A food and flea market in a live slaughterhouse? Stock up on fresh goodies Friday to Sunday (and sell your old stuff on Sundays) in this industrial warehouse right outside Brussels city centre.
The weekend markets at the Abattoir are unlike any other market you’ll ever see in Belgium. The most impressive reason? They’re held in an actual, huge slaughterhouse (abattoir in French) where about 200,000 animals are killed every year. Eek! No worries though, you don’t actually see the animals.
Foodmet: eat your heart out (Friday to Sunday)
Ever since the end of the 1800s, the Abattoir has been the main slaughterhouse in Brussels. In 2015, the Foodmet market was opened here thanks to EU funding. It’s a huge indoor market which attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every weekend. This was meant to boost the economy of the poor, multicultural Cureghem district, by setting up a market where residents could buy groceries at affordable prices, and that would attract tourists and bring jobs to the area.
- Meat fest, anyone? You will hardly find fresher meat in Brussels: there are about 20 butcher stands here. Still, meat is just one of the many things you can buy at the market: this is where most restaurants in the city stock up on fish, too.
- Plus, tons of fresh fruits and vegetables from all over the world. You can really grocery shop for the whole week -- and try out new flavours!
- More than just groceries: the different stands also sell plants, flowers, socks, children toys, shampoo, and even animals like rabbits and birds! We can’t really think of anything that you won’t find here. Can you?
Brocantemet: upcycle! (Sunday) And if the Foodmet market isn’t your thing, every Sunday the Abattoir organizes a flea market with over 80 stalls! Are you ready to get amazing deals on things you didn’t even know you wanted? There’s something for everyone!
- Wanna sell your own stuff at the Brocantemet market? You don’t need to reserve a stall beforehand, just make sure you show up on Sunday at 5 AM, before the flea market starts. You can rent a stall for only 25€ (for a surface of 5 m²).
Tips and Tricks
- Like any self-respecting market, you can get some pretty good deals if you come towards the end of the day, when vendors are trying to get rid of leftovers.
- No plastic! Not only cheap, this market is also sustainable: no plastic bags are allowed (so make sure you don’t bring one!) and solar energy is used. Moreover, both the heat produced by the fridges and rainwater are reused.
- Get a food craving while shopping? There’s a bistro (Bistro Brussel) and other stalls selling pizza, fish & chips, pasta and much more.
- If you can’t seem to find your way, here’s a map of the Abattoir.
Getting there
- By Car: paid public parking Delacroix next to the market (Rue Jules Ruhl, 2)
- By Metro: stop Delacroix - line 2 or 6
- By Bus: stop Clemenceau - line 46
F to Su, 7:00 to 14:00 (Foodmet); Su, 7:00 to 14 (Brocantemet)
All seasons
Free entrance
Open; national Covid rules apply.