Mechelen 2026

You will find a concentration of cafe bars around Mechelen's historic Grote Markt which is overlooked by Saint Rumbold's tower. On the last two days of a Belgian trip during the May 2026 heatwave, Makadam was the only one that Tim and Meg visited.

Several cafe bars in other parts of Mechelen were also visited though! Mechelen is easy to reach by train with two stations on the main railway line between Brussels and Antwerp. However, some trains do not stop at Mechelen-Nekkerspoel.

Makadam

Makadam is the arrowed cafe bar on the north side of the Grote Markt with the 'Martha Sexy Blond' sponsored sunshades. (NB Martha Tripel is the beer's new name).

Special beers in bottles or cans are listed on a blackboard and there is a smaller board, near the entrance, listing draught beers.

The printed beer menu lists about 80 bottled beers including several from local and smaller brewers.

Tim chose Brasserie de la Senne Wadesda #9, a Tripel Saison limited release from the Specials board.

Café De Hanekeef

Located at Keizerstraat 8, Mechelen's oldest beer cafe has been serving drinks since 1886. There is a strong rooster theme at Café de Hanekeef which takes it's name from the baskets that they were carried away in from a nearby market.
After climbing the steps to enter the cafe, one of the first things to notice is the old wooden tip-up seats along one wall that may have come from an old cinema.

The decorative floor tiles and a traditional wooden 'spaarkas' with numbered slots, once used for savings, on the far wall are also featured in the above photos.

At a quiet moment on a sunny Monday afternoon it was possible to get a photo of the traditional dark wood bar and bar back with its tidy glasses and unintentionally, a portrait of our hospitable host. A 2024 Café Society post by Cliff Lucas for Belgian Smaak features several superior photos of De Hanekeef and its decor.

The beer menu lists six bottles from Het Anker brewery including Maneblusser (€3.90) and Gouden Carolus Whisky Infused (€5.90).

We liked the local character of De Hanekeef and returned more than once, after a first visit on Monday afternoon, to try a variety of beers from the menu (above). A lesser known beer on the list is Vossen met de Meynen Soixante-Neuf (top right photo above).

De Vleeshalle

De Vleeshalle (Meat market hall) opened in 1881 and closed in 1967. The building was renovated in 1992 and is now a 'culinary hotspot in the heart of Mechelen' with a collection of food outlets offering dishes from various countries.

A central bar serves nine draught beers, nine bottled beers and five no / low alcohol beers.

Pictured above is a Vleeshalle Tripel from the bar with Kibbeling (fish nuggets) from NØR and curly potato fries from another food stall. There are many seating options in different areas of the hall.

De Gouden Vis

Previously visited and featured in a March 2019 Mechelen Meander post, De Gouden Vis is an Art Nouveau beer cafe with a terrace overlooking the river Dijle from the north side. It is located at Nauwstraat 7, just west of Grootbrug (big bridge).

The terrace was crowded on a warm Tuesday evening but there was plenty of space inside with a view towards the river. From the Mechelse Bieren section of the combined mat / menu (below), Bruur (above) is brewed for Collectif Malunés, a contemporary circus company, by Circus Brouwerij.

Bruur cost €5.20 for a 33cl bottle. De Gouden Vis is an essential beer cafe to visit in Mechelen. 

Dijlepad floating footpath - view from east end near Fonteinbrug

The Dijlepad is a floating footpath on the south side of the river Dijle between Grootbrug and Fonteinbrug, near Kruidtuin (Botanical Gardens). Taking this path from Grootbrug to an exit before Fonteinbrug (e.g. 't Plein) gives a quick and interesting route from De Gouden Vis to Kafee Zapoi.

Kafee Zapoi

Kafee Zapoi is located about 100 metres west of Fonteinbrug, at Onze-Lieve-Vrouwestraat 117. 
(Between Kafee Zapoi and Nagelmackers Bank (111), there is a gated entrance to a passage which leads to the Dijlepad).

Visited on Monday and Tuesday night, there was dim lighting. It's popular with a younger set and likely to be busy at weekends. There are several nice touches like candles and fresh flowers on the traditional wooden tables.

The decor is interesting and includes a gramophone and stained glass. The beer menu includes beers from Brouwcompagnie Rolling Hills based in Oudenaarde. Tim liked Treeple Chase (Steeple) Belgian Tripel 'a ride with the wind in your hare' (above) fermented with Saison yeast and Wildebeest (6% ABV, NEIPA, below) 'your next world trip in a glass'.

As well as Rolling Hills Pils, there are also three Het Anker beers on draught: Maneblusser, Gouden Carolus Tripel and Gouden Carolus Classic.

Het Anker Brasserie

It was a relief to find a table in the shade outside the Het Anker Brasserie on a sunny Tuesday. Here you can also enjoy the sights and smells of an active brewery while drinking a beer brewed on the site like Het Anker Gouden Carolus Hopsinjoor (33cl bottle, €4.50, above). On a quiet day like this, the table service can be highly recommended.

Tour guide Marc De Knijf - 23/3/2019

To see inside the brewery you can take a tour or read a previous blog post about a tour in March 2019 which includes photos from inside the brewery.

