Belli E Buoni — Restaurant in Etterbeek

My husband loves this place for coffee outside on sunny days and goes there all the time. Today I joined him not wanting coffee, but just a small something to eat while he had his. I went in thinking I'd have gelato but it looked a bit melted. Then I spotted fruit in the cooler. I grabbed a large and ripe nectarine, paid for it, joined my hubby outside, and bit into the fruit. A second later a waiter came up and said I wasn't allowed to eat the fruit outside because that was "camping/ picnicking." I said, "but I just bought this piece of fruit in your store." She looked at me with a frown and walked away. I continued to eat the fruit. Note: I am six months pregnant with an obvious baby belly. A moment later, one of the managers came out and reiterated that I could not eat that fruit on his premises. I was halfway through the fruit at that time and my husband was inside buying a plate of pasta for lunch. Not a cheap plate of pasta, either - they make a killing on the small 12 euro plates they sell to lunchers. I said, "come on, I just bought this from you and I'm pregnant. Can't I just eat my fruit?" He insisted that I was "camping." I was too incredulous to say anything in response except that my husband was a repeat customer who loved his restaurant/store and I had bought my silly fruit from him! I put the fruit down. After a moment's reflection I went inside and told my husband we'd go elsewhere for his lunch.

This is a silly policy and the fact that they enforce it so strictly is even more ridiculous. If I'd shown up with a home-packed meal and proceeded to eat it at his table that would have been understandable. But I bought the overpriced fruit from him and we were enjoying a pleasant midday meal. After that experience, I won't...

Me and my friend visited today this place. It was heavy rain and we wanted to sit under the roof and to have coffee. We were waiting for someone to come for several minutes and I had to come inside. I asked Mr who was inside to dry our table from water. He replied that he will close the umbrella/roof now because it was windy. I turned to look on the terrace: it was full of people and it was raining cats and dogs. I didn't get how he was going to do that.. At this moment a waitress came out of stuff room and asked me what I wanted. I repeated that we wanted to have coffee and the table was wet. She was friendly and went with me to dry it. The guy followed us. He took out table and started to shift it closer to the edge of the roof, just in the waterfall. I told that it is impossible to sit there because of the rain. He told that it should be distance (and it was ok!) between tables and it would remain like that or we can go. We were surprised with my friend but stayed. Then he asked: are you only two? - Yes. -Then I am taking this chair! And he took a chair where my umbrella was laying and dragged it to an empty table under the rain. He was rude and unceremonious and aggressive. The waitress was sweet. The coffee was ok. I don't recommend this place and really hope that he will lose all his clients. Because it's hard to imagine more...

Well, we attempted to try this place and the staff was either very rude or very unintelligent.

There were three of us.

There were several tables for four that were all occupied by parties of two.

There were several tables for two available but we were not allowed to move one chair as if the equilibrium of the universe would be disturbed.

We were offered the last table for four, but it was being rained on. The hostess offered to wipe the chairs... but it was still raining. What kind of host would suggest you dine in the rain instead of moving...