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The neighbourhood · Saint-Géry · Brussels

A night out on Place Saint-Géry, in the heart of Brussels

Place Saint-Géry is a step away from the Bourse, in the centre of Brussels. People come in the evening for the Halles and their covered market, for a drink and to dance. Here is what to know about the square, its history, and how to spend an evening there.

The front of La Machine on Place Saint-Géry: the red sign, the copper pipes and the terrace

An island in the Senne

According to tradition, Brussels was born here. The Senne split into several branches around an island, Saint-Géry Island, at the centre of which stood a church dedicated to Saint Géry; legend credits Géry, bishop of Cambrai, with a chapel built around 580. The relics of Saint Gudula were kept there until the 11th century, before moving to the church that would become the cathedral.

The Gothic church was demolished between 1798 and 1801, under French rule. In 1802 the city laid out a public square in its place, where markets were held, and set up a blue-stone fountain shaped like an obelisk, dated 1767 and brought from Grimbergen Abbey.

The Senne under the boulevards

By then an open sewer, the Senne was vaulted over inside the city between 1867 and 1871, to plans by the architect Léon Suys. The central boulevards, Boulevard Anspach among them, were laid out along its course, and the Bourse was built between 1867 and 1873. The island disappeared along with the river.

The Senne has not entirely left the square: in 1985 two quay walls and a canalised branch were uncovered at number 23, on the site of the former Riches-Claires convent, and a stretch of the river was restored there. Boulevard Anspach has been pedestrianised since 2015; the works were completed in 2021.

The Halles Saint-Géry

In the middle of the square, the Halles Saint-Géry were built in 1881–1882 by the architect Adolphe Vanderheggen, in Flemish neo-Renaissance style, for the sale of meat and dairy products. The 1767 fountain still stands inside.

The market declined after the Second World War and closed in 1977. The building was listed in 1987, renovated, and since 1999 has housed an information and exhibition centre on Brussels’ heritage.

Since 16 June 2026 its ground floor has been a covered market again: the Marché Saint-Géry, with around ten food artisans. According to its website it opens Tuesday to Sunday, and its food counters serve until 10 pm, until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Exhibitions continue upstairs, free of charge.

What to do at night in Saint-Géry?

Start at the Halles: an exhibition, then dinner at the Marché Saint-Géry. Walk to the Bourse and the Grand-Place, a few minutes away along the pedestrianised Boulevard Anspach. Come back to the square for a cocktail, a Belgian beer, and on Saturdays, to dance.

On weekdays the evening ends early at the Halles and at 1 or 2 am at La Machine; on Fridays and Saturdays the market serves until midnight and La Machine closes at 4 am. On Sundays, La Machine closes at midnight.

La Machine, at number 2

La Machine is a cocktail bar with a steampunk setting, opened in 2016 at number 2 on the square, thirty metres from the Halles: gears, copper, a steam organ, and five spaces in one building, up to 150 guests.

At the bar: 36 cocktails, including our bartenders’ Signatures, and 5 Belgian beers on tap. On some Saturdays a DJ plays on the ground floor from 11 pm to 4 am, with free entry; on Fridays and Saturdays, service runs until 4 am.

Since summer 2026, dishes from the Marché Saint-Géry, just across the square, can also be eaten at La Machine, at the bar or on the terrace. For private parties and corporate events, we put the food together with its artisans.

Getting to Place Saint-Géry

The nearest station is Bourse – Grand-Place, served by premetro trams 4 and 10, a few minutes’ walk away.

La Machine’s address: Place Saint-Géry 2, 1000 Brussels.

Sources

Historical facts and market hours checked on 18 October 2026 with: