As Seen Abroad: Tonton Garby in Brussels
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Getting travel recommendations from social media isn’t always smart. Sometimes, it leads to great finds, like when I found out about Mashi No Mashi from a YouTube video. But other times, it sends one astray, like when the same YouTube channel recommended a restaurant in Tokyo that was so bad, we didn’t bother to review it (if you’re ever wondering why we seem to like everything, it’s because usually, if we really don’t like a place, we don’t wish to waste our time making a blog post about it).
It can be difficult to sift through all the YouTube videos, Instagram posts, and reviews on Yelp, TripAdvisor, and Google to figure out which places - especially restaurants - are worth the limited time you have while on vacation. But that’s a challenge I’m willing to take on because I love trip planning. When we take a trip like our 2025 Europe trip, we book our flights and plan our time off 8-10 months in advance. That leaves many months of messing around on the Internet and jotting down notes to create a trip document that, for this trip, was about 4,000 words.
A few years go, a friend and I settled on the idea of “lots of research, no itinerary.” We had a long list of places we wanted to visit, but no set plans. So when it was time for dinner, we didn’t have to talk about where to eat - we just picked a random place from our list, knowing it was a place we’d already agreed on. It ends the “what are you in the mood for” discussion while also avoiding the stress of having everything planned out to the minute. Eriko and I often follow this plan (although we do get tickets and reservations for some key places).
There’s no way we can visit all the spots on our list, but since we have a lot of options, we’re never without an idea for something to do. Often, we forget why we put a place on our list in the first place. As we were visiting the Magritte Museum at 10:30 a.m. one day in Brussels, we noticed an entry for a nearby sandwich shop that said, “be sure to get there at 11 when it opens.” With no idea why it said that, we went to try it out.
Tonton Garby Fromagerie and Sandwicherie in Brussels
Located just a short stroll from the Grand Place and the Hilton Brussels Grand Place in the old-towny-town part of Brussels is Tonton Garby, a sandwich shop that has become a smash hit on Instagram. It’s a small shop that blends in with the hectic touristy neighborhood, so if you were just walking by, you might not notice it but for the line, which is always out the door.
And I do mean always: we got there at 11:15, and were fifth in line, which for a shop this size means outside. We walked past again that night around 5:00, right as the shop was set to close, and the line was still out the door. This place is popular, but that’s not the only reason there’s such a long line. The line is part of the allure, the fun, and the frustration of this eatery, depending on how you approach it.
What makes Tonton Garby a fun and - for some - infuriating experience
Tonton Garby is run by Houssain Gharbi, a man who loves sandwiches, cheese, and people. He speaks several languages, able to communicate with all sorts of folks who come into his shop. He’s got boundless energy and is always in the mood to chat with customers to help them get exactly what they want. The reason for the long line isn’t because of the amount of people in the line, but because of how long Gharbi spends with each customer.
When we got there, three tourists were at the front of the line. 10 minutes later, they were still there. He spent forever talking to them about where they were from and what they liked so he could build three sandwiches specifically for them, along with fresh-squeezed O.J. he made right in front of them. Even though they ordered their sandwiches to go, he made them sit and try them to make sure they liked them, because if they didn’t, he’d make them something else. They liked them.
It went like that for every customer. Tonton Garby is a bespoke sandwich experience, and making a sandwich designed just for the person standing at the counter is a slow process. When people online say, “be prepared to wait an hour,” they are telling the truth. A sign out front even warns visitors that if they’re in a hurry, this is not the shop for them.
We found ourselves in line behind a Canadian couple that lived in Barbados. I believe their names were Gord and Gord. They had a train to catch, and were not amused by the energetic antics of the proprietor (who does all of this himself). Gord was particularly annoyed at how long it was taking. We didn’t quite know how to explain to them that we found this wait to be charming and fun. What I’m saying is that TG isn’t for everyone, but if you find a sandwich guy taking so long to make each sandwich that you wonder how he stays in business to be cute, you’ll like this place.
After many, many minutes (45? 50? I have no idea) spent standing in line, we finally got to the front. “Welcome, Tokyo!” he said, after learning where we were from. The sandwich-making was set to begin.
Ordering a sandwich at Tonton Garby
Despite the fact that one dude is doing everything here, he manages to have unlimited patience while dealing with customers. We said we wanted two sandwiches, one fruit-based (as we’d seen through online photos) and one more meat-based like one we’d seen someone order a few people ahead of us. He quickly got us away from thinking that way and explained both sandwiches would have meat, but he could do one with fruit and one with veggies. The key, he said, was to pick the right cheese.
