Celebrated table

MangiaSempre

A compact Forest delicatessen and bar where founder Giulia Bevilacqua and brewer Florian van Roy serve homemade pasta and regional classics.

The story

MangiaSempre Brings Authentic Italian Cooking to Brussels Forest

From Translation to Tabletop

MangiaSempre delivers grounded Italian cooking to a quiet Forest corner in Brussels. Former translator Giulia Bevilacqua traded languages for local suppliers when she opened this intimate outpost near Boulevard Van Haelen. She built the space around a simple premise. The concept quickly caught the attention of Le Fooding, which recognized the project as a standout example of neighborhood dining in 2026.

Saturday Service at the Counter

Brewer Florian van Roy steps into the kitchen every weekend under the name Chef Flo. He applies precise techniques like proper mantecatura to stretch fresh pasta shapes such as strozzapreti. A recent plate featured that al dente dough tossed with spicy salsiccia and rich taleggio cheese. Dinners often conclude with handmade cannoli filled with fresh ricotta and scattered with crushed Sicilian pistachios.

A Compact Epicerie and Bar

The space accommodates just ten seated guests alongside a standing bar area. Behind the counter, shelves display carefully sourced items including Lagano and Rummo pasta tubes, preserved sauces, and cured meats ready for slicing. Patrons frequently pair their plates with locally brewed beers. This streamlined setup allows the team to maintain strict quality control across both the retail shelves and the hot menu.

Recognition

Awards & accolades

2026

Le Fooding

Listed

Details

At a glance

Le Fooding 2026 — Listed

Cuisines Italian

Services Outdoor Seating, Takeaway

History

On the record

2026

Le Fooding — Listed

The scorching Umbrian sun illuminates this sleepy corner of Forest near Boulevard Van Haelen, where you’ll find the generous Giulia Bevilacqua, a former translator who switched to pulling pints in her adopted city. Her stroke of genius? MangiaSempre, a deli/épicerie that seats 10, where you can nibble on focaccia and pasta squeezed in around the bar, all while nonchalantly throwing back a beer or two. It’s an art that she’s perfected alongside her partner and brewer Florian van Roy, who goes by the moniker of “Chef Flo” every Saturday when he takes control of the kitchen, mastering mantecatura as if he grew up in Italy himself. The day we went, there was taleggio to embrace the perfectly al dente strozzapreti enhanced with spicy salsiccia … which we wolfed down without protest, before some perfect cannoli stuffed with ricotta and dotted with crushed Sicilian pistachios. Another option is the pasta of the day taken to go (homemade gnocchi with four cheeses the day we were there), the charcuterie patiently waiting to be sliced on the counter, plus the selection of canned goods, pasta (Lagano and Rummo), sauces and sweets in the épicerie section. Forza Giulia! // Kiko Zushi

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Established

Location

Find us

Rue des Alliés 196, 1190 Forest, Belgium
Brussels, Belgium