Het Anker Maneblusser from the brewery shop served at home

Branded glasses and beers listed in the Brasserie menu can also be purchased in the brewery shop to take away at reasonable prices.

The menu includes canned beers e.g. Battelaar, from the linked Batteliek microbrewery, 3 km away. 

Sint-Beggastraat & Fonteinstraatje

A visit to Het Anker brewery &/or brasserie can easily be combined with a leisurely walk around the historic streets of the Groot Begijnhof and Klein Begijnhof and the baroque Begijnhofkerk which are next to the brewery.

Cafe Tilt

Jack Anderton posted a great review of Cafe Tilt on The European Bar Guide after a visit in 2019.

Located outside the inner ring road and on the south west side of the straight Kanaal Leuven-Dijle, pedestrians will find plenty of interesting Belgian suburban houses of interest in the vicinity of this Lokaal / Pub / Club.

When we arrived at Cafe Tilt on (Bank Holiday) Monday at 4.15 pm, a cyclist was outside organising luggage after the local cycling club had returned from a weekend trip to the Netherlands.

Inside, we were lucky to find two free stools at the far end of the bar as Cafe Tilt was otherwise full. One end of the bar has a football theme and the other is about cycling. It is the base for WTC Tilt -Wielertoeristenclub Tilt v.z.w. Mechelen. There are cups and trophies above the bar. 

After a walk here in the sunshine the cool 33cl glass of Maes Pils (€3.10) was just what we needed. There were no language problems here as the bar lady who served us has relatives in Wigan. There was a lively atmosphere inside and it's great when a pub has a strong following based on shared interests that include socialising at the local. 

VerToi

Vrijbroekpark is a little further out from central Mechelen. May is a good time to visit the park with its oversized deck chair, attractive landscape, trees, flowers and herbs.

VerToi is a purpose built brasserie near the edge of the park with fine views and plenty of outdoor space.

A delightful spot to enjoy a cold draught Omer Vander Ghinste Bockor Pilsner on a hot day and the service included a charming smile.

Postscript

Unfortunately we did not have an opportunity to visit Het Maanlicht as it was closed when we passed after visiting Het Anker Brasserie on Tuesday afternoon so we revisited De Hanekeef.

Two other landmarks on the map are historic Brusselpoort and the contemporary Opsinjoor figure (Opsinjorke XXL), both above.

Antwerp - Comic Murals & Beer Passion - Saturday 29 June 2019

Waking view from Hotel Rubenshof bedroom

Blue skies and high temperatures in Antwerp for the second day of the 20th BierPassie Weekend.

22 Beeldhouwersstraat - listed building

The Beer Passion Festival in Groeneplaats opens at 1pm so there was time for a leisurely walk north from Antwerp Zuid to the historic centre, keeping to the shady side of the street.

As Steve was having a lie in it was nice to wander at my own pace, stopping to take photos en route. Unfortunately it was 15 minutes before 11am opening time when I passed Coffee & Vinyl at Volkstraat 45.

At the junction of Kloosterstraat and Goedhoopstraat you can find the comic mural (stripmuur) Nero by Marc Sleen (1922-2016).

There is also a mural on a junction box showing a Stripmurenroute with the location of other comic murals in Antwerp. To find the other murals on the route could be a project for a future visit to Antwerp.

Kloosterstraat is a good street for finding interior decor and antiques shops.

2 Kloosterstraat - looking south

Continuing along Oever and Hoogstraat I reached the sun drenched Grote Markt.

Den Hopsack

Regaining the shade, I walked to 24 Grote Pieter Potstraat to find Den Hopsack.

Den Hopsack is mentioned in Joe Stange & Tim Webb's Good Beer Guide Belgium as 'a mellow music club serving 50+ beers including De Ranke and Senne'.
There were flyers in the window for a free gig by Lise at 8pm and art by Peter Callens.

As the bar does not open until 8pm I took a photo through the window to record the interior. It looks like a place worth revisiting on a future trip.

Now it was time to look for more classic cafe bars featured in Regula Ysewijn's book Belgian Cafe Culture.

Den Engel (left) and Den Bengel (right)

Cafe Den Engel,  Grote Markt 3, had seats outside in the full glare of the sun.
Regula Ysewijn writes 'Cafe Den Engel (the angel) ... is housed in a guildhall called 'White Angel'. ... The large guild houses on the Grote Markt were reconstructed in the 19th century in neo-renaissance and neo-gothic style to recreate its former glory. The original guild houses were demolished in the 18th century to enlarge the Grote Markt. ... In 1903 it became Cafe Den Engel. The interior with the wooden wall panelling and mirrors is from the same period.'

I was reluctant to sit inside with a coffee so continued into Braderijstraat and noticed that (rhyming) Cafe De Stengel (the stalk) is situated nearby!

Conscience - Jan Bosschaert (panorama)

Wandering down the narrow twisting cobbled street of Oude Beurs involved passing a group on a walking tour and finding another comic mural, at the junction of Wolstraat and Moriaanstraatje.