He showed us the amazing spread of already-portioned cheeses you see above, and for each sandwich, gave us three options. For the savory sandwich, we went with a goat cheese that had Italian spices on it. For the sweet sandwich, cow cheese with dried papaya on top. He then asked us about each ingredient to make sure it was something we wanted: tomato yes, olive tapenade no, etc. He slowly made both sandwiches, taking care to put specific pieces of fruit in specific places, resulting in two exquisite works of art that would soon be mush in our tummies.
I don’t know how long the experience took, but I think we were faster than the people before us, maybe because time goes more quickly while you’re watching this man work. We got a couple of fresh-squeezed orange juices (which he also makes in addition to dealing with the bread and sandwiches and money and everything else) and sat down at the tables to give our creations a try.
Savory “veggie” sandwich
We were each given half of each sandwich, with the understanding that we were going to share them. The sandwich king recommended we eat the sweet one first and follow it up with the savory one, but because we are high-minded food reviewers, we traded bites so we could compare them.
The savory sandwich, which he called the “veggie” sandwich, had no veggies other than tomatoes, which are not a veggie. It had goat cheese with Italian spices, shredded gouda, and a spicy red gouda that gave it some kick. On top were a ton of tomatoes, along with sausage, which is the main meat used at this place. The sausage was pretty good, but Tonton Garby is all about the cheese.
Eriko doesn’t have as much experience with goat cheese as I do, but I can tell you that this is one of the better goat cheeses I’ve ever had, if not the best. You have to pair goat cheese with the right stuff to balance it out, and this had a perfect balance. The Italian spice was juuuuuust enough so as not to be overbearing.
This sandwich really showed that you don’t have to go overboard: if I were to make an “Italian” sandwich, I’d pile 10,000 cured meats and cheeses on top, but with only some small bits of meat and a ton of cheese in the right proportions, he made a delectable sandwich that would have knocked our socks off if we hadn’t also tried the other one at the same time.
Fruit sandwich at Tonton Garby
This baby. This is it. Look at how beautiful that thing is.
At the base is a cow cheese topped with dried papaya. He also added some more shaved gouda and sausage on top, followed by blueberries, cranberries, grapes, strawberries, figs, nuts, and honey. The meticulous manner in which he carefully placed all the fruit in exactly the right spot was admirable given that there was a line out the door at the time.
One thing Mr. Gharbi mentioned was that people often assume his sandwiches will be nothing but sweet because of the fruit in them, but that’s inaccurate. The cheese and meat provide enough salt to balance it out. This was not an overly sweet dessert sandwich, but a main course, a meal of a sandwich that used the fruit to enhance its taste.
Again, even though there was meat, it was the cheese that was the star here. And what a cheese it was. I’m not kidding when I say I could eat a block of this the size of a car (an American car, not a tiny European one). I have never tasted a cheese like this before, not on a sandwich, not at a cheese tasting, not anywhere. It sang with perfect pitch. It was creamy and soulful and wise. The cheese alone was enough to make our entire vacation worth it.
But the cheese wasn’t alone! All the ingredients were of the highest quality, and sure enough, they came along exactly when needed. When the sandwich could have become too salty, there was a stab of honey; when it could have been too sweet, there was some tart fruit. All the colors of the rainbow shown down on us in magnificent light. We spent the entire meal dumbfounded by how delicious this thing was. My words cannot do it justice. I’m going to bite my computer screen now.
Verdict: should you take time out of your trip to visit Tonton Garby?
At the end of our visit, we got up, and he gave us the cost: 20 Euro.
That’s it. 20 Euro. $22.68. For two of the best sandwiches ever created on this Earth plus orange juice and the experience of getting to order at Tonton Garby. That is a bargain if I ever heard one. I have to think that he forgot about our OJ and only charged us for the sandwiches, but 10 Euro is cheap even for just the sandwiches.
Eriko said that if she worked near here, she’d try to eat at this place every day. I said I’d take my lunch break at 10:45 every day so I could try to be first in line.
No joke, that fruit sandwich was the best sandwich I have ever eaten. Sorry, Larchmont Wine & Cheese. Sorry, Chez Alain Miam Miam. Sorry, Aji Dulce. Sorry, other place in Paris with the dogs (RIP). The Daps Famous Hood Joint. Shoto Cafe. Other places I can’t think of right now. You’re all taking a backseat.
Tonton Garby isn’t just good for a sandwich place, but belongs in the Hall of Awesomest Restaurants For Realsies. Eriko put it best by sliding the following note under the table before we left:
If you go to Tonton Garby and that note isn’t still there, start a fight.
Where is Tonton Garby in Brussels?
Address: Rue Duquesnoy 6, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium
Phone: +32 484 29 02 16
Hours: 11am-5pm Mon-Thurs and Sat; closed Fri and Sun.
As noted, Tonton Garby has a long line pretty much all day every day, so you need to get there before it opens. Even if there’s only a couple people in line ahead of you, the wait will still be quite long. That’s okay. Enjoy the experience. Trust us: it’s worth it.
