Aux Armes de Bruxelles

Rudy Vanlancker has always had a special fondness for "Aux Armes de Bruxelles." He got his start in cooking there in 1972, as an intern from the Ecole Hôtelière de Namur.

At the helm of Chez Léon for 40 years, he witnessed the life cycle, rise and fall of the establishment.

Its decline saddened him. Monsieur Rudy, as he is called in his restaurant, is among those who believe that there is space in the revival of the Ilot Sacré for several excellent, ambitious restaurants.

He also believes that Brussels deserves to have several renowned restaurants in its downtown area, evoking the days when the Ilot Sacré was a favorite destination for the locals.

His decision to bring back the crowning glory of our cuisine proves that he has never stopped believing in this quarter. He hopes to recreate the authenticity of yesteryear by using traditional white tablecloths and hiring a full kitchen staff with top-tier chefs dressed in the classic style. His goal is to make “Aux Armes de Bruxelles” the most beautiful brasserie in the downtown area.

The establishment has been renovated from top to bottom. The old kitchen has been demolished and rebuilt to fulfill the requirements of a high-level contemporary dining experience, not for a posh clientele, but for those local, Belgian and international diners who know what tastes good and enjoy eating well.

Reservations

The soul of the establishment

In 1958 the restaurant began a period of prosperity when the World's Fair turned Brussels into the center of the world for six months.

At the beginning of the 1970s, Jacques Veulemans, one of Calixte Veulemans’ sons, founded the “Comptoir des Armes,” a Belgian-style tapas bar, on Petite Rue des Bouchers just outside the venerable establishment.

He worked there with his wife Madame Suzanne and his son Laurent, among others.

The entire city of Brussels would meet there for a drink and to enjoy small servings of the restaurant’s classic fare while they swapped jokes and stories all night long.

The prosperous period of “Aux Armes de Bruxelles” lasted two decades, contributing to the festive reputation of the Ilot Sacré, the capital’s top destination for fine cuisine.

In 2006, the Veulemans family sold the business. The restaurant went through several years of instability before being purchased in 2018 by Rudy Vanlancker, owner of Chez Léon and longtime friend of the Veulemans family.
It was time for this great lady of restaurants, asleep since 2006, to awaken.

Starters

Poached egg, zucchini spaghetti, aurore mousseline sauce and garlic croutons - 17,00 €

Lobster bisque cappuccino - 18,00 €

Main courses

Beef steak “all pepper” (rolled in black pepper, cooked in butter and flambéed in the plate with black pepper alcohol) black pepper-cognac sauce - 32,50 €

Oven-roasted cod fillet, chestnuts cooked in veal jus, Anna potatoes - 33,00 €