Latest reviews from Oostvleteren

“Now closed along with the rest of the village. Assume COVID has brought carnage to this once great drinking oasis.“

whimbreltits 610 days ago

“Now closed on Saturday afternoon along with the whole village including the Molenhof. Wasted bus trip from Ieper.“

whimbreltits 610 days ago

“Along with everything else in the village, closed on a Saturday afternoon. No opening times posted or 'gone on holiday' messages. Wasted bus trip from Ieper and with no bus back until the evening, walked to Poperinge and got the train. The once great beer village of Oostvleteren appears to have been wiped out by COVID.“

whimbreltits 610 days ago

“The famous Molenhof, the beer restaurant located deep in the ‘Westhoek’ area of Western Flanders, in a village where formerly the ‘Oud Schooltje’ from the Struise Brouwers was located (right around the corner in fact); glad I finally made it to this place, if only for drinking and not eating. As expected, a spacious brown pub or ‘herberg’ style establishment teeming with beer paraphernalia and a list which includes all the Struise classics (including vintages) but also going very strong on lambics and other sours, including exclusive bottles from the much-coveted and hyped newcomers, like Antidoot and Bofkont. Be ware of the prices, though, as these bottles can be very expensive. Lots of other local beers as well so I reckon any beer lover will find something to their liking here; the staff seemed pretty knowledgeable about the subject as well. Great place, but of course difficult to near-impossible to reach if you do not have a car (and designated driver), as public transport service in this area is scarce, especially in weekends; I am in any case determined to get back there and spend more time than I could on this first visit. But from that first visit, it was immediately clear that this is a very relevant place for Belgian beer culture!“

Alengrin 688 days ago

“Een interieur waar men zich thuis voelt op voorwaarde natuurlijk dat je van oudere meubels en lusters, hout, bier en drankreclame houd. 10 biertaps, met heel wat Struise bieren dit kan al tellen! De bierkaart? Meer dan 100 bieren met naast de courante biertypes ook nog een surplus van heel wat Vleterse bieren, geuze ’s en zelfs cider ’s. De bediening is vriendelijk, hartelijk, meertalig en kan zeker uitleg geven over bier en foodpairing. Je mag hier gewoon jezelf zijn en je eigen West-Vlaamse taal spreken (je hoeft dus niet bekakt en/of met een tussentaaltje te praten). Jong en oud zit hier ook gezellig samen. De eetkaart of de menu is streekgebonden volks maar ook geraffineerd of Frans. Je eet er copieus maar lekker. Een digestief nuttigen na de maaltijd aan de bar kan lonen, vraag maar naar de suggesties.“

Hopverdju 926 days ago

“Unique location, amazing beers on tap, I think they have about 25 beers on draft, maybe even more. You get a short explanation about each beer when you order. Super friendly dudes at the bar. They sell Struise beers as well (duh) at reasonable prices. Some hard to find Struise beers are sometimes for sale. Check the openings hours! I wish they would be open a full day, or 2 days a week.“

BarrelSampler74 1548 days ago

“great variety of beers on tab. friendly brewers who explain everything and one can have a chat with. a must on a beer tour in belgium“

Dirk_T 1767 days ago

“A must visit place if in West Flanders, but I'm not sure it's 100 rating stuff, place is a tad geeky, but the beers are excellent, available from the small multi tap bar or to take away from a shop set up in a corridor. Service and ambiance was good & thankfully it wasn't to busy the afternoon I visited.“

Jerseyislandbeer 1802 days ago

“This place is so welcoming that you don't want to get away from it. People here is like a big company - family and makes you feel so comfortable. Enjoy here some of De Struise gems. Urbain & Carlo thank you for being such great hosts and I really can't wait to be back ! Beer Temple !!!“

skullgeorge 1939 days ago

“THANKFULLY HAS REOPENED AS OF 01/04/23 I've been coming here on a regular basis since it opened, so time for an update since my last rating was 8 yrs ago. This place is unique and excellent and W. Flanders essential beer experience for 4 special hours on a Saturday afternoon. Carlo is a fantastic host and the 20 or so beers on draft are always interesting and sold in small measures (8 or 16cl) which is just as well considering the strength of some of them. Beers are also available to take away but are very expensive and I no longer bother after a couple of explosive/infected surprises. Another criticism would be the toilets which are terrible. Nonetheless, truly special and highly recommended. Also try the Witte Paard pub near the church for food and the perfect Belgian pub experience. “

baxterfish 2018 days ago

“Off the main road in an attractive and pleasant part of the village sits this nice cosy old fashioned Belgian bar. Has a few tables outside which face the Church and the cobbled street or if you prefer the courtyard outback it’s leafy and relaxing. Owner is friendly and charming. Beer list isn’t groundbreaking but it’s solid. Came here after a day out in Poperinge and had a Hommelsbier and a Filou. Probably the best bar vibe in Oostvleteren although check out Molenhof for fab food and a great beer list. Inside is a nice cosy interior space which is popular with the locals.“

