Liège - Saint-Lambert & Montagne de Bueren

The steps of Montagne de Bueren

On our Wednesday visit, we reached the Saint-Lambert area after a long walk from our accommodation in Angleur stopping at Liege Guillemins station to buy a Le Tec bus / tram multi-journey ticket.

(8 trips for €9.70. NB Fare increase on 1/2/2026: 6 trips for €13.40).

From there we crossed the River Meuse by pedestrian bridge to the island for a visit to the Robert Doisneau photographic exhibition at Museum La Boverie named after the island.

Photo of Georges Simenon by Robert Doisneau (1961)

A power cut interrupted our visit and this also prevented any service at the Madame Boverie sandwich bar inside the museum which serves local bottled beers.

Casa Ponton

After leaving, we walked north, recrossed the river Meuse and eventually found refreshment at Casa Ponton.

On the corner of Rue de la Cité and En Neuvice, the busy cafe features tables with an inset chess / draughts board.

There is colourful artwork above the bar with the windows of Casa Ponton featuring in the central panel, a stylised aerial view of the street corner at night.

The industrial history of Liège is referenced with framed black and white photos on the walls. The black metal bar stools and the overhead ventilation system matches this theme and contrasts with the brown cafe style.

There are 10 draught beers with local options including Tripick, Brasserie La Bestiale, Badjawe (Brasserie Cooperative Liègeoise) and Prieure de Beaufays, an abbey beer brewed by Elfique.

Tim enjoyed Badjawe Blonde for his first beer of the day at tea time for Meg. Soul classics were playing including tracks by Sam & Dave and Bob & Earl. Some customers had small dogs with them including one with a loud bark for its size. 

Through the windows to the left of the bar you can see a cast iron Montefiore drinking fountain and watch trams heading east from Saint-Lambert. La Batte, 150 metres to the east, by the river Meuse, is the nearest tram stop.

Casa Ponton and nearby La Fine Frite, both impressed 'Boak & Bailey' on their recent visit.

Heading north, away from the river Meuse, we resisted the temptation to buy a sweet Liège delicacy at 'La Petite Boutique' of Une Gaufrette Saperlipopette at Rue des Mineurs 7.

Wild Lab Liège

Thirty metres east from the top of Rue des Mineurs and slighlty set back at Rue Hors-Château 14, Wild Lab Liège was empty when we arrived at 5.15pm.

Following us inside, our host served us at the open bar. 11 of the 14 taps were connected. Tim's Cloud Drift, a 6% ABV Hazy IPA (€5.50 / 25cl), brewed by DosKiwis at their site, between Girona and the Costa Brava, would be one of his favourite beers on this trip.

Staying with the same style, his next beer, spotted in a fridge, was Ochtendnevel (Morning mist), a collaborative beer brewed by Kapsuul Beer Co (near Aalst) and La Source Beer Co. (Brussels). The 'drink in' price was €6.

The French hip hop style music sounded good with a decent sound system. Decor includes a high shelf of bottles and a display of hanging beer cans. There are blackboards with food options and event dates. The toilets are distinguished by male and female puppets suspended above. By the time we left at 6.45pm the bar was reasonably busy.

Wild Lab was the first stop on Jezza's September 2025 visit to Liège. His @bonvoeux1 Bluesky post about the 'excellent place' includes 4 photos.

We passed the daunting steps of Montagne de Bueren on the 250 metre walk to our next bar.

Sauvage

Turning left at the foot of the Montagne de Bueren steps we passed Brasserie {C} (closed on Wednesdays) and followed the passage to reach Sauvage at Impasse des Ursulines 3.

We found a table between the entrance and the bar. Service here was fast and attentive. A range of sour beers is available but Tim made the obvious choice of Curtius Classic as the bar is part of Brasserie {C}. 

For an upmarket style place in an historic building, the €4 price seemed very reasonable.

We returned to the Montagne de Bueren on Thursday. Instead of walking up the steps we caught a Le TEC 38 bus from Place St-Lambert (Quai D) to Hospital de la Citadelle.

From there it was all downhill, passing the brutalist 14th Line Regiment monument before reaching the top of the steps.

Brasserie {C}

Entering Brasserie {C}, we looked in at the bar but were then directed to a restaurant area in a courtyard with a temporary covering and hot air blowers. 

There was a sloping floor in this area and we could see the bar from our table.

The beer menu included the Sauvage range of sour beers. Tim enjoyed Brasserie {C} Smash Crush with cherry and raspberry flavours. €4.50 25cl.

Upstairs at Brasserie {C}

Before leaving there was a chance to visit the two indoor rooms on ground and first floors which were warmer and quieter but had a little less character.

Downstairs at Brasserie {C}

It was 3pm when we left and the afternoon light was illuminating the steps at Montagne de Bueren.

Another Liège landmark earmarked for a visit was the Roger Lenertz sculpture of Georges Simenon sitting on a bench at the Gare Léopold bus terminus near Place Saint Lambert. This was 600 metres away.

Naturally, the author of the Maigret novels is holding a pipe in his hand!

