Brussels Bruxelles - Amsterdam Bruges and Brussels - page 403

celebrated the town's new modern attitude (having recently gained
its independence from the Netherlands). Built in an age of expan-
sion and industrialization, the
mall demonstrated efficient mod-
ern living, with elegant apart-
ments upstairs above fine shops,
theaters, and cafés. Originally,
you had to pay to get in to see its
fancy shops—that elite sensibility
survives today.
Looking down the arcade,
you'll notice that it bends halfway
down, designed to lure shoppers further. Its iron-and-glass look is
still popular today, but the decorative columns, cameos, and pastel
colors evoke a more elegant time. It's Neo-Renaissance, like a pas-
tel Florentine palace.
There's no Gap (yet), no Foot Locker, no Karmelkorn. Instead,
you'll find hat, cane, and, umbrella stores that sell...hats, canes,
and umbrellas—that's it, all made on the premises. At Philippe,
have shoes made especially for the curves of your feet by a family
that's done it for generations. Since 1857, Neuhaus has sold choco-
lates from here at its flagship store, where many locals buy their
pralines. Across from Neuhaus, the Taverne du Passage restau-
rant serves the same local specialties that singer Jacques Brel used
to come here for: croquettes de crevettes (shrimp croquettes), tête de
veau (calf 's head), anguilles au vert (eels with herb sauce), and fon-
due au fromage (cheese fondue; €10-20 meals, daily 12:00-24:00).
he Brussels Discover the City in 45 Minutes Exhibition
(see the sign midway down the gallery) is the strangest thing: You
enter through the back of a chocolate shop and descend into a
huge underground exhibit that cleverly and artistically gives you
the sweep of the city with fine English descriptions (€6, daily
10:00-17:00, tel. [phone]).
• Midway down the mall, where the two sections bend, turn left and
exit the mall onto...
Rue des Bouchers
Yikes! During meal times, this street is absolutely crawling with
tourists browsing through wall-to-wall, midlevel-quality restau-
rants. Brussels is known worldwide for its food, serving all kinds
of cuisine, but specializing in seafood (particularly mussels). You'll
have plenty to choose from along this table-clogged “restaurant
row.” To get an idea of prices, compare their posted menùs —the
fixed-price, several-course meal offered by most restaurants.
Many diners here are day-trippers. Colin from London, Marie
from Paris, Martje from Holland, and Dietrich from Bonn could