Antwerp 2022 - Groenplaats area

Bierpassie Weekend at Groenplaats - looking south + looking north

Groenplaats and the streets to the north like Melkmarkt and Wolstraat include the site of the annual Bierpassie Weekend festival with access to several good beer cafes, food outlets and coffee shops.

Entrance to the Bierapassie Weekend costs 10 euros and includes a programme, tasting glass and two beer tokens (each with 3 euro value for a a 20 cl serving). 

The 'usual suspects' were there soon after the 5pm opening time on Friday. Members of our group would also visit on Saturday afternoon, Saturday evening and Sunday lunchtime.

As most Belgian beers are stronger than 5% ABV, it makes sense to sample smaller quantities especially as some beers are only available in 75cl bottles, eg Brasserie Dupont Bons Voeux.

Glasses are routinely rinsed or replaced before each beer is served. Breweries staff their own stands and at quiet times are happy to chat about the beers served.

Richard, Simon and Dave choosing their next beers from the programme

At busy times, free bench places at a table with a parasol are rare so it makes sense to attend at quieter times especially if it's sunny. Bring a cushion if you want any comfort!

Andrew, Simon, Keith & Richard (Saturday evening)

When no benches are available, there may be a standing place with a table.

Tim enjoyed a Martin's Pale Ale at Bierpassie Weekend on Saturday afternoon.

Some of the bars and wagons were impressive including Lindemans and Omer.

Cafe de Kat

On Saturday night, Keith and Richard headed back on the tram (11) to Dageraadplaats from the Melkmarkt stop while Andrew, Dave, Simon and Tim continued further to Cafe de Kat, Wolstraat 22, which the tram also passes as it loops back from the Melkmarkt terminus.

De Kat is one of the iconic cafes featured in Regula Ysewijn's book Belgian Cafe Culture. She writes that 'Until very recently no man has ever worked here' mentioning that it was around 1912 when the first landlady Aurelia gave the cafe its name. 

She also mentions that apart from the marble topped tables, all the interior dates from that period including the bar, the piano and mirrored wall panelling which were designed to match and have the same inlaid detail.

While Tim enjoyed a draught Bolleke De Koninck, the others could not resist Boon Geuze for 3.60 euros.

Other beer bars, food outlets and coffee bars in the area

Andrew and Dave left in time to catch the last tram back to Dageraadplaats for Cafe Zeezicht and Tryp Hotel while Simon was keen to visit The Northerner nearby. Walking there with Simon, we passed historic Quinten Matsijs, adorned with vines, on Hoofdkerkstraat, next to Cafe De Kat. 

Simon later reported that he enjoyed his solo visit to The Northerner, a new beer bar at Wijngaardstraat 7 specialising in Belgian and craft beers. 

Cafe Pelikaan (rear courtyard), Friday 2 July

On his way to the Groenplaats tram stop, Tim passed Cafe Pelikaan, Melkmarkt 14, not for the first time on this visit. This is another beer cafe featured in Regula Ysewijn's book. Cafe Pelikaan was also featured in a Beer Europe post after a 2019 visit.

The area has many fast food outlets including two with indoor seating that were convenient and good value.

Only Kebap, Korte Koepoortstraat 9 - for doner kebab wraps and chips etc.

Pizarro, Melkmarkt 25 - for New York style pizza slices.

Among coffee bars in the area, the Tartoer Vespa Coffee Bar at Korte Koepoortstraat 2, stands out for having an actual Vespa scooter on display above the bar, and offers seating inside and outside.

For more Antwerp background material please see Antwerp - The Usual Suspects 2022 and other linked posts from there.

Antwerp 2022 - Hoogstraat area

Hoogstraat is a pedestrian street that runs south from the Suikerrui / Grote Markt junction to St-Jansvliet which hosts a Sunday market and has the entrance to Sint-Annatunnel, the pedestrian tunnel under the river Scheldt.

Het Souke

Het Souke (formerly 't Half Souke) is at 59 Hoogstraat on the corner with Heilige Geest. It was featured in Regula Ysewijn's book Belgian Cafe Culture with a photo of Leentje, the cafe landlady standing on the uneven tiled floor. Closed when I last visited in 2019, an online report for Algemeen Dagblad dated 4 July 2021 mentions that Leentje had to move to a care home and the cafe was bought by Nathan Gouka and is now managed by his son Jacob. 

They have improved the cafe by laying a flat floor and installing a wide sash window that opens up onto Hoogstraat. 

The mirrors on the inside wall have been retained but the decor has changed with record album covers over the bar and a rack for newspapers and music magazines.

For tradition, a Bolleke De Koninck (Antwerp Pale Ale) was my first beer in Antwerp on a wet Thursday evening (30 June). The wet weather would explain why I had the cafe to myself until Andrew, Keith and Richard joined me.

