No idea what Culinaria is about? No worries, here it is in a nutshell:

4-course meals prepared by different Michelin-star chefs at great prices. A visual and gustatory feast.

Take a look at some of last year’s food here.

Start recruiting friends to go with you, so you can mix and match menus and get to try everything!

Here are my best bets:

Image by AndyRobertsPhotos via Flickr under Creative Commons license

Check out the full list of Michelin one and two-star restaurants in Brussels, including a list of the Michelin Bib gourmand restaurants (i.e., good food at more affordable prices). [Bib Gourmand parentheses: Magenta and Notos have quite justifiably been removed from the Bib Gourmand list. Noteworthy picks that have maintained their status: Le Ventre Saint-Gris, De la Vigne a l'Assiette, and Mamy Louise.]

If you’re looking to Michelin on a budget and want to make about/at least 50% savings, go for the lunch menus (weekdays only – many of these top restaurants close on weekends). A few examples (all two-stars) in order of preference based on price-quality ratio:

Le Chalet de la Foret – Only EUR 39!! This is ridiculously cheap for a two-star restaurant… They probably still have their one-star prices, so hurry up before they decide to capitalize on that extra star…

Seagrill [don't bother clicking through; the website has been under construction forever]. Make sure you make a reservation. EUR 65 for lunch.

Comme Chez Soi - EUR 55 for a 3-course lunch

Looking for other ideas? Check this previous post.

Beyond Brussels….

And if you’re willing to venture out of Brussels for food, here is the full list of Michelin restaurants in Belgium. Bon appetit!

Image by Dogfael via Flickr under Creative Commons License

That’s about one-third of the price you would usually have to pay…

Great deal, but it requires quick decision-making and fixed plans: tickets are not refundable, no changes permitted (mostly). Book online.

Brussels Airlines is giving away a free flight within Europe to those who (1) apply for either the Brussels Airlines American Express or MasterCard before 11/11/11 and (2) spend at least EUR 1,500 on the card by 31/01/2012.

You of course get all the additional perks that come with those cards (including a considerable annual fee…) and the miles you accumulate for each euro spent.

Check out the free flight offer page for the full conditions and fine print.

Photo: Brussels Airlines OO-SSP by mr172 (taken June 14, 2011)
via Flickr, Creative Commons attribution

Every Monday and Thursday evening from 14 November through 5 December, Filigranes commits to donating 25% of its evening proceeds to a charity (a different one each evening). So if you are planning to do some holiday or just some book shopping, why not do it on those evenings?

Filigranes is located on Avenue des Arts 39-40 (Metro: Arts-Loi) and is open every day of the year, including the upcoming 11 November, during which they will open until 23:00h and host a series of special events to celebrate the shop’s 28th anniversary.

Photo: Books by shutterhacks
(taken Aug.27, 2008) via Flickr,
Creative Commons attribution

Opera Liege is having two free summer concerts on Saturday, 13 August (19:00h) and Sunday, 21 August (15:00h).

The program (different each evening) includes famous excerpts of operas by Verdi, Mozart, Rossini, Wagner, Puccini and Bizet among others.

Book your free tickets online.

Accor 30% off deal in a selection of hotels worldwide

• check in up to 4 September
• book 14 days in advance
• book by 18 August
• More on this page

If you can’t find what you’re looking for there, check out Ratestogo.com. I have booked hotels through that site several times and found some great deals (e.g. 100 euros/night for a hotel next to Piazza San Marco in Venice for which the regular price is 350, a room in Rome in a nice 3+ star hotel for less than 65 euros a night, etc.)

Note: Not all hotels listed are a great deal. Sometimes the price is the same as on the official website and higher than other sites, so use with caution…

You can read about the concept in the previous post (also last year’s) but here are a few highlights, tips and photos:

• When you order your tickets, you pick a menu. At the entrance, you get vouchers for each of the participating restaurants of the menu you selected.
• You then exchange each voucher for a dish. You can do so in any order you want.
• TIP: You and your meal partner(s) do not have to pick the same menu. If you are a food lover or big eater, consider buying three Culinaria menus for two people – it will make for a very satisfying meal.
• Each dish is paired with a glass of wine or beer. Water is served with every dish.
• There is free seating. You grab your food at each stand and then sit at any table you want, or eat at the high tables.
• Pace your meal as you like. If you want to take a break between courses, just go outside and visit one of the many stands.

Want to know more? Look at the pictures below or go see by yourself!

No 3-star/macaron chefs are participating, but this is your chance to check out a lot of very interesting non-Brussels-based chefs at a very reasonable price (EUR 43 advance sale for a 4-course menu, 3 glasses of wine, water and coffee (EUR 48 on the spot, but you might not be able to get a table…))

Look out for discounts… Thalys The Card members, for instance, can get reduced rates. Some other sponsors might be offering similar benefits…

Check out all the details on the official website or read more about the concept.

Bon appetit!