2. METROPOLE BAR

The Metropole bar on Place de Brouckère is once again one of the most stylish spots in town. Many famous people have sat in the glittering 19th century interior surrounded by marble, gilt and mirrors. It closed down a year ago for renovation work, but it reopened at the end of last month looking refreshed and a little more welcoming. Here is the perfect place to sit with a coffee on a Saturday afternoon among elderly ladies with little dogs and actors from the downtown theatres.

3. FREDERIC BLONDEEL

Frederic Blondeel’s chocolate shop and tea room is located in the heart of the fishmarket district. It’s a secret romantic place to sit on a cold February afternoon with a pot of tea and a little bowl of handmade chocolates flavoured with ginger or basil.

The cool young people who live in the Dansaert district pick up gorgeous bouquets at this corner shop. Stop by for a bright bunch of yellow tulips or a beautiful orchid in a pale blue pot.

This bright modern café opened in 2013 in a former Art Deco restaurant on Place Flagey. Created by the people who run the downtown bar Bonnefooi, it has kept the lovely, slightly louche interior from the days where elderly couples came here for moules-frites and a Jupiler, The mezzanine floor with window tables looking down on the square is one of the most romantic spots in town. You can also do your washing here, although possibly not the thing to do on a first date.

Virginie Monu has brought a fabulous party mood to a neglected part of town with her quirky new lunch restaurant. Decorated in vintage Fifties style with multicoloured walls, formica furniture and potted plants, Jour de Fête is a fun place to have lunch with a friend. Best to book a table soon because it is likely to fill up quickly on 14 February.

For a romantic afternoon stroll, take a look around the beautiful Art Nouveau houses in Ixelles and Saint Gilles. The Horta Museum in St Gilles can get crowded, but the striking Art Nouveau corner house built by Jules Brunfaut in 1902 for the engineer Eduard Hannon is overlooked. The interior includes a wistful smoking room with a large bay window and a beautiful fin-de-siècle fresco on the staircase. The Contretype gallery has interesting photo exhibitions in some of the rooms.

Follow the cool urban cyclists at ridelife.be who post a monthly online video report describing a bike adventure in Brussels. They take you on quiet cycle trails to unexpected spots around the city and stop off at friendly bars and restaurants along the way. What could be more romantic?

Pick up Charlotte Bronte’s Brussels novel Villette for a romantic read on 14 February. Or join the Brussels Bronte Society to immerse yourself in the literary atmosphere of 19th century Brussels. On 15 February, the Dutch writer and Bronte expert Eric Ruijssenaars is presenting a virtual walk around the demolished Brussels boarding school where Charlotte Bronte enrolled in 1842.

Here in Brussels, Belgians have just gone to the polling stations to vote for new city councillors. The campaigns have been interesting to follow, with virtually every candidate promising an almost identical list of policies. They all promise us cleaner streets, safer neighbourhoods, better schools. And we, the voters, know that things will go on much the same as always once the new councillors are comfortably installed in the town halls.

The reality of life in Brussels is seen in the Rue de la Paix, where road works have dragged on interminably, destroying the livability of one of the neighourhood's most appealing streets. We have watched in dismay as the construction workers have turned a lively urban street into a scarred landscape of earth mounds, trenches and fallen signs.

Some shopkeepers have simply pulled down the shutters in despair. But there is also a fighting spirit in Brussels which means that some people find creative ways to fight back. The fashion designer Nina Meert has created a window display that takes its inspiration from the road works. So the mannequins stand in the window surrounded by planners' drawings, battered road signs and concrete drain pipes, a subtle way of mocking the administrative incompetence that is such a depressing feature of Brussels civic life.

Waiting in line in the cold school hall to cast my vote, I noticed a large Tintin mural on the wall above the polling booths. A plaque nearby explained that Hergé, the famous Belgian cartoonist, has attended this school from 1913 to 1919, while the Germany army occupied the city. It made the voting experience somehow richer.

Here is one of the most striking views in Brussels seen from the roof terrace of the St Louis University. I like the contrast of old and new, and the way the sloping line of the shiny glass office building to the left is almost a continuation of the roofline of the grey Brussels town house.    

Les Enfants d'Edouard has been selling women's designer clothes at sharply reduced prices in this grand town house for the past 40 years. The men's shop, a little less grand, is next door.

Avenue Louise 175 and 177