EdKing 2096 days ago

“So this place is only open 2 till 6 every Saturday. Luck and a bit of planning finally got me here. And it didn’t let me down. The Brewery has no sign. At 2pm a shutter goes up revealing an entrance in what looks like an old house or closed shop. Walk through the passage and you see a lot of large mounted racks of barrels aging beers with an exterior patio of tables. Inside, which does feel like an old school, is a tap room featuring about 15 of Struise’s best stuff. New stuff you haven’t tried and classic stuff. Most of it is plus 10% but they do great little mini glasses to taste the heavyweight stuff. Service is very friendly and it’s a unique vibe. Highly highly recommended.“

EdKing 2097 days ago

“Ik vind dit een grootse plaats die goed verscholen grote bier serveert. Magnifieke bieren die eerder als zwaar tot zeer zwaar mogen worden beschouwd!!“

DraftWhisperer85 2255 days ago

“Niet te gemakkelijk te vinden, maar eens binnen zo een overvloed aan keuze (30 bieren vers getapt) die in de handige proefglaasjes geserveerd worden zodat je gerust aan een goed aantal proefglazen kan komen. Best wel een stukje vlees mee doen of een brood en wat beleg of je komt er niet recht buiten :-). Catering zou gemakkelijk zijn, maar het heeft net de charmes dat je er je eigen boterham met paté of een stukje vlees op de BBQ kan meedoen. Must see als je in de buurt bent!“

rodenbachvintage 2349 days ago

“Selección de 30 grifos con varias de sus rarezas, buen servicio, gran trato, visita recomendable.“

fombe89 2436 days ago

“Bar/Restaurante muy cerca de Struise, buena selección de cervezas, muy recomendable sus buenos platos de comida típica de la zona.“

fombe89 2436 days ago

“Very nice family run restaurant on a working farm. The food is fine but not in the same league as the nearby Molenhof. Only De Struise beer on offer is Pannepot which is a shame considering the brewery is very close. Other than that, it has the same beers as every other cafe in the area so not really sure it should be on Ratebeer“

baxterfish 2488 days ago

“I’m lovin’ it!“

alteregoo 2580 days ago

“We visited here on Saturday 25th March 2017, the we being me, Loz and Ian (Harrisoni on RB). Despite our many, many trips to Belgium over quite a number of years this was our first visit here as the opening times have never really worked out for us. As I have described in my other ratings for places nearby It is quite easy to get here, if heading over from the UK, then get off the E40 Mway at Veurne and head down the N8 in the general direction of Ypres and Poperinge, once you hit Oostvleteren turn left at the traffic lights and the old school house is immediately on your RH side. I have to say there is very little signage that screams out brewery or tap room though.

We had a flying visit as we were heading back to the UK on the 16:20 Eurotunnel and never arrived here until gone 2pm. You enter via a narrow passageway off of the street; this opens out into an open area where much of the brewing equipment is including large wooden Bourbon or Whisky casks waiting to be filled with the next Struise beer. The old school building/tap room is at the rear of the yard and as you enter there is a small corridor off to the left that acts as a bottle shop with a limited amount of their own beers here for sale (mostly the rarer stuff by the looks of things. Beyond this is the Tap Room, it a reasonable sized square room with a bank of taps ahead (27 I’m told) what looks like the old green original school chalk boards off to the RH side have been reused to explain brewing processes with diagrams and text. There are lots of pictures on the far wall that have been photo-shopped/doctored, so famous images, celebrities; historical characters are seen with a Struise beer in hand, some are quite amusing.

Carlo met us, we’d met Carlo before and chatted to him at beer festivals gone by, but Ian knew him really well and got a big hug and free beer thrust into his hand, as did Loz (I was Des, so no beer for me) I took myself off into the bottleshop and picked a few interesting bottles to take away with me. By the time that we left a few more folk were now coming in and Carlo was doing the explaining to the beer novices about the many beers that they had on offer. I would say that this is a must visit if in the area, we’ll definitely be back again if we can just get it to work in with our plans for a future visit over here. “

Fin 2605 days ago

“This is the front yard of De Struise brewery in the little village of Oostvleteren, Belgium. They only open Saturday afternoons, and feature a massive 30 taps pouring their own creations. Prices are tight, so you can have many different ales (as long as the body holds). They have an open BBQ, and you can buy some meat at the butcher’s right opposite and bring it in freely. Oddly, no bottles were sold when I was there. They said they had ran out, even though it’s only open once every seven days. I’ve been afterwards told it’s not the first time this happens.“

huineman 2929 days ago

“Fajna atmosfera, mega wybór, piwo najwyższej klasy i świetne ceny. Jedno z najlepszych miejsc w Belgii.“

Mesjasz 2948 days ago

“zakochalem sie w tym miejscu“

rami_pl 2949 days ago

“Lovely place. Great service if a bit slow sometimes, you have to keep in mind that this is still a locals pub that stepped it up a notch, by offering an extensive beer list with a high focus on Struise and some Belgian crafts on 10 rotating taps. But just like the other customers get their share of attention from the bar tender, so will you. I love the bitterballen being served here, made with pannepot beer. The restaurant whips up some simple, honest but very flavourful dishes. I really dig this place. I have no clue why I didn’t rate this before...“

tderoeck 2983 days ago

“Visited last year, service was great, beer selection was good, food was great. will visit again.“

