TOP OF PAGE: The Ixelles mural next to McDonald’s. TOP: Down the avenues and alleyways of Brussels. CENTRE: Window display at the Royal Dog Shop. ABOVE: Loulou at 22, rue de la Paix, in Ixelles, where the author and Megan Tuffery lunched. This restaurant, with its excellent service, specializes in salads and soups. Telephone 32 2 503-22-36 and open 12 to 2·30 P.M. for lunch, then 6·30 to 11·30 P.M. for dinner.

   The Grand’ Place was impressive mainly for the buildings’ intricate decoration, but this was a place for tourists now. Once people came to witness executions or political meetings; today they admire the restored buildings most of which were constructed between 1695 and 1700 after their destruction by de Villeroy on Louis XIV’s orders) or come to listen to concerts held in the square. At the time of this visit, the Grand’ Place’s uncluttered view was spoiled by construction crews in trucks and Transit vans. It was time to move on.
   We took the subway to her old neighbourhood. The subway stations are modernist-stark, but the transport bureau, the

Loulou—with its staircase and oh-so-trendy bath­rooms—special­izes in salads and soups, but also does excellent pasta dishes

STIB, was steadily brightening them up. The ticket would be good for an hour and a half, ample time for what she next had in mind: a gaufre—the famous Belgian waffle to the rest of us—and lunch.
   The Brussels métro is like that of many cities: when you emerge, it is a new world. Arriving in the very trendy district of Ixelles, worryingly near the Mannekin Pis and where there are clothing and jewellery shops, the Belgian love for cartoon characters became even more apparent. Ixelles had its own mural next to the local McDonald’s of the ‘porte de namur, porte de l’amour’, showing how this area considers itself the culturally vibrant part of the city. Nearby were Cartier and Poiray boutiques, but our target: the gaufre waffle stand.
   Here, the waffles are tastier than anything sold in the United States, and while the light pastry was filling for a moment, we decided to go to the rue de la Paix for lunch at Loulou.
   This small restaurant—with its staircase and oh-so-trendy bath­rooms—specializes in salads and soups, but also does excellent pasta dishes. We had a multilingual waitress who wanted to try her English—we betrayed our origins by speaking it when we went in, instead of French. In fact, she was so open to these étrangers at Loulou, wanting to make us feel comfortable, and said we could speak English should we wish. As it turned out, we alternated between the two.
   The sizeable Loulou lunch took longer to eat than we thought, so we felt obliged to walk it off and to collect the Opel from the Palais de Justice. I noticed how the building looms up on you through the relatively narrow city streets. The duality was clear once more. Megan Tuffery’s Brussels is filled with them, but there is a constant, one that she observes even in Wellington: being drawn and living the trendiest, most vibrant locales in the city. These seem to be endless sources for inspiration, even if outside the fashion business. Yet this whole city remains such a secret, a jewel in the centre of Europe. • Jack Yan

Jack Yan is founding publisher of Lucire.

Related links
All Around Brussels
Time Out: Brussels
Belgium Travel Network: Brussels