In addition to the beers listed on the board, there were some bottles displayed on the bar. After a chat with Jacob, I opted for Steenuilke, a sweet blond beer from Brouwerij De Ryck (Herzele) which suited my taste.

On arrival, the music playing included some psychedelic tracks (Monterey by the Animals - 1967, Mind Flowers by Ultimate Spinach - 1968, Gold and Silver by Quicksilver Messenger Service - 1968) that also suited my taste so I was glad when the 'usual suspects' also enjoyed the ambience and we had a further round of beers - draught De Koninck Triple D'Anvers for me.

Before leaving I left a copy of West Berkshire CAMRA's Ullage magazine with Jacob and he kindly posed with it before placing it in the rack. Thankfully it had stopped raining by the time we left Het Souke.

Het Souke is an updated traditional cafe with strong musical links and is recommended for anyone with eclectic musical tastes.

De Vagant

Traditionally, the 'usual suspects' would visit De Vagant, Reyndersstraat 25, for jenevers after lunch and beers at De Groote Witte Arend, on the other side of the street. However, De Groote Witte Arend, housed in a convent building with a courtyard, has changed to Pannenkoekenhuis Familie Suykerbuyck so we did not visit this year.

With its high ceiling, traditional floor tiles, tall windows, traditional furniture and stripped back decor, De Vagant seems airy and timeless. 

Since our last visit the range of jenevers has been cut and the range of beers has increased making the menu easy to navigate. My first beer of the day was a draught Bolleke De Koninck and there was a chair waiting for me at an inside table occupied by the usual suspects.

Simon, Andrew, Dave + Bart with Ullage + Keith & Richard

With La Chouffe on tap and sufficient matching glassware we were able to give Bart, our considerate host, a simple order sometime later.

a glass of jenever for John Reynor RIP

The others also ordered jenevers and Dave ordered a jenever for absent John Reynor. Sadly, John passed away in 2021 as a result of sepsis. It was Dave and John who attended the first Bierpassie Weekend in 2000. Others would join this group in later years (as the junior member of this group, I had not met Dave on my four previous visits - from 2016 to 2019). 

Before leaving De Vagant, Bart kindly offered to photograph our group and at this point we had ordered further beers (including my Adriaen Brouwer Tripel by Brouwerij Roman of Oudenaarde) and shared John's glass of jenever with a toast to him. It was generous of Dave to pay the final bar bill of 144 euros. Cheers!

Subsequent research identified a post by VRT, the Flemish Radio and Television Broadcasting Organisation, mentioning that De Vagant closed on Sunday 5 December 2021 due to the age of manager Ronald Ferket. The jenever collection above the cafe went to the jenever museum in Hasselt.

Our next stop was TOTA, 24 Hoogstraat, for authentic Argentinian empanadas.

De Ware Jacob

Facing south, De Ware Jacob is at Vlasmarkt 19. The 2022 opening times are displayed in the window (Tue - Fri  / di-vr: 15:00, Sat - Sun / za-zo: 14:00).

This was the Saturday late afternoon rendezvous for Simon (after returning from Linkeroever via Sint-Annatunnel), Andrew, Dave and Tim (after returning from Linkeroever via free pedestrian ferry) and Keith and Richard (after visiting Antwerpse Brouw Compagnie).

Simon was first to arrive and picked a pavement table next to an English couple. We chose bottled beers from the menu which includes beers from 9 local breweries still operating out of the 11 listed. 

Draught beers available include Brasserie Dupont Bons Voeux (9.5% ABV) and Sint Barnardus Abt. with an overall choice from 120 beers.

Simon & Dave (I ate all the pies) + Cabardouche Blonde Stoot

The introductory page mentions that De Ware Jacob (true Jacob) has only been a cafe since 1977. This information can also be gleaned from Regula Ysewijn's book Belgian Cafe Culture. She mentions that the interior is much older and was salvaged from other cafes. The bar came from a cafe in Brussels and the wooden wall panelling comes from another cafe in Antwerp. 

The house is a listed building which dates back to the 16th century during the Spanish rule.

Regula also writes that the steep stairwell you find in the back is from this period and is one of the very few 'pagaddertrappen' in Antwerp. On this visit I remembered to photograph the stairwell after a visit to the toilets at the back.

Before leaving, there was also an opportunity to ask the landlord his name (Guy, pronounced Gie) and ask about the word on his t-shirt - goegezjost. Guy explained that it was local dialect for someone who had been tricked or cheated. 

Guy at the wheel! - a page from the beer menu

Guy accepted a copy of West Berkshire CAMRA magazine Ullage in exchange for a Dutch Bierproefgids (Beer Tasting Guide) produced by Ariel Meeusen 'BierCoach' of City Beerwalk from a pile on a shelf inside the cafe.

