Flandrien Hotel Clubhouse
Café · Flanders
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The Clubhouse is the social heart of Flandrien Hotel, a boutique cycling-themed hotel in the Flemish Ardennes near Brakel. It's known for its cycling memorabilia and bike collection, a big screen showing live races and classic editions of De Ronde, Belgian beers on tap, and a professional espresso machine where guests brew their own coffee. A large cobbled terrace and secure bike storage with wash facilities round out the setup. The Clubhouse opens to non-guests on weekends, making it a rest stop for cyclists riding the surrounding Flemish Ardennes climbs.
A pop-art series by John Mettepenningen, known as cycling's 'Andy Warhol,' lines the walls with portraits of five Flemish world champions: Briek Schotte, Rik Van Looy, Eddy Merckx, Johan Museeuw, and Tom Boonen. Photography by Kristof Ramon, an award-winning Belgian cycling photographer who shoots under the name Kramon, hangs alongside it. Some of the bikes on display can be rented out for a ride or a photoshoot before going back on the wall. The hotel itself began almost by accident: Australian business professor Jamie Anderson and Belgian cyclist Bernard Moerman met in 2018 when Jamie came to buy a race bike from Bernard, and a conversation about cycling turned into the hotel they opened together during the pandemic.
Practical
Guided tours of the bike and art collection cost 28 euro per person, free for hotel guests.
part of: Koers kaffees of the Rondepart of: Cafés inside cycling's templespart of: Cafés at the foot of the climb