Brussels Beer Project to open new bar in former Michael Collins

Brussels Beer Project (BBP) is opening a second bar, this time in Ixelles. It will be located on the corner of Rue du Bailli and Avenue Louise, an address expats will be familiar with: It was previously the Irish pub Michael Collins.

The BBP microbrewery is located on Dansaert, where they make and serve their beers. The owners have since opened other locations in Paris and Tokyo. They have been looking for the perfect spot to open a second location in Brussels for a few years now, wanting a large terrace and a location preferably in Ixelles or Saint-Gilles.

The Michael Collins recently closed, referencing the coronavirus crisis. It is the perfect space for BBP, as it is already fitted out as a bar. BBP plans to open in June with 30 beers on the menu, its own as well as a selection of international microbrews.

 Brussels Beer Project will serve its own brews plus others at its new location in Ixelles

The new location will also serve pizza, cooked in a traditional wood-fired oven. The crusts will be made from surpluses left over in the brewing process.

Little will be recognisable of the original Michael Collins, as BBP is renovating to fit its own style. There will still, however, be a chance to watch sport on the telly on the first floor. This will kick off with the European Football Championship in June, should corona measures allow for it.

The BBP is also busy building a new brewery in Anderlecht, which will allow it more space. It hopes to open it by the end of the year and welcome the public to its new beer garden on the site sometime next year.

Photos, from top: Courtesy Google, courtesy Belgian Beer Project