Frit Flagey

Frit Flagey is a long-running fry shop on Place Eugène Flagey in Ixelles, next to the Flagey building, the Ixelles ponds and the terrace of Café Belga. It is one of the best-known neighbourhood friteries in Brussels, popular with locals who treat a cone of fries as a regular meal rather than a tourist novelty. Prices are low, with items at about €4-7. The main product is the cornet of frites, served in a paper cone and topped with a choice of sauces. As in the best Belgian fry shops, the potatoes are double-fried, giving a crisp outside and soft inside, and the sauce choice, from mayonnaise to spicier and more elaborate options, is a central part of the order. Other items include the fricadelle, a fried minced-meat sausage typical of Belgian friteries, and a burger for diners who want something more substantial. The shop sells from a counter, and customers eat standing, on the square or by the ponds, so there is no dining room and no table service. The atmosphere is informal and quick, with queues at lunchtime and in the evening that move steadily. No reservations are taken. The shop is open daily from lunchtime to late evening, though visitors should verify hours. Because it sits beside Café Belga and the Flagey cultural centre, it is a convenient stop before or after a concert, film or a walk around the ponds, and fries bought here are often eaten on the benches on the square. Visitors comparing fry shops in Brussels will find the neighbourhood character stronger here than in the tourist-focused stands near the Grand Place. A single cornet makes a light meal, and adding a fricadelle or burger turns it into a fuller one.