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An American (IPA) in Paris

Published on 28 July 2021 
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I had my first beer of the day at Bon Esprit. To keep the drinking at a moderate pace, this was then followed by another coffee at KB CaféShop. Then some more beers followed at beer shops À la bière comme à la Bière and La Binouze. I also had a beer at the Mikkeller Bar, mainly to get a stamp for my Mikkeller Passport.

The staff at Bon Esprit recommended me Carburant as one of the newest craft beer hot spots of Paris, so I added that as the final beer destination to my itinerary.

The last stop before getting in my comfy Thalys seat again, was at Fric-Frac, to enjoy another French classic—croque monsieur—but with a twist, chicken and avocado this time.

Well, that’s all for this trip, but there will be another one, just as short as this one, very soon!

Done reading about this trip? Resume reading my blog in the usual order!

Croissants and Culture

Published on 28 July 2021

After breakfast at the hotel—croissants of course—and a first real coffee at Telescope, I made my way to the banks of the Seine, to visit the famous Louvre.

I had no intention to see everything—which would have been impossible anyway—so I just picked a couple of highlights, that was more than enough to keep me occupied well until lunchtime.

This time my food of choice was a Parisian classic: jambon-beurre. As simple as ham and butter on a baguette, but the version prepared by Julhès was tasty nevertheless. A coffee at 5 Pailles, and I was ready to get moving again!

La bière et la bouffe!

Published on 27 July 2021

After coffee and a bed for the night had been taken care of, it was time to finally (re)discover Paris! As I mentioned, I had been there before, but that was either as a rather short stop on my way to somewhere else, or as a day trip with a full programme preventing me to see much else of the city.

As just about anywhere else, my itinerary was very much beer-themed, and I started with BapBap, La Fine Mousse, I.B.U. Oberkampf, and the Liquiderie Bar, before I had to refuel.

I knew BBP Canal had something interesting on the menu—an Amaï Chicken Karagee Burger, although I’m not sure the Amaï sauce was actually in there—so I headed there for dinner. It was here that my last visit in Paris was supposed to end, but due to an unfortunate pickpocketing incident, didn’t…

After dinner I continued my bar tour with La Robe et la Mousse, and—after another quick, kosher, late-night snack at L’As du Fallafel—I finished at BrewDog Le Marais.

Off to Paris, and a good start!

Published on 27 July 2021

It’s not yet the trip I’ve been planning for since 2019, but at least I’m back on an international train again, this time with destination Paris!

I’ve been to the City of Light several times before, but I can’t remember ever having spent the night here as a tourist. That’s about to change!

Like most of my days out and about, I start with coffee, and since the Ten Belles roastery was only a short walk from the Gare du Nord, that was my first destination.

Then it was time to check into my Ibis Styles hotel, just to drop off some stuff, and make sure there actually was a room waiting for me. Luckily, it was! And yes, that is a single bed, before booking I didn’t even know hotels still had these… But hey, that’s a couple of euros saved I can now spend on beer!

A Belgian Holiday – Part III

Published on 31 May 2021 
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For the last part of my Belgian holiday, I stayed close to home, in the old duchy of Brabant, and I went to Mechelen on Saturday, and to Antwerp on Sunday. It was a weekend well spent.

Mechelen

To get a bit of a walk in before the beers, I got off the train one stop early again, in Weerde. This way, I got to enjoy a bit of green before entering the town. When I arrived in the centre, it seemed just about everybody wanted to spend the day outside—and rightfully so—but luckily I found a free table at Sister Bean, to enjoy a coffee and and apple crumble.

When it comes to beer, it seems De Floeren Aap is the place to be in Mechelen nowadays. Needless to say, I spent quite some time on their terrace, to try some of their vast selection of canned beers. Not for too long, though, because I had a race the next morning…

Brussels Nature Run

Sunday morning I had my first ever running event: Brussels Nature Run! It was also the first time I ran somewhere not completely flat, so that was a bit of a challenge, and I almost regretted choosing the 16K instead of the 10K… It all worked out in the end, and I’m quite happy with the time I made.

Antwerp

The last day of my Belgian holiday, I spent in Antwerp. Because this was actually supposed to be my last day in Scotland, I went kilted on this occasion. I selected Antwerp for this last stop, because I knew there would be plenty of beer places to visit, and beer people to meet.

My first stop was at Billie’s Bottle Shop. Its little beer garden was already packed, but with a bit of improvisation, I eventually had a nice spot to enjoy some of Stéfan’s excellent selection of beers.

Next up was Station 1280, which had set up a terrace on a nice and quiet courtyard. Then it was time to discover a place I had never been before: The Northerner. Their draught beers were pretty standard, but here again, a very nice can list! The pulled pork sub was very tasty—and at that point very welcome—as well.

My last beer stop was, as usual, because of its proximity to the train station, Beerlovers Bar. Saying goodbye to Ben, and to Antwerp, also meant the end of my Belgian holiday.

Done reading about this trip? Resume reading my blog in the usual order!