The market place
Internet entrepreneur Michiel Van Deursen lives with his girlfriend, Aldine, in an old loft overlooking Marché aux Poissons and Place Sainte-Catherine – the location of a former fish market turned annual Christmas market
Dutch émigré Michiel Van Deursen, 39, came to Brussels 10 years ago to launch the Belgian versions of Tweedehands (www.2dehands.be / www.2ememain.be), the classifieds website he set up in the Netherlands in 1997. His quest for a living/work space saw him move around central Brussels before finally settling in Place du Samedi, a tiny square near Place Sainte-Catherine. “My loft apartment used to be a printing house, a place with a lot of paper. And now it’s become the base of my online company, which I entirely decorated with secondhand furniture found on the website,” Michiel says with a laugh.
At this time of the year, the neighbourhood smells of mulled wine and pancakes because of the Christmas Market (www.winterwonders.be), but for the rest of the year it’s best known for the fish restaurants along Quai au Bois à Brûler and Quai aux Briques. The former canal docks were covered in the 1880s and the resulting square housed a large fish market until 1950. The water features there now were created to give people an idea of how things used to look. The imposing Sainte-Catherine church (built in 1854 and designed by Joseph Poelaert) has been in the news lately as the city of Brussels is planning to renovate it. As a listed building, it cannot be knocked down, but since it is slowly falling apart, intervention is required. The church serves only a small congregation today and discussions over when and in what manner the renovation should happen are still ongoing. “I dread the idea of their turning it into a twelve-storey housingblock, but I would be in favour of a covered market hall,” Michiel says. “A small but popular Saturday market is already held in front of the church.”
Living in an area packed with great restaurants is a blessing, especially if, like Michiel, you don’t like cooking. As a vegetarian, though, his choice is more limited. “Luckily, newcomer Ellis Gourmet Burger (4 Place Sainte-Catherine) serves delicious veggie burgers,” he says. “Bakery Charli (34 Rue Sainte-Catherine) sells the best bread I have ever tasted. I also often lunch atSoup in the City (36 Rue de Laeken), only a few steps from home. Chinatown isn’t far off, either. I love the food at the Vietnamese and Thai restaurants in the area, especially the ‘vermicelli nem végétarienne’ at Gourmet d’Asie (14 Rue Van Artevelde).”
When it comes to having a drink, Michiel prefers the ‘authentic’ Brussels bars. “I enjoy the company and the dialect of the locals at Kafka (21 Rue des Poissonniers) and Au Daringman (37 Rue de Flandre). I also like to visit Rue des Chartreux for its many bars and restaurants. There are cocktails and tapas at Publico (32) and Italian food at Divino (56). The street is also known for its secondhand stores, which is interesting to me, obviously.” If all goes well, the area will soon see another new bar, right in front of the KVS theatre on Rue de Laeken. Serial bar founder Frédéric Nicolay (Potemkine, Maison du Peuple, Bar du Matin) plans to call his latest project Flamingo, but nightcrawlers don’t have to wait until it opens to paint the town pink, as there is always a gig or party at Madame Moustache (5-7 Quai au Bois à Brûler).
Another of Michiel’s tips is the sky bar at the Viage Casino (30 Boulevard Anspach): “The city view from up there is stunning.” For another nearby spot with great views, Michiel suggests the top floor of Parking 58 (1 Rue de l’Evêque). “I’m lucky enough to have a great view from my loft as well – the lights of the church and the Ferris wheel at night are simply beautiful.”
And shopping? “I enjoy a stroll down Rue Antoine Dansaert,” Michiel says. “Design shop La Fabrika (182) and book shop Passa Porta (46) are my favourites.” One of Brussels’ most charming secondhand books, Het Ivoren Aapje, can be found on Place du Béguinage, with books in French, English, Dutch and Italian, providing the perfect oasis to read a book – or escape from the Christmas market madness.