At the next corner is Cafe de Kat, Wolstraat 22. Again I had arrived at a suitable coffee place 15 minutes too early as opening time here is 12 noon. Regula Ysewijn writes 'The story of De Kat starts around 1912 with first landlady Aurelia who gave the cafe its name. Apart from the tables all other interior dates from those early years. All the elements: the bar, the piano and mirrored wall panelling were designed to match and have the same inlaid wooden detail.'

With over an hour to wait until the opening of BierPassie at Groenplaats,  I retraced my steps as far as Caffe Mundi, Oude Beurs 24, where it was a relief to finally sit at an outside table in the shade and enjoy a flat white coffee.

Back at Groenplaats, the railings would be parted to allow entry at 1pm.

My first 20cl taster was Botanik from the Gouden Carolus Indulgence range which is only available in 75cl bottles. I was keen to try this beer after visiting Het Anker brewery in Mechelen with Simon on 23 March earlier this year. This 8.5% ABV special blonde beer was brewed using barley, wheat and Belgian hops. The ageing process for Botanik included two weeks with four natural botanicals - elderflower, angelica root, cloves and rosemary.
An advantage of this festival is the chance to taste a beer from a large bottle without needing friends to share it with.

Richard, Graham, Tim, Simon and Steve

Friends soon arrived and we were able to find a rare shady spot although it was standing room only.

We were standing near the Brouwerij Huyghe bar where several Delirium beers were served as well as some new limited edition beers - Paranoia and JI.PA.

Paranoia (5.6% ABV) was developed for the French market. I tried JI.PA (6.8% ABV / 45 IBU) but it was not a favourite. However, Keith Moore picked Delirium Black (Oak aged 2019), a 2 jetons (4 euros) 20 cl pour, as his favourite beer of the festival.

We had time for a few more beers before going to De Groote Witte Arend for lunch at 2.30pm.

However, instead of lunching there I went to Aura Brasserie, Hoogstraat 34, an old favourite, for a lunch of omelette, salad and bread accompanied by a 25cl bottle of St Feuillien Grisette Blanche Bio.

A few draught beers are also available at Aura Brasserie which only opens on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and often features live music in the evenings.

By the time I rejoined the others in the courtyard at De Groote Witte Arend, they were only midway through their substantial meals.

Draught Brasserie de la Senne Taras Boulba was the 4.5% ABV blonde beer I enjoyed here (25cl glass for 3.5 euro).

We finally departed just before 5pm and headed to nearby Pelgrom at 15 Pelgrimstraat which Steve and I had previously visited on Thursday.

As hoped, the cellars here were reasonably cool although we could not sit in the main cellar area facing the bar this time.

With a range of 24 draught Belgian beers to choose from we were happy to stay here until 7.45pm and sample a few of them. It stayed cool but the noise levels rose when another group joined our table. My favourite beer on this occasion was Troubadour Magma a 9% ABV Tripel IPA (45 IBU) by Brouwerij The Musketeers.

Another Antwerp tradition for our group is a visit to De Vagant at nearby Reyndersstraat 25 for Jenever shots. I accompanied the group there but drank a cup of coffee instead of flavoured Jenever.
The barman was interested to hear our opinion about Brexit and we reassured him that we look forward to remaining in the EU.

An hour later we were back at Groenplaats to spend the last of our beer tokens at BierPassie.
Saisons are my current favourite Belgian beer style and it was a treat to have a glass of chilled Saison d'Erpe-Mere served from a 75cl bottle. This Saison does not use any herbs or spices to create its fruity and spicy profile (7.5% ABV, IBU 35).

There was a lively atmosphere at the beer festival and the Dixieland Street Band did a final circuit before we caught the tram (underground) from Groenplaats to Antwerp Centraal station.

(photo: Steve Kelly)

From here it was a 500 metre walk north past Chinatown to reach Beerlovers Bar, Rotterdamstraat 105.

It was very generous of Simon to pay for our drinks here!

With 12 draught beers available from the tap wall, I chose Embrace the Haze a Double New England IPA by 't Duo costing Simon 4.80 euros (25cl) and served in a stemmed glass branded with the bar's pentangle logo. Cheers!
Beerlovers Bar is a verified venue on Untappd (beerloversbar) so it is possible to use the app to keep track of what beers are on tap etc.. My Untappd (timofnewbury) checkin for this beer also mentioned the 'tinny soundsystem' and was reposted on my Twitter account (@timofnewbury).

L to R: Simon, Steve, Graham, Richard & Keith

We had started off sitting inside at a big table near the entrance doorway but moved outside to a pavement table for our second beers (with Simon still paying the tab).

My glass at the empty seat in the photo now contained Golden Tricky by 't Verzet, a 7.5% ABV, 40 IBU pale ale with tropical flavours from Australian Ella hops.
Around midnight we departed and Steve and I were able to catch a tram back to the stop near Hotel Rubenshof while Simon and the others (less Graham) headed to Dageraadplaats. Graham was staying on in Antwerp while Steve and I would next meet up with the others in Brussels on Sunday.