Moeder Lambic Fontainas

RedHaze

Nebraska

4.6/5  rDev 0%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$

Had the opportunity to go twice during my 3 days in Brussels. Located not to far from the Grand Place, with seating available both inside and out. There were 46 taps, with four of them being Lambics and Geuezes on cask, one of which was from the new lambic blender Tilquin. The best part of the beer selection was the variety of styles, all from outstanding breweries, and everything that I had was fresh and very reasonably priced.

The food was limited, mostly meat and cheese trays as well as a small selection of quiches, but very good.

Service was outstanding. The staff had a very good knowledge of the beers they had, and were very helpful in making suggestions on a few of the beers I had not heard of.

I visited a few bars while on my trip to Brussels, but this place was the only one I made a return trip to. Very laid back atmosphere, very high quality beers, with a helpful knowledgeable staff make this and absolutely must visit if you're ever in Brussels.

06-13-2011 13:51:53 | More by RedHaze

LambicKing

Virginia

4.6/5  rDev 0%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.5 | $$

One of my haunts since living here. I stop in a couple times a month to have something I've never tried and an old standby. Wish I could more often. 30+ beers available at all times - Cantillon and 3F to Mikkeller to a few German brews to an Italian beer or two. Decent food, but come mostly for the beers. I'm a sourhead, so this place is heaven.

Normally pretty busy in the afternoons, so if you are ok with a late morning/midday beer, you have your pick of seat in the place. Very friendly and helpful staff.

Don't forget to stop in here on 17 Sept - Cantillon's 2011 Zwanze release (no bottles for sale).

08-04-2011 14:04:11 | More by LambicKing

DoubleJ

California

4.59/5  rDev -0.2%
vibe: 4.25 | quality: 4.75 | service: 4.25 | selection: 5 | food: 4.25 | $$

If there's any establishment in Brussels which is up to speed in 2013, it's Moeder Lambic. It isn't just the clean, high ceilings, and modern dark interior which does it. It isn't just that they actually refrigerate their kegs on-tap, unlike many cafes in Belgium which prefer to use long tap lines. It isn't that they offer cask ale, or offer a short yet modern food menu. And it isn't that offer a diverse selection of beers from kegs or bottles. It's all these things.

Just before 3pm and the place is empty. Jazz music playing overhead as I look at what's on tap. There are 40 taps, plus 6 casks. In a country where few foreign beers seem to make their way into the cafes, the selection is a great refreshment. On-tap selections included Taras Boulba, Zinnebir, Hop Ruter, Aecht Schlenkerla, Stouterik, Cesrini, and Pura Pale Ale. Cantillon Faro was on cask. The bottle selection is long and even offers a few vintage ales, such as aged 3 Fonteinen, St. Helene, and Tounay. Unlike mose bars, Moeder Lambic has its own glassware with its own label, which is fine as long as the beer is fresh and poured well. And in my three samples they were.

The quiche was something that stuck out as a food item I could use to fill myself. It did a fine job doing that, and it was a damn good quiche. Regarding service, it was attentative and they served me right from my table.

With all this, it's even more impressive that the prices aren't haywire high. That helps make Moeder Lambic a must visit while in Brussels.

05-23-2013 03:43:55 | More by DoubleJ

Ceast

Arkansas

4.58/5  rDev -0.4%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5 | $$

This is an amazing bar! They strive for interesting beers, with a nice list of taps, rotating beers of the month, plus an impressive bottle list with some nice vintages. Staff was very helpful.

Their food seemed to be all locally produced, and the service was very friendly. Plus, they serve malted barley to snack on. It's obvious that these guys care about the quality products they serve. Relaxing atmosphere.

The bar was not packed with tourists, but is located near the Grand Place, giving easy access.

Don't miss this place if you're in the area and looking for a high-quality beer bar!

07-17-2010 22:53:48 | More by Ceast

drtth

Pennsylvania

4.58/5  rDev -0.4%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | food: 4 | $$

Enjoyed the atmosphere here in part because it was mid day so my friend and I were able to enjoy a quiet lunch, talk about the beer and enjoy both the beer and the food.

The quality of the beer I ordered was outstanding.

The service was quick helpful and friendly (of course there weren't many people in the place).

The selection of beers, with 46 taps, was outstanding, I didn't see a single loser on the list. If I lived in Brussels I'd be a regular here.

The menu for food was limited as the kitchen is relatively small but the food we ordered was attractively presented and of very good quality. Most importanty it was well prepared and tasty.

On the whole, good value for the money.

04-16-2011 16:37:05 | More by drtth

Reagan1984

Massachusetts

4.58/5  rDev -0.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

One of my "must try" stops on the Brussels tour and this place did not dissapoint. Atmosphere was very cool and inviting. Perhaps more modern than i expected, but still cool place.

Selection was wonderful and there was more than enough to keep you entertained for a session of fun. Even better was the service. Our waiter/bartender was friendly/knowledgable and provided great advice. He knew his stuff but was not snooty in the least.

He even got my wife excited to talk about the local beers.

I highly suggest hitting place while in Brussels. Plent of treats on draft and a great bottle selection.

