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The Best Places in Pentagon & around

  1. A Michelin-starred corner restaurant near the Brussels fish market where the menu is a surprise and the philosophy is not. The chef builds tasting menus around local, seasonal produce, then quietly pivots to something like wasabi sorbet without breaking a sweat. The room is deliberately unpolished, the wine list leans natural, and every decision on the plate seems to have been argued over before it arrived.

    The awards


    Address
    Bd d'Ypres 33, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens 7 PM

    Wednesday 7 PM–11 PM

    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
  2. Kobe Desramaults, who made his name at In De Wulf and Chambre Séparée, runs this Michelin-starred creative dining room in central Brussels with a lounge soundtrack and an open kitchen counter at its heart. The set menu changes daily, which keeps the chef honest and the regulars guessing. Expect bold, ingredient-focused cooking where the produce does most of the talking, and service polished enough to feel made-to-measure without being stiff about it.

    The awards


  3. Rank 3. Piola Pizza

    Neapolitan Pizzeria

    A Neapolitan pizza spot in the Saint-Josse neighborhood where the dough gets treated like a serious project, soft inside with a caramelized edge that holds up without fuss. The menu mixes Italian classics with seasonal combinations, ingredients imported from Italy, and a rotating selection that keeps things from going stale. Cocktails, including a mandarin one worth ordering, round out the picture. It holds a spot on 50 Top Pizza Europe and 50 Top Pizza World.


  4. Rank 4. Alley Mian

    Chinese Islamic Noodle Shop

    A cook pulls and folds noodles to order in full view of the dining room, which sets the tone for everything at this small, no-reservations noodle shop near the Théâtre de la Monnaie. The broth is Lanzhou-style, built deep and left unadorned. Michelin gave it a Bib Gourmand, and the lunch queue most days makes the argument more plainly. Go early, go hungry, and don't expect to linger.


  5. Brutalist concrete and a casual room that makes no apologies for either. Kline is a modern neighborhood restaurant where the menu leans on local sourcing, vegetables, and seasonal instincts, with global flavors folded in wherever they fit. The à la carte lineup skews well toward vegetarian and is designed to share. A Michelin Bib Gourmand, and the kind of place where the food does the talking without the room dressing up for it.


    Address
    Vlaamseseteenweg 162, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens 6 PM

    Wednesday 6 PM–Midnight

    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
  6. Tucked near the old fish market, this Greek taverna runs through a long modern corridor before opening into a brick-walled, wood-tabled room that feels lifted from a quieter part of Athens. The menu leans into mezzes and the kind of full-flavored cooking that makes a meal stretch pleasantly long. The wine list pulls from Greece and skews affordable. It holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand.


    Address
    Rue du Marché aux Porcs 11/13, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens noon

    Wednesday Noon–2 PM, 7 PM–10:30 PM

    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
  7. San Degeimbre's contemporary brasserie sits inside Brussels' converted rail freight terminus, a post-industrial complex that still feels faintly surprised to be hosting dinner. The menu roams Belgium, Peru, and Asia without asking permission, so waterzooi turns up with a jolt of yuzu and duck magret finds itself alongside soy and garlic in an orange sauce. The mezzanine counter overlooking the open kitchen is the seat to ask for.


    Address
    Rue Picard 9, Pavillon 12, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens noon

    Wednesday Noon–2:30 PM

    Online
    Website
  8. Rank 7. Henri

    Modern French

    A cobbled terrace on one of Brussels' cooler streets sets the tone for this laid-back bistro. The menu roams freely, landing somewhere between classic French technique and Mediterranean ease, with the occasional Thai detour just to keep things interesting. The wine list and local beers get as much attention as the food. Regulars seem to treat the place as a neighborhood right rather than a reservation.


    Address
    Rue de Flandre 113, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens noon

    Wednesday Noon–2 PM, 6 PM–10 PM

    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
  9. Rank 7. Jayu

    Contemporary Korean

    Twelve stools around a counter, one table, three bells to signal the start of service, and a two-hour tasting menu in twelve courses that Sang Hoon Degeimbre shapes around Korean fermentation, fruit, and spice. The room reads like a speakeasy, all theatrical hush, and the food leans into doenjang, umami, and smoke rather than the usual European fine-dining playbook. A Michelin Selected restaurant tucked behind the noise of Rue de Flandre.


  10. Rank 7. Le Petit bon bon

    Belgian French

    The open kitchen takes center stage in this grand brasserie inside the Corinthia Grand Hotel Astoria, where Christophe Hardiquest is doing something quietly ambitious with the classics. The menu runs Belgian and French brasserie through a more considered kitchen, so the vol-au-vent and shrimp fritters arrive with a little more intention than you'd expect. Traditional tableware, plush room, the kind of lunch that turns into afternoon.


