Librairie Filigranes, Brussels

Where? Brussels, Belgium



Recommended by Christel Vandenbosch
Visited: August 2008
(Read more on Librairie Filigranes in our Report from Brussels)

Christel said:"If there's one bookstore I should have to pick in Brussels, it's 'Filigranes'. It's open 365 days a year, you'll find books, magazines, music, a cup of tea or coffee, wine and book lovers all at the same spot. Of course, it's not as 'special' as Selexyz but you'll find 'a place to be' in multicultural Brussels."

The first thing you should know about Filigranes is that the subtitle of their logo 365->365 actually has a meaning (probably not that hard to guess). Yes, this bookstore (considered by many to be the best bookstore in Brussels) is never closed.

Filigranes is a primarily French language bookstore, but it also has a smaller English language section. The whole upper floor is dedicated to solely books in French - an what an impressive selection that is. The English section is located right, upon entering then down the stairs into something that used to be a vault. And although it's size is not that promising (the whole store occupies an impressive 1700 square meters...) the selection is very decent to say at least. Especially the fiction section goes well beyond the usual offer of bestsellers and recent releases.

One more interesting fact - the basement, where the English section is stored, originally used to serve as a safe room of a bank and the bars and the bulletproof orange door are still there. So we can conclude that Filigranes is most serious about protecting its English language section. Hmm... Maybe we'll do a Top 5 category one day - the safest bookstores, or the best protected bookstores - we shall see...

La librairie Filigranes is located in the so called "European" district of Brussels between the European Parliament bulding and the Parc de Bruxelles. The interior of the bookstore is also designed in a very original way, with a surrealist touch that can't be overlooked. Author signings, concert venues and even wine degustations are also hosted in this space. Besides books, Filigranes also offers coffee, drinks (wine included), sandwiches, sweets and other snacks, and even a small playground for its youngest visitors. You can check out the plan of the store on their website (only available in French, but very nicely done otherwise) and even enjoy an impressive virtual visit of the bookstore. DVDs, CDs, small gifts, lots of newspapers, magazines and comics are a part of the store's stock too. The best advice is to go see for yourselves, there's a very small chance that they won't be open...

Librairie Filigranes

Address:
Av. des Arts 39-40
1040 Brussels





Website: http://www.filigranes.be/fr/

Phone and Email:
+32(0)2 511 90 15 or +32(0)2 502 24 68
info@filigranes.be
englishbooks@filigranes.be

Working Hours:
Mon-Fri 8-20
Sat 10-19:30
Sun&holidays 10-19

Back to the list of bookstores in Brussels