please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Chose a good time to go - a cold weekday afternoon. Excellent list. Try the Rulles Triple for a hop hit. The Hoppy Loft is a great new bar and wasn't too busy in the evening.
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I was sat next to Joel, the owner of this place while he was at HIS favourite place, Le Corbeau. Never had time to visit so thanks for the comments letting me know what i missed!
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Fascinating end to crawl on Sat 16th January in a group with a fellow reviewer. Just as heavily crowded as it always is, but for some reason it seemed slightly easier to get served than last time.
Not sure if I could remember from previous visit but smoking is ALLOWED in parts of Delirium Cafe. Beer range still in 4 figures and there were a handful of "phone book" menus being passed around if you were lucky enough to see one. "Only" about 50 beers on the mass-circulated A4 single-sheet menu though.
While I was chatting to a group of locals at another table from us I missed a punter being physically thrown out for lewd behaviour! And my back wasn't turned more than 2 minutes!
Anyhow it was still well worth finishing here and enjoying the lively atmosphere.
Guaranteed not everyone will like this bar, but definitely go once and give it a chance to grow on you!
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A little overcrowded on Friday 13/2/09 but after a beer or two you soon become accustomed. No change to the level of variety since my 2007 visit, and the pub continues to be thronged by an international cosmopolitan crowd. Most people were in there 20s to 40s, and lively music was just at the right level for the number of punters - loud but not uncomfortably so!
Visitors will note that the clips have been removed from the taps, but beer menus are available - you will need to be prepared to share, and some are torn into three which either adds to the fun or quite simply doesn't!
With no Eurostar to catch until the following day, I also took the opportunity to explore the upper floor of the pub in detail; there are several drinking areas and another bar on the top floor with all the draught beers available. Slightly less heaving than the basement, nevertheless still boisterous. These guys seem to know how to "party" on a Friday night!
No disrespect to the two previous reviewers, I found the staff coping their best with being rushed off their feet, and certainly did not experience any objectionable rudeness on their part, but I probably didn't go looking for it in the first place - but who knows, six months on staff could have changed.
Didn't mention the decor on my last review; check out the HUNDREDS of vintage illuminated beer signs (some neon, others internally lit by fluorescent tubes) and the countless beer trays on the walls and ceilings of all areas of the Delirium.
In conclusion this is a beer mecca, however you will need the strength to cope with heavy crowding, and the patience for a long wait for service, to enjoy this venue.
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Hmmm, this place was hyped to us beyond belief. I think that caused the lustre to dampen.
The cate upstairs had 25 draft beers on the go, half of them American. Granted they were good, small brewery beers but I didn't cometo Belgium for USA beer. Downstairs in the pub it seemed to be heaving, mainly with big groups of drunken holiday makers. Not my cup of Faro, though the selection is superb in bottle. It isn't the only beer haven in Brussels.
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Potentially the best bar in the world. In reality not in the top 100. Superb selection of beers, but rude staff and uninspiring decor. Not going to rush back.
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In the Guinness world records for the most beers available at one time. Great for choice, then, but I would not visit again as the staff are incredibly rude. There are better bars in Bruxelles where you will be treated with respect.
Slake - 13 May 2008 22:41 |
Obviously a great selection of beer but when I asked for the main menu they said there were only three copies and I would have to hunt around. Managed to borrow one from a couple at the bar but you feel obliged to leaf through it fairly quickly so I didn't get a true feel for they have available. They have more copies of a more limited menu.
Upstairs area was fairly quiet, downstairs noisier but I got a seat at the bar and met some interesting people.
You have to visit just to say you've been here. Don't mis the Jannekin Pis just a little further up the alley on the right set in the wall behind some iron gates.
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I visited Delirium Caf� on 29/11/07 and was thrilled. This was the highlight of my Brussels trip. The range of beers on tap was impressive enough let alone the bottled beers running well into three figures. It really must be seen to be believed!
The atmosphere in the pub was boisterous and lively, and an international clientele mingled well with regulars from Brussels itself.
Bar snacks include good-value cheese plates with seasoning, quite common in Belgium and Holland in my experience as a beer-tourist. This is definitely somewhere I�ll return to!
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At the time of my visit I thought it was the greatest bar I'd ever visited, but to be honest but I was pretty buzzed on Belgian beers by that point. Had I gone to a Yates in that condition, I'd probably be ready to declare that the greatest bar in the world as well.
Anyway, what I do remember is:
- a great atmosphere. Strangers from all around the world talking to each other and having a great time.
- rock music cranked to 11
- interesting decor: every available piece of space was covered with beer merchandising from around the globe.
- a beer menu the size of the Yellow Pages. They guarantee to have at least 2004 different beers available at any given point. Surprisingly the missus managed to order one that was unavailable (Quelle Que Chose? from Quebec), which almost made me want to demand a stock take to back up their claims.
- They managed to have the correct glass for each beer. The wife's Mongolo (no accounting for taste) was served in what looked like a soup bowl.
Anyway, I did love the place, and would highly recommend a visit from anyone who finds themselves in Brussels. It's not like there's much else to do in town.
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Huge list of bottled and keg beers. But the place is like a shabby 70s student bar, complete with dodgy tunes. It feels like a tourist trap, and - given that all the people in the bar are tourists - that's exactly what it is. It doesn't feel authentic, and was the least impressive of the bars we visited in Brussels. But..... it does have a huge beer list (even though not all the bottles in the menu are available!)
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Distinctly unimpressed. Yes they have hundreds of beers, but the staff are ill informed, and for atmosphere think cheap english student basement bar and you're not far off. Plus packed with sweaty brits on the pull, there's no reason to bother with going.
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A really great selection of beer - probably too much choice. You could spend more time choosing your poison than drinking it. My only quibble was that on both occasions we visited recently there was only one overworked member of staff to collect and wash glasses and to serve at the bar and locate the beers. As there were about 50 customers to serve when we were there you could end up waiting up to half an hour for a drink. Across the road the Delerium's sister bar 'Floris' serves jenever and absinthe.
chick - 28 Dec 2006 15:51 |
A great little cafe in Brussels, huge bottle selection and interesting draughts. Staff were friendly even though I am completely unable to speak either of their languages! The best bar I have visited, maybe the best in the world?
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