91A chaussée de charleroi,
1060 Saint-Gilles
instagram – 0456 70 51 98
every day
from 7am to 6pm

Welcome to Stella. The place is small. A wall covered with Polaroid portraits of dogs, a counter filled with pastries, a few seats on the benches, and a handful of tables and chairs in green metal on the sidewalk for sunny days. Here, presumably, one either comes to soak up the sun, if lucky, or grab their coffee to go.

Discovered during a coffee tour, my first experience was not of a coffee, but of a rose water latte. And it has remained my favorite ever since. A latte made with oat milk and rose water – which, surprisingly, is miles away from the artificial side one might imagine. It’s light, it’s soft – comfort in a cardboard coffee cup. It has become my go-to on dreary, gray days, and beyond.

Stella, that’s the name of Bassel’s dog, the owner who arrived from Syria at 18. Six months later, he managed to have Stella join him in Belgium, safe and sound.

Stella, it’s a story that moves us, but above all, it’s an excellent specialty coffee, egg buns, and insane pastries, and a rose water latte – which, I can’t say it enough, has become my ultimate comforting drink.