Other Liège posts on Beer Europe blog include: Liege 2025; Liege Guillemins & Angleur (2026); Liege - Saint-Paul & University (2026)

Liège - Saint-Paul & University

View north across river Meuse from La Boverie island towards the 28 storey Kennedy tower and the steeple of the church of the Grand Seminary. Saint-Paul and the University are just north of these buildings. 14/1/2026.

The Saint-Paul Cathedral and main University building are located between Guillemins and Saint-Lambert districts. There are many lively bars and cafes in this part of Liege. Having visited Le Pot au Lait in January 2025, we aimed to visit some different bars in this area a year later.

In the late afternoon of Thursday 15 January, we reached Au Delft on foot after visiting Brasserie C, near the foot of the steps of Montagne de Bueren.

We had stopped briefly to look inside the Collegiate church of Saint-Denis which was incorporated into the city walls.

Au Delft

Opposite the main university building, Au Delft is on the corner of Pl. Cockerill and Rue Charles Magnette. There's an art deco look to the exterior of the building which has become rather grubby.

However, the European Bar Guide recommends this brown cafte as being one of the best in Europe.

It was busy inside but we found a table with a view through a big window of the Theatre de Liège and a statue of  Professor Andre Dumont, a geologist. Tim enjoyed a local beer - Smash Original by Brasserie {C}.a 6.2% ABV pale ale. Served with a small dish of mixed peanuts this was good value for €3.80. Music was playing softly, a nearby customer was using a laptop and others were chatting. There are no individual menus but a blackboard lists available beers including several local options. 

The chairs are stylish with banquette seating around the edge of the room. 

There is a distinctive light fixture in the centre of the room. There are posters. leaflets and publications for browsing. It was tempting to stay for a second beer but we had more bars to visit.

Fondamental

Fondamental, Rue des Carmes 13

Jezza, posting as @bonsvoeux1 on Bluesky, as well as Boak and Bailey in a blog post, had been impressed by Fondamental on their September / October 2025 visits to Liège. It's only 240 metres from Au Delft. It's a few steps up from street level and spacious inside with a high ceiling and enough pine panelling on the walls to furnish several sauna cabins.

A complimentary bowl of popcorn was served with our beers. Tim's beer was draught Lupulus Pils costing €3 and the cheapest option on the menu.

Other beers on the printed menu included three more draught beers from Brasserie Lupulus, and local beers including Badjawe from Brasserie Cooperative Liegoise, Hazy Pale from Norm Brewing and Curtius Classic from Brasserie {C}.

On our visit the choice of music playing was not appreciated and plastic greenery for decoration always disappoints. However, the use of enamel beer signs to decorate the pine walls was a good indicator although only a small section near the entrance has been covered so far. It's a useful place to know about that's away from a busy area for a good choice of beer at reasonable prices and there's plenty of space.

A few steps from Fondamental, then turning right along the lively Rue St Paul brought us to our next bar at the first corner.

Taverne Saint Paul

Taverne Saint Paul was too busy when we visited in 2025 but this time we were lucky to find a free table in the 'middle' room at 6pm on a Thursday evening.

The beer menu may not be inspiring but this is a classic bar not to be missed.

Tim enjoyed draught Val Dieu (25cl €4.20) and stayed on for Tripel Karmeliet (25cl €4.50) with the complimentary bowl of salty biscuits lasting well. Customers came and went but there was a constant buzz of conversation.

There is a dedicated bar person to pour the beers as waiters collect their orders from the bar. Mirrors in the 'middle' room make the space appear larger than it is.

Look down and you will see the tiled floor, look up and you will notice the candelabra style light fitting.

Although it was very busy we enjoyed prompt and efficient service. It's a classic bar to visit in Liège.

After leaving here we passed Saint Paul's cathedral on the way to the nearby Pont d'Avroy tram stop.

If you are visiting this part of Liège for the first time, be sure to also visit Le Pot au Lait and its courtyard which is less than 100 metres away from Taverne Saint Paul. 

Another nearby bar, which we did not have time to investigate, is Blaes by Bartho. Jezza wrote 'Excellent place, highly recommended' and Boak & Bailey mentioned vinyl record decks, low lighting and beers from newer breweries.

Other Liège posts on Beer Europe blog include: Liege 2025; Liege Guillemins & Angleur (2026); Liege - Saint-Lambert & Montagne de Bueren (2026)

Liège Guillemins & Angleur

View from Liège-Guillemins railway station including a tram

With its curvaceous canopy, arrival at Liège-Guillemins railway station, is always a special experience. On our second visit to the city, the double-decker train took just over an hour for the 90 km journey from Brussels-Midi/Zuid. It was dark when we arrived around 6pm but there was an opportunity to photograph Santiago Calatrava's architecture on another day.

A 58 Le TEC bus took us across the river Meuse and dropped us opposite the door to our accommodation on Rue de Renory. We stayed for three nights in the Angleur district which is mainly residential. The 70 metre tall tower which supports the cable stays for the 25 years old Pont du Pays road bridge is a short walk away. The light at the top is a landmark at night.

