THE BEST ITALIAN COFFEE IN BRUSSELS with no other competitor.
Important: this is a place where you get an Italian espresso in the Italian way.
Which means: you get to the bar (meaning the serving bar), ask for espresso and specify how you want it (ristretto, lungo, macchiato).
NB: VADE RETRO all of you who are for Starbucks stuff like caramel noisette macchiato latte.
You get your amazing, creamy espresso and enjoy it in 5 sec with a smile, chat a bit with your server and anybody else you like, pay 1 euro to the server and leave still smiling.
The whole action takes between 5 to max 7 minutes.
You do not go there for a full meal, a pizza (you go to a pizzeria for that) or anything else.
The name states it clearly: CAFFE' ITALIANO. And they do their work well, honestly and with fair prices.
It is true what Marco says in his comment: as for coffee if this place would be in Italy, it would go completely under-noticed because there are so many good coffee places that you do not need hard searches for a high quality espresso. This is not the case for BXL, where a good coffee is a privilege and most places serve a watery blackish flavorless liquid that my granny would use to wash dishes.
Most of the comments of the people here are from people who have no clue of what is an Italian coffee and are unable to understand the difference between a good espresso or a crappy one.
And they come here for a pizza or expect a caffe latte Starbucks style- it is all said!!!
Same thing is for the aperitif: EU Parliament interns often cramping this place during apero time have no clue of the good manners unwritten rules that reign Italian aperitif, where you do not go for dinner there...
in short, if you like Italy and Italians, including their way of doing, this is heaven. if not, or you use the judgment measure that you will use for Starbucks, better you avoid it (no problem for them to have less customers as it is always full).
by the way, an espresso costs 1 euro here. That is amazing for BXL.
Enjoy your good real espresso there. read more