Guinguettes to open this week across five Brussels parks

Open-air taverns – otherwise known as guingettes – are to open this week across five of the Belgian capital’s parks, Brussels Environment has announced.

This is the third year in a row that Brussels Environnement has opened guingettes in parks across Brussels. Traditionally serving as restaurants or dance venues in the suburbs of French cities, the Brussels guingettes will offer food, drinks, yoga and dance classes to the capital’s residents and tourists, and will also host several rock and electro concerts over the coming summer season.

In addition, local residents and neighbourhood organisations will be invited to propose their own program of activities at their nearest guingettes. Farmers, too, will be encouraged to advance Brussels Environment’s ‘Good Food’ initiative by selling locally-served organic products to the guingettes’ kitchens.

The Mauritius guingette at Parc du Cinquanteraire will open its doors for the first time at noon on Wednesday, May 8. Following this, the Emile and Gisèle guingettes will open at Parc Duden and l’Abbaye de la Cambre respectively this Saturday, May 11th. Finally, the Henri and Fabiola guingettes will open at Parc George Henri and Parc Baudouin respectively on May 18th.

All of the guingettes will be open seven days a week, from 11 am to 10 pm.

The Parc de Forest’s guingette has already been open for several days due to the warm weather at the end of April, as has the royal guingette located in the Parc de Bruxelles. The Saint-Sebastien refreshment bar (‘buvette’) and the Laiterie at Parc Josaphat are open all year.