We didn't need to cross the river again to visit Le Petit Vaudrée, just over a kilometre away from the right bank of the river Meuse and slightly closer than it's sister establishment, the more upmarket Le Vaudrée restaurant / brasserie which is at the other end of Rue Henri Durant. Angleur railway station is located a little further away.

Le Petit Vaudrée

Le Petit Vaudrée, at the corner with Rue Vaudrée, was quite brightly lit inside with an old map (1647) of Liège on the wall opposite the windows. We found a free table by the windows on the Tuesday evening of our arrival.

This also gave a view of the bar with five draught beers including Tripel Karmeliet, Jupiler Pils and Scotch CTS. Crowned Trees Scotch was first brewed in the Forest district of Brussels by Wielemans in the 1920s but is now brewed in Leuven by Artois as mentioned in an article by Eoghan Walsh for Brussels Beer City in 2020.

The bound menu also lists a range of bottled beers including the local Tripick range - 4,5,6,7 and 8 - at €4.50 for 33cl.

This made it easy to pick our first beers of the evening - Tripick 4 and 5. The label for Tripick 5 mentions Unfiltered Blond Beer - High Fermentation. An ingredient listed is Courtil water and the brewery in Courtil is Brasserie Lupulus also known by it's old name - Brasserie Les Trois Fourquets. Our first round was served wth a complimentary small dish with a variety of small salty biscuits.

It's possible to obtain take away fried or grilled food from La Frite du Petit Vaudrée, next door. Note that unless you have ordered in advance, it's necessary to wait your turn as customers orders are individually cooked to order. 

To view the performance of draining the frites, and tossing them in an oversized stainless steel cone with a handle, before tipping them into a carton that is then wrapped with paper and pricked with a fork, is worth the wait! We thought that a large order of frites (€3.50) would serve two but we could not finish them! 

We also ordered sauce andalouse (€1.20), cheese croquette (€3) and a beef skewer (€4.50). Wooden forks are provided.

Tim's final beers here were Tripick 6, a fruity blonde and Tripick 8 a Tripel, also unfiltered. These were both liked better than the Tripick 4.

This is a bar for locals and it was nice that we could have a table here and enjoy our meal without embarrassment as others were doing the same.

Two regular customers who had been at the bar later chatted with us after hearing English spoken. They explained they were Czech and liked the Scotch CTS beer served here. They both work at Liège airport west of the city which is a major European hub for airfreight.

They were surprised to learn that we had recently travelled to the Czech Republic but this was before they realised that our 'good English' was because we were actually English! They seemed to hold Britain in higher regard than Belgium but were concerned that our standards might also have fallen as the English workers they knew at the airport had mostly moved to Spain. We reassured them that London is still a safe place to live.

Another way to find Tripick beers in Liège would be to visit Le Tripick Brasserie, located opposite the station at Place des Guillemins,1.

Taverne L'Aigle d'Or

L'Aigle d'Or, Pl. du Général Leman 19.  14/1/2026 12:45pm

In January 2025, Taverne L'Aigle d'Or was the first place we visited but this was only for coffee as it was soon after the 11am opening time. A year later we would visit on Wednesday and Thursday evenings and enjoy some beers.

It was about 9.15pm on the Wednesday night when we arrived after catching a tram at Place St-Lambert (above) to Général Leman (8 stops).

Fridge shelves with Brasserie Minne bottles (top left) and Aplovou NEIPA  (bottom right)

We only had time for one beer this time and enjoyed draught Tripel Karmeliet. There was also an opportunity to get photos of some of the beers displayed in the fridges next to the bar.

On Thursday evening, after a shorter tram ride from Pont d'Avroy (5 stops), we arrived at L'Aigle d'Or around 8.15pm to find all the dining tables occupied. 

We were allowed to sit at a table near the bar and enjoy a beer until a table became free. Tim chose the house beer brewed by Brasserie Minne L'Aiglon. When Frank (humble_beer on Untappd) from Aachen visited two years previously his description was 'Peach, mango, violets, bright grains, fresh dry hop aroma blending with Belgian yeast spice, moderate bitterness with dry finish. Great house beer.'

We soon had a chance to move to a dining table and study the menu and draught beer list on blackboards.

Tim's Onglet steak with a dark onion sauce, frites and salad (€23.50) was delicious, accompanied by draught Brasserie Minne Ardenne Givrée.

A post by Brugge-based Jezza (@bonsvoeux1) on BlueSky about L'Aigle d'Or from September 2025 included photos and the following text 'Down to earth locals bar [with] great meatballs & c.150 beers. Unlikely place to find two Brasserie Minne ticks on draft, but a house IPA & their saison really hit the spot. Classic place this, worth a visit.'

Read about our previous visit to Liège, on a day trip from Namur, in late January 2025 which also features L'Aigle d'Or, in the Liege 2025 post on the Beer Europe blog. 

Our visits to bars and breweries in the University and Saint-Lambert districts of Liege in January 2026 will be covered by separate posts on the Beer Europe blog.