lifestyle

The Best Green Brussels Guide

Hello, hello! Today I’m posting a special post, teaming up with not one but TWO awesome girls. We have Alisa who recently visited Brussels and will tell you all about her vintage and second hand shopping experience and we have Roxanne, from Brussels, who will share her zero-waste shopping tips in the capital. And then there’s me… and obviously, there is food involved!

MEET ALISA AND ROX
Roxanne lives in Brussels too. She is our conscious living advocate and shares tips about a wide range of topics like slow-fashion, zero-waste, clean beauty and nutrition on her Instagram. Give her a follow here
Alisa is our slow fashion gal and also a zero-waster. She currently lives in Spain and posts killer outfits from the capsule wardrobe of your dreams (and fun insta-games). You can follow here here and read her blog here.

SHOP WITH ROXANNE

Zero-wasting has gotten very popular in Belgium the last few years and these shops are here to help you live your best sustainable life.
THE BARN. My ultimate favorite zero waste food shop. Not only are their products zero-waste, they are also local, seasonal and organic! They sell everything from nuts and seeds to rice and lentils to fresh fruit and veggies, bread and even fresh local cheese for the non-vegans reading this. The Barn just opened their third shop in Brussels (they have a fourth one in Antwerp). All of their shops are super spacious, luminous and just the best. The people working there are almost all trilingual and super welcoming. Even if you are not interested in buying any food, you can go and have a look as it’s quite impressive.
picture credit: @thebarnbiomarket

Place Saint-Pierre 38
1040 ETTERBEEK
 02/721.74.20
Open from Tuesday to Sunday
or
Chaussée de Charleroi 92,
1060 SAINT-GILLES
 02/720.53.12
Open from Sunday to Monday
or
Rue de la Tulipe 22,
1050 IXELLES
 02/850.15.83
Open from Friday to Wednesday
YUMAN is my second favorite zero waste shop. This zero-waste shop does not sell food! They sell zero-waste cosmetics, second hand clothing, all the zero-waste utensils you need and much more. You can find brands like ZAO, Clémence & Vivien, Indigène, BamBaw, Bonjour Maurice and many more. All amazing zero-waste brands. You can even go and refill your household products! Yuman is not only focused on zero-waste, but also on having ethical, circular and local brands. You can for example find brands that will reuse old clothing to make new, there is an entire range of second-hand as well.
picture credit: @yumanvillage

Chaussée de Charleroi 123
1160 Bruxelles
Open from Monday to Saturday

My third zerowaste shop I would like to present is SEQUOIA. The people are super nice and will always recommend amazing stuff. They have dried food, fresh food and also zero-waste cosmetics. It’s definitely worth passing by!
picture credit : @sequoiashop
Rue Lesbroussart 123
1000 Bruxelles
(and many more stores around the city)
After having an amazing brunch at CHYL you can also shop your weekly food. They have a small assortment of local and seasonal fruits and veggies, but you can also find household products, beautyproducts, nuts and seeds in bulk and so on. Their products are sold in bulk, but are also all natural and eco-friendly.
picture credit : @_chyl

Rue de Belle-Vue 62
1000 Bruxelles
Open everyday!

Other amazing zerowaste foodshops are LES TANNEURS, The ORGANIC FOOD MARKET, l’ALIMENTATION GENIALE, FÄRM and VEGASME

THRIFT WITH ALISA 
 
Brussels has a lot to offer when it comes to vintage and second hand clothing and here are a few places you can check out to build your perfect ethical closet.
THINK TWICE is one of the most popular retail chains that provide secondhand clothing in Belgium. There are ten shops in total, two of which are in Brussels. Think Twice works with a five weeks cycle, meaning new clothes arrive every five weeks. The last two weeks the shops offer good discounts.
Think Twice
Rue des Eperonniers
1000 Bruxelles
or
Rue du Grand Marché aux Grains 57
1000 Bruxelles
PODIUM VINTAGE offers a nice mix of vintage clothing from the 70s, 80s and 90s, and luxury vintage accessories from brands like Hermes, Cartier, Fendi, Luis Vuitton. The shop is located right next to Think Twice at Rue des Eperonniers. So if you visit one of these shops, don’t forget the other one.