See also the 2019 Antwerp post which includes photos taken then when Tim and Steve visited De Ware Jacob previously. 

This is another cafe with an appeal to music lovers as the background music is blues, rock, jazz and folk. The maritime details of the cafe's interior and the beer range that includes draught Bons Voeux served by Guy are additional reasons to visit. 

Our group would now split with Tim and Keith visiting the new location of Msemen for a Moroccan meal in the 34 Hoogstraat premises that were previously Aura Brasserie. The food is prepared in an open kitchen. There is now a small fountain in the quiet courtyard at the back.

For more Antwerp background material please see Antwerp - The Usual Suspects 2022 and other linked posts from there.

Antwerp 2022 - Het Steen area

Het Steen, a medieval stone fortress is an Antwerp landmark on the banks of the river Scheldt. A statue of Lange Wapper, a Flemish folklore giant, stands at the entrance to Het Steen. Free pedestrian ferries cross the river from a nearby quay to Linkeroever.

Suikerrui (Sugar street) is a broad straight street that runs inland from the riverside road towards the Grote Markt and the Cathedral of Our Lady.

Het Steen and Brasserie Stadscafe - viewed from Cafe Pardaf

Brasserie Stadscafe is on the northern corner and Cafe Pardaf is on the southern corner of this junction.

Cafe Pardaf

Cafe Pardaf

An earlier recommendation from John and Sue Thirlaway, led to Cafe Pardaf being chosen as the rendezvous for Friday evening (1 July). The interior features a stylish curved bar, stage lighting over large windows facing the river and contemporary furniture. 

There is a pinball machine and the stairs to the upstairs toilets are accessed under the Stella Artois sign. Cafe Pardaf is one of the bars that formed the Antwerp Craft Beer Route on 28 November 2019, immediately before Billie's Craft Beer Festival.

Simon and Tim were first to arrive and chose a table on the Suikerrui pavement giving views of the river and Het Steen. The thick beer menu binder includes 11 beers on tap, and bottled beers divided into styles starting with 'IPA & hops'. The 'in the spotlight' section included Black is Beautiful, a stout from Bristol's Left Handed Giant. Tim's ZinneBir, from Brasserie de la Senne, came in a bottle with a new '20 years' label design for the 'The Brussels People's Ale' (5.8% ABV / 33cl / 3.80 euros).

The remaining 'usual suspects' would join us and our group of six needed two tables. It was comfortable sitting outside Cafe Pardaf on a warm evening watching the sun set and the moon rise. 

Reader, I may have drunk one too many strong Belgian beers at Cafe Pardaf and will not be tempted by the Troubadour Magma Triple Spiked Brett (9.8% ABV) again! 

Cafe Pardaf is recommended for its location, range of beers and good service. Twilight on a warm evening is an especially good time to visit.

Paters Vaetje

Previously visited, photographed (above) and featured in Belgian Beer Trip 2017 blog post, Paters Vaetje, Blauwmoezelstraat 1, near the cathedral, was the second rendezvous on Thursday 30 June (after 'T Half Souke). It had been raining and the tables inside were the only ones occupied this year. 

There was a free table near the entrance door and a Bolleke De Koninck was a good local beer to start with while I waited for the 'usual suspects' to arrive. Music playing included Procol Harum - A Whiter Shade of Pale.

There was time to peruse the beer menu and pick out the next beers to enjoy. Pages 2 and 4 (not pictured) feature 10 Trappist beers, 11 Blond beers, 6 IPAs, 4 Oude Bruine beers (including Duchesse de Bourgogne (6.2%, 4.5 euros) and Rodenbach Grand Cru (6%, 4.7 euros), Oesterstout and 2 Gueuzes. The Antwerp beer section (page 1) includes several beers from Antwerpse Brouw Compagnie, including Seefbier, Cadix and Bootjesbier.

Having ordered Zeezuiper, from Scheldebrouwerij, I would convince Andrew, Richard (both pictured) and Keith to do the same. Simon's Eurostar train was delayed but Dave would join us later. We considered moving to an upstairs table for more space but decided against.

I later enjoyed Strandgaper golden ale from Scheldebrouwerij. Note that this bottle still had the old label design but all the brewery's beers now have colourful new labels and the branded glasses feature the crab design. 

Scheldebrouwerij had a stand at Bierpassie Weekend in Groeneplaats this year.

Cafe Den Engel

Den Engel is one of the iconic cafes featured in Regula Ysewijn's Belgian Cafe Culture book. It is on the northern corner of the Grote Markt and can be seen on the left of the photo above, behind the illuminated Brabo fountain. 

On this visit, I took another photo of Den Engel but have yet to visit. Another reason to revisit Antwerp in 2023!

For more Antwerp background material please see Antwerp - The Usual Suspects 2022 and other linked posts from there.