Gilles has many souls, it is at the same time beautiful and ugly, rich and poor dirty and immaculate clean. Above all St-Gilles is "bobo". 

What the heck is bobo you might wonder? In the words of David Brooks, the author of "Bobos in Paradise: The New Upper-Class and how They got There": (...) if you take bourgeois and bohemian and you smash them together, you get the ugly phrase bobo. The New York Times commented that those are "two social castes no one ever expected to find mixed up together".

To me, Bobos are 30s something relatively well off people that are environmental friendly, shop in open air markets, goes where the cultural vibes brings them, believe they are alternative, love their cachemire scarf, pay attention to the decor of their house but buy in popular areas, rely extensively on technologies, generously reproduce themselves despite Malthusian theories and are fan of unconventional education for their kids - what my conservative mum would define "wild". As my boyfriend once put it, there would not have been bobo without the 70s hippies baba cool and the 80s yuppies. 

St-Gilles is more bohemian around the Parvis and more bourgeois as you get closer to Louise, and the Poteminke bar is the "bobohood". It opened back in June 2011 and it is another successful project of Frederick Nicolay - the guy behind Café Belga, Bar du Matin and Walvis. It is set just in front of Porte de Hal, in a grand room decorated with wood, 1950s furniture, a giant reproduction of a whale skeleton by artist Vincent Glowinski and a beautiful piano. On the backyard there is a small terrace and on the first floor a mini cinema sitting up to 20 people. You can have drinks, listen to one of the many concerts, have breakfast or brunch, watch some old movies for free, work on your computer or just read the papers. 


Or you can watch the customers ranging from artists, corporate lawyers, gay couples, young families with children or older St-Gilloises. Check out the article Le Soir published on the Potemkine to have another view.

Potemkine
Avenue de la Porte de Hal 2-4
1060 Brussels

Photo via Potemkine FB page