INSTAGRAM @PODIUMVINTAGE

Podium Vintage
Rue des Eperonniers
1000 Bruxelles
LES PETITS RIENS (The Small Things) is a chain of secondhand shops. At the moment there are about 30 of them! These Belgium charity shops are similar to Salvation Army in the States. The locations I visited were not exactly, hmmm, color-coordinated, but there were some household and clothing gems. By buying, you support various Belgium social projects.
INSTAGRAM @PETITSRIENS.BE
Les Petits Riens
Rue des Fripiers 11
1000 Bruxelles
or
Rue Haute 188
1000 Bruxelles
or
Boulevard Lemonnier 20
1000 Bruxelles
Almost six years ago on a spontaneous trip to Amsterdam, I thrifted my first ever pieces of secondhand clothing. Those were a pair of jeans I still wear and a heather grey sweatshirt with a bright red print. I loved EPISODE stores in The Netherlands and Paris, so visiting this one in Brussels was a must. You won’t regret!
WEBSITE EPISODE.EU

INSTAGRAM @EPISODEVINTAGECLOTHING

Episode Vintage
Rue de la Violette 28
1000 Bruxelles
Very sporty, very hip-hop! RARE offers secondhand and vintage clothing for men mostly, but if you travel with a man who likes to thrift or you don’t mind wearing boys’ clothes, pay Rare a visit. The shop owner also runs some interesting events. Follow Rare on social media to stay in the know.
INSTAGRAM @RAREBRUSSELS 

FACEBOOK

Rare Vintage
Rue des Riches Claires 14
1000 Bruxelles
Rated as one of the best secondhand stores in Brussels, FOXHOLE was on the top of my list. There are two locations, and the one at Rue des Renards made me smile because renard in French means fox. The clothes must be really nice because I wasn’t allowed to take pictures inside. Thus you see these sneaky ones from outside. Jokes aside, I liked what I saw there (cool jackets, berets, denim). Soon you’ll be able to buy from Foxhole on Etsy, eBay and ASOS Market.

INSTAGRAM @FOXHOLE_VINTAGE

Foxhole Vintage
Rue de Renards 6
1000 Bruxelles
or
Rue des Riches Claires 4
1000 Bruxelles
Thrifting-wise, this was the highlight of my voyage. Every first Sunday of the month BRUSSELS VINTAGE MARKET opens its doors at Halles St Géry. Although my trip coincided with the last Sunday of November, there was another event hosted by BVM called VINTAGE PER KILO. One kilogram of clothing costs 18 EUR. I thrifted a suede dress and an Italian viscose shirt for only 9 EUR! Both were stained though but it was easy to fix. Follow Brussels Vintage Market and Vintage Per Kilo to stay updated on the upcoming events! Bring cash and a tote.
BRUSSELS VINTAGE MARKET

 

VINTAGE PER KILO
INSTAGRAM @VINTAGEPERKILO

FACEBOOK 


BVM
Halles Saint-Gary
1000 Bruxelles
&
VPK
New location every month
 
DINE WITH ME
As you may know I have been living in Brussels for 5 years now. I blog about vegan and sustainable fashion, but I’m also a big food enthusiast. So today, let me your guide to the best vegan food spots in the Belgian capital.
There is a lot of sightseeing to do in Brussels so maybe you will you need a meal on the go?
COPPER BRANCH is where you wanna head. From gourmet burgers to a hearty chili, they have all the vegan junk food and comfort food you can dream of and they also make some of the best healthy Buddha bowls in town. Their location in the City 2 mall is pretty convenient but you can also have their food delivered to your doorstep thanks to Takeaway or Deliveroo.
picture credit: @copperbranch
Copper Branch City 2
Rue Neuve 123
1000 Bruxelles
Now that you’ve walked all day, saw pretty awesome stuff, you are tired and feeling hungry?
DOLMA sounds like exactly what you need. It was the first vegetarian restaurant to open in Brussels. Yes, it’s vegetarian, but don’t worry, most of the food is actually vegan. Their chef offers creative dishes made with seasonal produce and the best part is that it’s a buffet, which means you can try everything. It’s a very popular spot, so make sure to show up early and/or to make a reservation.
picture credit : @dolmaresto
Dolma Restaurant
Chaussée d’Ixelles
1050 Ixelles
Maybe you are on a romantic getaway and feel like going on a fancy date night?
Say no more! HUMUS & HORTENSE offers a fine dining experience and it’s all plants. In fact, you might have heard their name because the restaurant was named the best vegan restaurant in 2019. It’s actually a vegetarian restaurant but all their dishes can be veganized. Either way, the food is amazing and it is beautifully paired with matching wines or cocktails.
picture credit: @humushortense
Humus x Hortense
Rue de Vergnies 2
1050 Ixelles
 
But hey, can I even talk about Belgian food without at least mentioning chocolate or waffles?
You can find vegan and gluten free waffles (also vegan ice cream) at VEGANWAF’ inside the Galerie Agora and if you’re craving vegan Belgian chocolates, they can be found in LAURENT GERBAUD‘s shop in rue Ravenstein and guess what? They even serve vegan hot chocolate in there!
Veganwaf’
Galerie Agora 48
1000 Bruxelles
And finally, if you want to indulge with some Belgian fries, just know that traditionally they are fried in beef fat. Today, some places use vegetable oil, others use animal fat or a mixture of both and while there is no list of who fries in what, it’s fine to just ask.
I hope you will enjoy your stay!