04-20-2012 03:51:53 | More by Reagan1984

spoony

Colorado

4.58/5  rDev -0.4%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.75 | selection: 4.75 | food: 4 | $$$

A-This bar is located relatively near the Grand Place in Brussels and maybe 400 meters from Manneken Pis. This was the first bar we visited after arriving in Brussels and it was certainly a big departure from the village pubs we had been visiting earlier in the week. It has modern, industrial-chic decor with concrete and exposed brick and re-purposed wood. The space is pretty good sized, with 15 or so large booths and a long (for Europe) bar with plenty of room. The place was pretty quiet when we arrived on a Sunday afternoon with one table of Italian tourists keeping the volume up.

Q-The tap selection is huge for Belgium (maybe 25 beers) with a good array of gueuze, in particular, and quality Belgians from virtually every major old-wordl style. I did not explore the bottle list in-depth, but it looked hefty.

Ser-Our waiter was very knowledgeable and courteous. He was there when we needed something, but otherwise left us alone. You got the distinct impression he was working here because he liked beer and knew what he was serving.

Sel-As noted above, this was probably the best selection of taps I saw in Belgium. The list was heavily Belgian but there were a few Germans and and a few British beers, too. There was even an American beer or two on draft (although I forgot to write down which one).

F-We just ordered a meat and cheese plate, which was pretty decent. The pate was excellent, but the cheeses were nothing to write home about.

V-Prices were considerably higher than in the countryside, as you might expect, but still within reason for a big city like Brussels.

06-12-2013 02:30:46 | More by spoony

Cmack15

Massachusetts

4.45/5  rDev -3.3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$

This was the first bar I visited on my recent trip to Belgium and was highly recommended by the good people at Cantillon. The interior is a nice modern clean space. Really long bar with plenty of seats and nice booths and tables. The draught selection was really awesome at this place, seeing Cantillon beers on tap and other lambic/guezes just blew my mind. The bottle selction was really impressive too and we shared a Cantillon Fou Fon. I also had a quiche and shared a cheese plate. The food was good and well done. Service was great really friendly and helpful. Really great place you must go.
Cheers

03-31-2011 23:16:46 | More by Cmack15

TurdFurgison

Ohio

4.4/5  rDev -4.3%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | food: 3 | $$$

My first stop in Brussels after some hellish train connections from Oberhausen. I chose the Fontainas location because I thought it would be easiest to find. In fact it's very easy to get to, on a main road with no twisting turns as you leave the Metro.

First off, this didn't have the feel of an old world Belgian pub, it was much more modern and well lit. Still lots of wood though. They had some Techno music playing kind of loud (I later discovered this same disconcerting attribute applies to the St Gilles location).

But it's not all about the atmosphere, the taps list is amazing and the bottles list is shocking. There were 46 taps, including Cantillon Lambic, Cantillon Gueuze, Cantillon Cuvee Moeder Kriek, Cantillon Faro, 3F Lambic, 3F Kriek, + tons of others with mostly French sounding names and not so many Flemish. I'd only heard of about 1/3 of them, which is a great thing.

The bottles list is even better, including some rarities for ludicrously high prices:
3F Millenium Gueuze (250 euros)
Cantillon LH12 (180 euros)
Cantillon Crianza Helena (200 euros)
Cantillon Zwanze 2008 (80 euros)
Cantillon Pinot D'Aunis (35 euros)
3F Hommage (50 euros)
3F Schaebbeekse Kriek (30 euros)
3F Straffe Winter (35 euros)
De Cam Oude Lambiek (28 euros)
and on an on, down to <10 euros...

I would never buy a beer for 200+ euros, that's insulting. Plus, you can find them in other places for cheaper. But the bottles on the lower end aren't too bad price-wise. I had De Cam Oude Lambiek 2000 and it was sublime, one of the best beers I've ever had. I bought another to go.

11-02-2010 05:48:40 | More by TurdFurgison

uno99

Ontario (Canada)

4.33/5  rDev -5.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$$

A: Very chic and trendy appearance. Definitely not an old school Belgian cafe'... This is a welcome change from all the stuffy old places in the neighborhood (although those places have great atmosphere as well - just diffrent - ). The music is excellent, and not too loud, and the layout and feel of the place is perfect. My only complaint actually is that the seats outside are a little uncomfortable.

Q: I happend to be here during the Belgian beer weekend, and they had an amazing selection of specialty taps and kegs. I tried almost the entire special menu, and all of it was very well selected! Defenitly a skew towards lambics, but also a good mixture of other styles as well. there was even a rauchbeer!

S: I spent 4 days in Brussels and I visited this place on about 6 different occasions. Every time I received very knowledgeable and excellent service. The owner Jean is VERY passionate and welcoming to visitors especially if you come during a quieter period.

S: Both the bottle and tap list are very extensive, however the bottle list seemed very expensive. I did eventually order a Mikeller Beer Geek Breakfast however and it was delicious. I get the impression from speaking to Jean that the taps are rotated very often, and new casks appear even more frequently. They have also now begun to age kegs. Its very nice to be able to order a 2008 and 2010 fou fone on tap to compare the two for instance!

F: I only ate here once, the menu isnt huge, but they keep it high quality. Our whole table ordered quiche and it was delicious. we also shared some lambic sausage, which was also very good.

Well,... im not the authority on beer bars in Brussels but, for the 4 days I spent there this was by far my favorite!

09-09-2010 01:00:41 | More by uno99