Brussels’ guinguettes season kicks off with opening of ‘Maurice’ in Cinquantenaire park

Guinguette Maurice in Cinquantenaire Park opens this Friday, marking the launch of the 10th consecutive season of the popular open-air summer bars.

This first opening of the Barc family of guinguettes will be officiated by Brussels state secretary for the environment, climate and the image of Brussels, Ans Persoons.

“In recent years, the guinguettes have grown into meeting places and ensure that Brussels residents and visitors see the parks as their own gardens,” she said. “They are an example of conviviality, sustainability, and inclusion,” added Persoons.

Managed by Brussels Environment, parks across Brussels host the pop-up bars that not only serve food and drinks, but stage a multitude of activities, from repair cafés and concerts to yoga classes.

Guinguette Maurice (pictured, main image), located at the north end of the park, will open daily from 10.00 with service from 12.00 to 22.00. Concerts, lindy hop, yoga, salsa, ball competitions and street theatre all feature in its programme.

If the Cinquantenaire terrace is probably the most well-know, there are a number of other members of the Guinguette family that draw in the crowds, especially for afterwork gatherings and at weekends.

Other summer bars due to open

Guinguette Emile (pictured above) in Forest’s Duden Park opens on Sunday. In addition to the table area, deck chairs are set up to entice you to sit back and enjoy the alfresco entertainment. Activities include creative workshops, plant swaps, concerts, board games and pétanque tournaments.

Roi Baudouin Park in Jette is home to Guinguette Fabiola (pictured above), from 3 May. It promises to be kid-friendly thanks to a nearby playground, while also hosting concerts, workshops and events.

Georges Henri park in Woluwe-Saint-Lambert welcomes Guinguette Henri from 10 May. Yoga, concerts, dance, children's stories and a bike repair workshop are all set to attract visitors to its leafy location.

Evere bar Guinguette Vincent also opens to the public on 10 May. Formerly known as Jeanne du Rouge-Cloître, it has now moved to Bon Pasteur Park. Meanwhile, Guinguette André in the park of Laeken has yet to announce its precise opening date in May.

The guinguette tradition

While the name guinguette originally refers to a popular riverside cabaret restaurant that developed at the end of the 19th century in the Paris region, the Brussels cafes have each been given a name connected to the park in which they are located.

For example, Fabiola in King Baudouin Park honours Belgium’s former Queen and André in Laeken Park refers to the engineer and architect who designed and built the Atomium, namely André Waterkeyn and André Polak.

Brussels’ very first pop-up guinguette was in Duden Park as part of the Park Design 2016 project. It proved so popular, other summer bars followed in 2017. Ten years on and they are a popular summer tradition for residents and visitors to the city.

Photos: ©Guinguettes Barc