A walking tour of some of Brussels’ best bakeries
Let's get this bread
Today’s newsletter is late (not that I expect anyone to have noticed) but I hope it was worth the wait: I like to think that I have done the Lord’s work with this one, taking you on a guided walking tour (sort of) of some of Brussels’ best bakeries.
If you know me, you know I love bakeries and I love Brussels, and I hope that for those who are not based in the city it will give an affectionate portrait of a few of my favourite neighbourhoods. For those who live here, I hope it will inspire you to treat yourself to some very good bread. You are welcome.
When I first moved to Brussels four years ago, I was puzzled by how quickly it charmed me, despite seeming to lack so many of my essentials for a place to live. I struggled to find bakeries that lived up to the standards of neighbouring France and Germany, and good coffee shops were few and far between. There is a lot more to say about how and why I ended up staying, but suffice to say that over the past four years the landscape of baked goods and coffee in the city has shifted hugely.
Like any good bakery, the best that Brussels has to offer are rooted firmly in their neighbourhoods, and the joy of this city is how easily you can wander from one neighbourhood to the next, slipping seamlessly between universes. What follows is an imaginary, albeit possible, walk through some of the city’s southern neighbourhoods. I did once carry out a comparable bakery crawl, stuffing my tote bag with more viennoiseries than any woman can consume in a single weekend, but any of the following are just as rewarding when visited as a one-off, or as a stop-off on the way somewhere else.
Note: most of the following bakeries are only open Thursday-Sunday, so make sure you check before you go to avoid disappointment.
Khobz:
Let’s begin by walking down Chaussée de Waterloo from where it intersects with Chaussée de Vleurgat. This street embodies a lot of what I love about Brussels. The chaos, the Hungarian butcher a few doors down from the Japanese fishmonger, the fact that there is still a DVD rental shop, the cluttered bookshelves of Pêle-Mêle. Then, tucked away off the corner after a fried chicken shop, there is Khobz. I discovered it later than I should have done, given that I find some excuse to trundle up and down that road most days. The inside looks nothing like any other bakery I’ve seen. Sculptural lights hang over the counter, and a cut-out opening halfway up the whitewashed walls gives a view into the mezzanine-level kitchen where the magic happens.
Each week brings inventive spins on sourdough loaves made with wild yeasts (think bubbly jars of fermenting cranberries) such as the corn and jalapeno loaf I got a few weeks ago. If I’ve still not tried what is arguably their signature pastry, a croissant ‘cube’ drenched with orange blossom water and hojicha syrup, it’s because every time I’m there another seasonal treat catches my eye: a peach and thyme tartlet, a plum maritozzo, the most buttery chocolate brioche I have ever sunk my teeth into.
Brood:
Now it’s time for an about turn, crossing the Chaussée de Waterloo and heading southwest towards Avenue Moliere. Between here and Avenue Brugmann (our next stop) is a grandiose neighbourhood where Brussels cosplays as Paris, where wide leafy avenues are lined with imposing mansions. This is the moment to dream, imagine yourself in an alternate universe with perfectly pruned bay trees and balcony chairs that cost €600 a pop. Then, to soften the blow of the return to reality, we prepare for a more obtainable goal, in the form of Brussels’ best croissant.
I usually stop here on my way to work (I take it in turns with my colleagues to bring breakfast), and it’s absolutely worth the diversion that adds 10 minutes to a 40-minute commute. The walls here at Brood are rougher, with bare plaster, and create an incredibly cosy sense of calm. Their range of pastries is slowly expanding (salted caramel and peanut swirls just entered the chat), but it’s unadvisable to leave without one of their painfully perfect croissants. The flaky layers are so well-defined that the top one can be snapped cleanly off and laid on your tongue to let the butter melt in the mouth.
Hopla Geiss:
This end of Brussels doesn’t make it into many guidebooks but is interesting insofar as it marks the meeting point of three communes, Forest, Uccle and Ixelles. Head a little further north, and we are in Saint-Gilles, our next stop. Past Albert and the Bar du Matin, then it’s time to skim down the Chaussée D’Alsemberg. Again, another bustling centre that feels distinctly bruxellois, where timeless boozers and shops that even the owners seem to have forgotten about rub up against a deli selling miso by the gram, a betting shop, a natural wine bar and a restaurant whose entire menu is built around mushrooms. Next door to the last is Hopla Geiss.
Hopla Geiss, for me, is all about the brioche. When Covid was at its peak, I used to have to get tested around the corner what felt like every couple of weeks. The fennel and nigella seed buns were my first taste of freedom post-quarantine each time I emerged. Their sourdough cinnamon rolls are puffy and generous, and their baguettes delicious, despite having such sharp spikes at either end that they basically constitute a health hazard.
Soleil:
It would be quite an achievement to fit Soleil into the same walk as the above three: it’s over in Schaerbeek in the northeast of the city. But it would also be a crime not to make a pilgrimage to what I think might be one of the most interesting bakeries in Brussels right now. As its name suggests, a bright orange feature wall is a much-needed bit of sunshine in Brussels, and the same goes for their cheerful approach to sourdough bakery classics.
Among some of my favourites from Soleil are a turmeric bun, a delightfully spiced cinnamon roll, and the best pain de mie I’ve ever encountered. They sell out quickly, so head there soon after they open to get the best choice.
This list is under no circumstances exhaustive, and will inevitably shift and grow with time, but here are some other worthy stops for top-quality baked goods:
Boulangier - skip the croissants, run for the bread and brioches
Renard - excellent cinnamon rolls
La Fleur du Pain - several across Brussels, don’t miss their phenomenal retro chocolat blanc
Charli - my colleague introduced me to their bolus and they are 10/10
Visiting new bakeries (in Brussels and further afield!) is basically my lifeblood, so I would love to hear about your favourite bakeries and what they do best in the comments.
I hope you enjoyed the third edition of Lizzie Wrote This. There is a lot more to come. I hope you’ll stay around.
Baker’s dozen
13 good things from the last fortnight
I finally watched Hand of God on Netflix
I went to the cinema for the first time in ages and saw Mascarade, a fun jeu de miroirs about golddiggers that gets dark and defies expectations
Because I don’t do things by halves, I went to the cinema AGAIN and saw Triangle of Sadness, which I also loved
Getting back into risotto (resisted the urge to add butternut puree that was lingering in my fridge and I think it paid off)
A day in Maastricht
Getting back into climbing, bruises and all
Nigel slater meatballs
I finally got to check out an indoor market, the Ecuries van de Tram, which was nice
Having weekly drinks with my friends in a different neighbourhood from ususal. Groundbreaking.
I made lemon meringue pie! I actually prefer the french name, tarte au citron meringuée, not because I am hopelessly pretentious (though I am also that), but because I think tart is more accurate than pie in this case
I have been reading Small Fires by Rebecca May Johnson and it is truly phenomenal. One of those books where you can feel the cogs turning in the writer’s brain. A joy.
I stumbled upon mint-condition copies of Nigel Slater and Anna Jones cookbooks in my local second-hand bookshop for a fraction of their retail price
Some extremely good onion gravy I made on bonfire night
My dear, you have to come to visit me in Ghent and i´ll take you to my fav two bakeries here! HUGSSSSS