“When it comes to wooing weekenders, Antwerp has some stiff competition. Big sister Brussels is basking in glory right now, with streams of new admirers fresh off the Eurostar from gleaming, redesigned St Pancras. How does Antwerp manage? Beautifully, it turns out. It’s got fashion. It’s got art. It’s got cuisine. And it snorts with derision at the notion of ‘boring Belgium’. Although the old centre is frosted with icing-and-marschino memories of Flemish Renaissance, the architecture beyond smoothes things out with its clean, horizontal lines, every second building resembling a Hoxton gallery. Restaurants serve modern, Frenchified delicacies ( the tentacle count reflects the city’s status as Europe’s second largest port ). Yet even the most classic bistros eschew Parisian sniffiness for service with a fresh, young wink and a smile.”

Ellen Himmelfarb, Sunday Times Magazine, February 2008

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