Day 7 - High Class to Underground in Brussels

Brussels is definitely all business during the day, but the city knows how to have fun when the sun goes down. After a full day of walking around, checking out a few markets, and seeing some sites, we put on our evening attire and got a taste of the Belgian nightlife.

The beautiful city view from Jeremy and Pam's place in the Ixelles part of Brussels

Matt blogging a bit while rocking a stylish robe and pink slippers

We started the day at Emile Bistro, a local spot known for its burgers and waffles

Despite some language barriers with the staff (we know a combined 7 words in French), we managed to order the popular Belgian waffle. The interesting thing about waffles in Brussels is that they eat it as a dessert, not for breakfast with fruit and syrup like we do in the U.S. 

Brussels has lots of great views, open plazas, and various parks and gardens to explore and enjoy

On our walk around town we found this huge Smurf, which is kind of an oxymoron

Brussels, like many European cities, has plenty of outdoor cafes lining the various plazas. They can definitely be a bit touristy, but it's also fun to sit outside, enjoy a beer or coffee and just people watch.

The gallery at Place de l'Agoro, one of the city's most popular shopping areas

The narrow cobble streets of the old part of Brussels are lined with cafes, restaurants and pubs. We popped in and out of a few to enjoy Belgian's many beers.

Greg continued his new tradition of taking photos with animal statues

Our night began around 9pm. We kept it classy to start by doing dinner at one of Brussels' new higher end restaurants called Belga Queen that specializes in local cuisine, beer, and even locally crafted desserts using Brussels' various chocolatiers.

Jeremy, Greg and Matt dressed to impress

Greg, Pam and Jeremy entering Belga Queen, Antoine Pinto's new brasserie that strives to provide a gastronomic trip through Belgium

Belga Queen is in an 18th century building that used to house a hotel and then a bank before being turned into a restaurant

It was great to be able to spend time with Jeremy and Pam and see how well they're doing in their new city

The mousse sampler for dessert

After dinner we switched gears and ventured off to see Brussels' other nightlife side at an underground dance party in the Bois de la Cambre, which is the city's main park that sits on the edge of the Sonian Forest. The venue is called The Wood, which is one of the city's new nightlife venues and has been hosting special events, private concerts, and promoter nights such as the night we went on Friday.

William from the local Red Bull Brussels staff, Matt and Greg entering The Wood. William hooked it up and helped us get into the party. 

The Wood had two rooms, one of which was in an old barn, along with an outdoor area

The music was primarily house and dance music which isn't necessarily our first choice, but we made it work

We called it quits around 4am and just like back home the best way to end an evening of boozing and dancing is with a good old New York street dog, which they randomly had available outside the venue

It was a great all around Brussels evening. We got to experience both sides of what this diverse city has to offer - the high end part of town with a nice dinner followed by an underground, more rugged dance scene. The only bad part of the evening is that we fly to Copenhagen early Saturday morning, so it'll be a short night sleep and a rough morning. Oh well.