Belgian classics in a faded Art Deco institution

Talk of the town: The celebrated Surrealist painter, Rene Magritte is reported to have frequently dined at Taverne du Passage.

A classic Art Deco brasserie set in the stunning 19th-century Italian neo-Renaissance glass-roofed Galeries Royales St-Hubert, Taverne du Passage has been in business since 1928.

Belgian staples such as shrimp croquette, eel, mussels and waterzooi (a creamy Dutch fish or chicken stew) are served by white-jacketed waiters in a room that hasn't changed much in over 100 years. Walk through the door and you'll be transported back to another era, one in which starched tablecloths and smart waiters are the norm and no one worried about the calorie count of lashings of butter and cream.