BGM: Saint-Hubert Royal Galleries

Rue des Bouchers / Beenhouwersstraat, Brussels, Belgium

Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert (French) or Koninklijke Sint-Hubertusgalerijen (Dutch) is an enclosed shopping arcade designed by Jean-Pierre Cluysenaar, a Belgian architect who was involved in more than 200 projects during his lifetime. The construction of the 213 m passage began in May 1846, lasting for 18 months.

I actually didn't take a lot of pictures of the shopping arcade, but I think it deserves a post on its own. Below is a photo of the south entrance at Rue du Marché aux Herbes (French) or Grasmarkt (Dutch).

There are two main sections of the shopping arcade, each with a length of more than 100 m. One of them is called Galerie du Roi (French) or Koningsgalerij (Dutch), meaning 'King's Gallery'.

The other section is Galerie de la Reine (French) or Koninginnegalerij (Dutch), meaning 'Queen's Gallery'. The two sections are separated by a colonnade along Rue des Bouchers (French) or Beenhouwersstraat (Dutch).

One time I did pass through the galleries late at night when all the shops had closed for the day.

There are lots of shops where you can get souvenirs for your loved ones and friends back home. 

Do beavers eat cakes and chocolates?

I bought quite a lot of chocolates from La Belgique Gourmande, which operates a few branches in Brussels and Bruges. Anyway, there's also a shop by Pierre Marcolini, a renowned Belgian chocolatier, but I didn't take a photo of it.

I like its dark chocolate infused with lavender.

If you've been following my food blog, my BFF and I had some light bites at Maison Dandoy, one of the most iconic Belgian brands for baked goods.

Here's my travel buddy enjoying a waffle with brown sugar and homemade iced tea.

Only upon doing research I got to know that there's a theatre inside the gallery, which has become one of the three royal theatres of Brussels.