    Address
    Rue Royale 103, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens noon

    Wednesday Noon–2:30 PM, 6:30 PM–11 PM

    Reserve
    SevenRooms
    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
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  12. Rank 12. Addis Stories

    Ethiopian

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  13. Rank 12. Ajiyoshi

    Japanese

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  14. Rank 12. Auntie Café

    Cantonese

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  19. Rank 12. Corica

    Coffee

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  20. Rank 12. Da Long Yi

    Sichuan

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  22. Rank 12. Drache

    Coffee

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  24. Rank 12. Era

    Middle Eastern

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  26. Rank 12. Gaston

    Dessert

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  27. Rank 12. Gazzosa

    Italian

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  30. Rank 12. Kage

    Tea Cocktail Bar

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  33. Rank 12. Koul

    Coffee

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  34. Rank 12. L'Express

    Lebanese

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  35. Rank 12. Lafeh

    Lebanese

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  37. Rank 12. Les Jours de Damas

    Middle Eastern

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  44. Rank 12. Replica

    Café

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  46. Rank 12. Tortilleria Benelux

    Artisanal Mexican

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  48. Rank 12. Yi Chan

    Chinese Sushi

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  49. Rank 49. Selecto

    Modern French

    A bistro on one of Brussels' more self-consciously cool streets, Selecto earns a Michelin Bib Gourmand by keeping things honest: a short set menu, blackboard specials, and modern French cooking that leans Mediterranean when the mood takes it. The flavors are direct and generous rather than architectural. The wine list tilts French without being smug about it. Regulars seem to have done the math on the prix fixe and decided there's nothing to argue about.

    The awards


    Address
    Rue de Flandre 95, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens noon

    Wednesday Noon–2:30 PM, 7 PM–10:30 PM

    Online
    Website
  50. Rank 50. Aux Armes de Bruxelles

    Traditional Belgian

    The awards


    Address
    Rue des Bouchers 13, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens noon

    Wednesday Noon–10:30 PM

    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
  51. Rank 50. Belga Queen

    Modern Brasserie

    The vaulted ceilings, dome windows, and stone columns of a former 18th-century bank set the stage here, and the room earns every dramatic glance. Belga Queen is a grand Brussels brasserie where classics share the menu with sharper modern cooking and a seafood bar that gets the most attention from the kitchen. The crowd tends toward people who like their lunch to feel like an occasion, which in this city is a reasonable number of people.

    The awards


    Address
    Rue du Fossé aux Loups 32, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens noon

    Wednesday Noon–2:30 PM, 6 PM–10 PM

    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
  52. Rank 50. De l'Ogenblik

    Classic Belgian Brasserie

    The awards


    Address
    Galerie des Princes 1, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens noon

    Wednesday Noon–2:30 PM, 7 PM–Midnight

    Online
    Website
  53. Rank 50. Gus

    Seasonal Brasserie

    The awards


    Address
    Rue des Cultes 36, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens noon

    Wednesday Noon–1:30 PM, 7 PM–9 PM

    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
  54. Rank 50. La Belle Maraîchère

    Franco-Belgian Seafood

    Shrimp fritters and saddle of hare on the same menu tells you exactly what kind of place this is: an old-school Franco-Belgian seafood restaurant on the Saint-Catherine square, nostalgic in the best possible, unironic way. The room feels like Brussels circa a much earlier decade, and nobody seems to mind. Fish arrives impeccably fresh, portions run generous, and the crowd is the sort that has been coming long enough to skip the menu.

    The awards


  55. Rank 50. La Taverne du Passage

    Art deco Brasserie

    A flock of golden origami birds hangs from the ceiling of this Art Deco brasserie tucked inside the Galerie de la Reine, and the room has been quietly ignoring the decades ever since. The menu runs the same direction: shrimp fritters, veal kidneys in mustard cream, warm chocolate mousse. Classic Belgian comfort food, served without apology in a setting that makes the Grand Place feel almost too modern.

    The awards


    Address
    Galerie de la Reine 30, 1000 Brussel, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens noon

    Wednesday Noon–3 PM, 6 PM–11 PM

    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
  56. David Martin's fine dining room inside the Corinthia Grand Hotel sits beneath a restored stained-glass dome that makes the rest of Brussels feel a little underdressed. The Belle époque bones, marble fireplace, and fresh flowers set a scene that somehow avoids feeling stuffy. The modern French menu leans into Japanese inflections, and the kitchen's instinct is restraint: a few good things, pushed far enough to matter.

    The awards


  57. Rank 50. Vismet

    Seafood

    Vismet sits on the old fish market square at Place Sainte-Catherine, which tells you something about how seriously Brussels takes its seafood history. It's a classic seafood restaurant with an open kitchen and the kind of lived-in room that clearly predates the neighborhood's gentrification. The cooking is traditional and unshowy: pristine sole, properly made sauces, ingredients that don't need dressing up. Come hungry, not overdressed.

    The awards


    Address
    Pl. Sainte-Catherine 23, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium · Brussels
    Hours

    Closed now, opens noon

    Wednesday Noon–2 PM, 7 PM–10 PM

    Online
    WebsiteInstagram

Eat Score

The score comes from the awards it's won, weighted by who gave them: a Michelin star outweighs a listicle. When you sort by what's nearby, distance changes the order, never the score.

    How we score →

    Drink Score

    The score comes from the awards it's won, weighted by who gave them: a Michelin star outweighs a listicle. When you sort by what's nearby, distance changes the order, never the score.

      How we score →

      Stay Score

      Four fifths of the score is the awards it's won, weighted by who gave them: a Michelin Key outweighs a listicle. The last fifth is where it is: the ranked places to eat and things to do around it, and how safe the country is. When you sort by what's nearby, distance from you changes the order, never the score.

        How we score →

        Do Score

        The score comes from the awards it's won, weighted by who gave them: a Michelin star outweighs a listicle. When you sort by what's nearby, distance changes the order, never the score.

          How we score →

          Best Place Score

          The Best Place Score rates the area around a point, not any one place. The places are 60% of it: the best of what's within reach, weighed by distance. The setting is the other 40%: how life goes in that country (how people rate their own lives, how long and how well they live, how safe they are) and what it's like right there (the air, and the weather). If the score looks low, we probably haven't found enough critics out here yet.