SVD 2985 days ago

“Visited last year. Interesting setting service was good, Urbain was a very good host, beers where awesome. Will visit again.“

SVD 2985 days ago

“Super service. Knowledgeable beer sommelier! Decent food for an honest price. WARNING all food is fresh, so it take a bit of time to prepare it. This is not a fast food restaurant but the place to be for the "Burgundian".“

bkristof 3026 days ago

“Wow this place is sketchy to get to, it is on an unassuming road where everything else around was either closed down or residential. When I visited we had to walk through a run down abandoned building which looked like it was falling apart to reach the brewery. That being said, the brewery has a ton of outdoor space and a small indoor space as well. They had roughly 20 beers on tap when I visited plus a small bottle list. Tons of rare/unbottled stuff, very interesting!“

Dfonorow 3033 days ago

“Ambiance: old fashioned, almost typical restaurant/pub style for this part of Belgium. Service: friendly, quick on the drinks, slow on the food. Selection is decent, changes a lot, decent Struise selection, Tilquin Gueuze seems to be on tap more regularly. Food is OK, but very very basic. Value is a bit expensive rather for this kind of place. Overall: I’d prefer having a nice Croque Monsieur at De Vrede, but this place gets your stomach filled as well.“

Mathieu87 3131 days ago

“Spitting distance from ’t Oude Schooltje, cowering under the very real (beautiful) mill on the main road in Oostvleteren. For such a roadside bar, an unusual choice of Struise and other beers, all tapbeers served on Nitro, which is something of a rarity in Belgium. The food is decent, and not too expensive, without being outstanding - if with some rare surprises, as Tajine in deep Western Flanders makes me think of palmtrees on Antarctica... Excellent if you’ve worked up a hunger after ’t Schooltje, just don’t expect Michelin star food.“

JorisPPattyn 3132 days ago

“The quintessential Struise education. Mind the opening hours, but this place can become incredibly busy. The choice is immense, and far from restricted to the own Struise beers. Meet Carlo, meet Urbain, or one other strange bird behind the counter, flocking in from all parts of the globe. You’ll end up talking about beer... as long as you can stand the alcoholonslaugth you’ve signed yourself in for. One not to miss when in Belgium.“

JorisPPattyn 3132 days ago

“I’ve been in this bar Oud Postje twice during beginning of July. Great experience. Genuine spirit. I ’ve seen young & elder people which is unusual and... inspiring. Great service. I discovered true gems here like Black Albert or Cuvée Delphine on tap. Fantastic !“

VDuquerroux 3168 days ago

“Nice interior, extremely friendly and knowledgeable staff. The food is also very nice! Large beer list and more than 15 draft beers, most from Struise, also some very rare ones. I had for example, Aestatis, Cuvee Delphine Cask Strength, Maximo,... Very nice place!“

JefVerstraete 3212 days ago

“Nice honest food. Normal prices for Belgium. Friendly service and fantastic selection of beers. A place to stop in the holy Meca of Vleteren.“

PauloAG 3222 days ago

“Not sure what else you want from a bar. It’s probably the best kept secret in Westhoek and West Flanders. I worked in the area for a month so i lived at Molenhof. Gueuze Tilquin was on tap for June. read that again, twice. such a nice treat to have. the tap list varies, but its Struise heavy. no shocker since the brewery is kitty corner. the bottle list is also great, especially if you want some of the barrel-aged Struise beer. Food is Belgian comfort food. don’t go there wanting a salad or something light. it won’t happen. The best food items: hennepot (not for everyone. describing it to someone is gross. just trust me and eat it), the bitterballen with Pannepot stewed meat, any of their steaks are great and cooked rare to order. their fritjes are the best i’ve had in Belgium. crispy and perfectly salted. i could just go there and eat fries. but i don’t. i end up ordering lots and lots. prices seem high, but the portions are huge. go for dinner and don’t expect to eat again until mid-day the next day. service: i know the staff well. Martine’s the matriarch. if you don’t speak Flemmish, then yeah, wait for Bjorn or someone else working there. Be patient when you order, since its 2-3 people working the entire restaurant and bar. on a saturday night, the dining room’s packed, so you will need to put your name down or wait 2-3 hrs for dinner service. decor: it has a Christian saint theme. its kitschy but great. You aren’t allowed to smoke in Belgium bars, but this being a small town, they don’t care. which really sucks. you’ll stink like smoke if you’re at the bar. that’s the worst part about the bar. there’s also a backyard patio that you have to ask to sit in if you’re there at lunch and it’s really nice. There aren’t a million food options in the neighbourhood (there’s another steak restaurant 5 min away, but whatever) and there certainly aren’t many better drink options.“

atomeyes 3244 days ago