Le Cirio
An 1886 Belle Époque café beside the old stock exchange, its interior barely touched, home of the half-en-half.
The estaminet sits underneath the Théâtre Royal de Toone, the marionette theatre that has been run by the same family line of puppeteers for generations. You reach it through Impasse Sainte-Pétronille, a covered alley off the Petite rue des Bouchers that is easy to walk past. There is a sign, and you will still miss it the first time.
Inside, the walls and ceiling are hung with marionettes in costume, retired from the theatre upstairs. The bar is carved oak, the floor is brick, and the chairs do not match. Nothing about the room has been designed to look old.
It works with children for the obvious reason: there is a great deal to look at, and no expectation of quiet. The beer list is Belgian and long, and the puppet theatre upstairs runs its own programme, which is worth checking separately if you want to make an evening of it.
Come for the room and the walk in. The kitchen is not the point.
The children go quiet the moment they see the puppets hanging over the bar, which buys the adults one unhurried beer. Finding it is half of it: you walk down a covered alley barely wide enough for two people, and it feels like the rest of the city has been switched off.
Public transport
- Metro
- 1 5
- Tram
- 4 10
- Bus
- 29 38 63 65 66 71 86
- Station
- De Brouckère
How far is it?
| From | Straight line | On foot |
|---|---|---|
| Grand-Place | 170 m | approx. 4 min |
| Brussels Central | 350 m | approx. 7 min |
| Our apartment | 390 m | approx. 8 min |
| Manneken-Pis | 420 m | approx. 8 min |
| Place du Grand Sablon | 770 m | approx. 14 min |
