Did you think kings and queens only eat oysters and caviar? Think again! In the lovely courtyard of the BELvue Museum, which is part of the royal palace in Brussels, a delicious salad bar awaits you.
Ready for a royal lunch in Brussels? The restaurant of the BELvue Museum is called Green Kitchen, and works with fresh produce from a farm. The principle is simple: you take a bowl, fill it with as many salad ingredients as you can, go to the till and pay for the weight of your bowl.
If you are smart, you cut down on tomatoes and eggs, because they weigh more than lettuce and olives. But who said you had to count the pennies? We have always filled our bowls nicely with whatever we fancied, and have never paid more than 15 euro for a delicious salad.
Doesn’t sound very royal, you say? Look around and you will understand what we mean. The BELvue Museum is situated in Hôtel Bellevue, a former 18th century hotel which is now part of the royal palace. King Leopold III – who reigned from 1934 until 1951 – and queen Astrid lived here for a few years. We haven’t actually seen king Filip – who lives next door – grab a bite here, but I’m sure he sneaks in from time to time.
The principle is simple: you take a bowl, fill it with as many salad ingredients as you can, go to the till and pay for the weight of your bowl
Nowadays Hôtel Bellevue is a museum about the history of Belgium from its independence in 1830 until today. If history is not your thing we recommend you have lunch here anyway, because you don’t need a museum ticket to enjoy their salads. One more tip? Eat outside, even when it rains. The courtyard is a fabulous little place.
