The best pub in the world?
2004 beers at the Delirium Cafe, Brussels, Belgium
Get brews from Benin, Armenia, Bolivia, Guadaloupe, The Faroe Islands, Namibia, Mongolia, Tahiti and more in this Guinness World Record-breaking alehouse.
That cherubs are not plucking harps, and seraphim not gaily swooping from the sky comes as something as a surprise, for this is surely heaven. A darkened basement, housing three men perched on stools, and all manner of regalia on the walls.
Jugs dangle from the ceiling, posters are slapped over the paintwork and beer trays from around the world are nailed up as if they’re expensive sculptures. But it’s what’s on the other side of the bar that’s really exciting.
This is the Delirium Café in Brussels, and to the beer drinker, it is as close an approximation to paradise as they will ever find. The reason for this can be found in the large catalogue, weighing the wooden panelling of the table down like it’s a housebrick, or more promptly, by looking at the certificate behind the unhurried barmaid.
It’s from Guinness World Records, and it proudly proclaims that the Delirium has more beers available than any other establishment in the whole world. And that would be a gigantic 2,004 at any time.
As the English chap plonked on the barside stool is keen to point out, this is a minimum of 2,004. On the list there are another 500, some of which may be out of stock at times due to transport hiccups in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the likes.
A flick through the catalogue is all it takes to realise that this is not your standard Belgian Beer Café. Whilst Belgium is represented in fine style, with every strength, brewing technique and fruit flavouring imaginable, the round-the-world trip is astonishing. Benin, Armenia, Bolivia, Guadaloupe, The Faroe Islands, Namibia, Mongolia, Tahiti… Every corner of the globe is covered, and the temptation to drink your way round it is only dulled by the prices of those obscure brews from Nepal.
The Delirium is the sort of place you’ll only find if you’re specifically looking for it, or are completely and utterly lost. It’s tucked away on a little cul-de-sac alley, almost imperceptible as you walk past, off a maze of narrow, restaurant-lined streets, where there is barely room for people to walk two abreast. It would have remained forever lost to me if I had not stumbled into the back of a diner’s chair and stopped to apologise.
Rue de Bouchers (Butcher’s Road) is one of those places that is much nicer in theory than in practice. It is a squeezed-in little strip, lined with tables, chairs, menu boards and waiters weaving through with almost gymnast-like suppleness. The sunlight can barely creep through on to the cobbled pavement, as the awnings from either side dominate, fighting for what little space there is. In the gaps between the diners, pedestrians bustle through, and to be stuck behind a pram can put an extra ten minutes on your journey. It’s awash with colour and character though, which lures the diners in for the real deal, the authentic Brussels experience. In practice, they spend their whole meal breathing in, hoping the next bumbling clown passing by doesn’t drape their sleeve into the fresh bowl of mussels.
For those not wishing to wander aimlessly, the Delirium Café (+32 2514 4434, www.deliriumcafe.be) is on Impasse de la Fidélité, a tiny alley off Rue de Bouchers, which is near Grand Place.
