Hotel Café Pacific

Brussels

Brussels, the capital of the kingdom of Belgium and the seat of the European Union’s major institutions, once a neglected city for tourists, is fast becoming a very popular European destination. This is largely due to numerous examples of its remarkable architectural heritage and its art nouveau creations by the great late 19^th century creators of this genre such as Victor Horta, Paul Hankar and Henry Van de Velde. Their work stands side by side with medieval and classical facades in Brussels’ historical center around the “Grand Place,” one of the most sumptuous illustrations of “the development and success of a mercantile northern European city at the height of its prosperity,” and declared a UNESCO world heritage. This vibrant and creative city is filled with boutiques displaying the work of young creators of fashion and jewelry and whose workshops are located on the streets of the Dansaert quarter, turning Brussels into a possible new fashion capital. Well-known designers including Christophe Coppens and Martin Margiela have already set up shop here opposite the numerous cafés, restaurants and bars on the Place Saint-Géry.

A journey between the past and the modern

In the heart of one of Brussels’ most lively neighborhoods, where stylists and young artists have been coming since the 1980s to set up their workshops, we find the recently renovated Hotel Café Pacific with its daring, unique design, combining elegance and eclecticism. From this old manor, architect Marc Humblet only kept “the atmosphere but anchoring it to its era with small, very contemporary touches.” Deeply moved by the serenity of the vacant site, Marc Humblet conceived the new establishment as a gentle stopover, “a warm and emotional parenthesis before continuing on one’s voyage…the peaceful, the unknown, the ship, the sailors and the ports of call.”

Valérie Berkowski aka Mia Zia decorated the hotel’s thirteen rooms in a contemporary chic style with white walls, pure lines of the deluxe rooms in contrast to the striking and sparkling raspberry pink of the mezzanine rooms. “I like working with old methods. Undressing the past to dress the present,” she explains. As a gentle invitation to travel, the interiors were designed to create an atmosphere of relaxation and plenitude. For the entrance to the bar, the hotel retained the woodwork and colored glass of the original building, vestiges of the history of the site, invoking the sensation of a “gentle intrusion into the past.” felt by the architect. Once inside, “the light penetrates through the windows calmly and peacefully. It was a sort of protective barrier between the agitation of the street and the golden silence of the abandoned site.”

Just a few steps from the hotel, on Antoine Dansaert Street, “The Collector” a shop run by true music lovers sells rare vinyl albums. It’s a must for collectors and aficionados of 1950s and 60s music.