MOK
Specialty coffee culture is growing fast in Brussels and MOK has been a pioneer of that culture for many years. Opening its doors all the way back in 2012, it has been a staple in the city, and if you are familiar with the coffee scene in Brussels you definitely have heard of MOK.
Jens Crabbé founded the MOK brand, which includes a roastery and 2 cafes (one located in Brussels and another in Leuven). The roastery focuses on seasonal and small batch roasting to ensure control over their flavours. The cafes then offer a multitude of coffee drinks from beans roasted in house. Today I will be focusing on the Brussels Cafe.
The cafe specialises in coffee drinks but also offer a range of infusions, teas and home made fermented drinks. They also serve up a few seasonal vegetarian dishes for breakfast/lunch as well as a few cakes and pastries.
Currently my favourite cafe in the city, MOK has been the most consistent with serving very high quality cups of coffee. My usual order, a cappuccino, is almost always served perfectly. You might think ‘almost always’ is not a great indication but if you frequent cafes, then you will know that it’s often a gamble. You can go to the best of the best of specialty coffee spots, they will still make mistakes sometimes. Slightly over-extracted espresso, milk frothed incorrectly... Because it is such a precise art, small slip ups are common. So me saying ‘almost always’ is high praise.
Vibe
As experts in their industry, MOK attracts a hip and elegant crowd. Located away from the tourist hurly-burly, it is popular with the area’s locals. People come here for their consistently excellent coffee, their few but modern and refined dishes and to enjoy simple conversations in an inspiring space. Always playing lively music, which is often loud enough to enjoy and usually not too loud as to prevent you from focusing on your work. I personally come here for reading, catching up with friends, writing my blog, and simply for a great cup of coffee. The only thing I would not really come here for is studying. I feel that the cafe is actually very welcoming to everyone, even studious students, but the space seems a little small to properly accommodate for studying in my opinion. The cafe also seems to have established a more social energy.
Menu
The drinks menu mainly comprises of different types of coffees, teas, infusions and some extras like a homemade naturally fermented drink, hot chocolate, matcha latte and juices. Their tasty teas and infusions are always brewed to precision. The only thing I would say about them is that the portions are very small. When you order a tea or an infusion you only get a single small cup. As they come already brewed, this means that they are not served very hot, which some tea drinkers might find inconvenient. You have to understand though that specialty coffee cafes primarily focus on coffee, their expertise is coffee, not tea.
I nearly always order cappuccinos, so I cannot speak to all of their drinks but I can definitely tell you that their coffee is absolutely delicious. They tend to change the beans they are using for their espresso and batch brew weekly, encouraging customers and coffee lovers to taste the many different varieties coming in from their roastery. I personally love their Natural Brazil Espresso Roast.
The food menu is small but very good. A few dishes but done well is much better than many options but with average quality. I definitely think they follow this idea and I’m very happy about it. The first four items on the menu tend to stick around whereas the last two items tend to change up I think seasonally (if not monthly). Their dishes are very well thought out and I really appreciate their attention to detail in both flavours and aesthetics.
A big round of applause to MOK for their avocado toast! Something relatively common and simple, yet they have done an excellent job with it. The best I’ve had in Brussels. Definitely. I think their seasoning is on point! Toasted sourdough bread, thinly sliced avocado, drizzled with olive oil, sprinkled with soumac, chives, black sesame seeds, a little chili, salt, black pepper and some other black spice which I need to ask them for next time I go.
The cakes and pastries are also generally very tasty. Everybody I bring to the cafe seems to adore the carrot cake, which I totally understand. Especially because of their generous dollop of frosting on top. Another highlight is the orange polenta cake, which is moist and juicy and definitely underrated. I do find the almond and pear cake a little dry but the one thing I wouldn’t order again is the vegan pecan and chocolate cookie. I think it’s too thick and almost gummy, not fun to eat, and it seems to contain some strange flavour, but honestly that is common with vegan foods in which ingredients have to be substituted often by other inferior ones.
Prices are quite standard and expected for a specialty coffee place. Apart from the €7.20 matcha latte, where I assume they are using some expensive ceremony grade matcha powder, and the €4.80 tea/infusion for a single cup, I think most things are decently priced. Don’t get me wrong, it is not cheap, but I do think their prices are reflected in their quality offering.
Interior
The cafe is made up of 2 main spaces, the front room contains an island bar where orders are taken and drinks are prepared, and the back room has a bigger table dedicated to laptop workers along with additional tables. The cafe has a modern and simple interior, with hints of industrial design. It has neutral grey walls with few pops of colour in the form of art prints and a large black metal shelf holding all their items for sale like coffee beans. Their overall design might be relatively simple but I have come to appreciate it a lot. The space isn’t overstimulating, with too many colours and objects, and instead people can focus on their conversations and ultimately on what they came to enjoy: great coffee and food.
What I really enjoy about their space is the versatility of their seating options. They have a seat for everyone. Among sleek wooden tables and chairs to eat or have a meeting, you can also hide away at the back for a more intimate conversation. The large concrete table at the back can accomodate larger groups and also encourages laptop workers to sit there mimicking a coworking space.
My favourite part is definitely their spacious and open entrance. A long wooden stage like bench structure bordering the corner of this entrance serves people waiting for their coffee to go, people with dogs, people with energetic kids, as well as people bored of their standard chairs and table and may like to sit a little differently. I for example often sit there when I want to read, work on my laptop or even when I’m feeling social. For some reason I often end up meeting and chatting with people seated here. Something about how this entrance space is set up encourages people to socialise and connect.
The toilet is located downstairs, hidden away nicely. I think it could use a little refurbishment honestly. This is because the two toilets are not fully concealed and are stuck right next to eachother in the corner of what is a relatively large room. Meaning that you can hear everything that’s going on with your neighbour and vice versa due to the echo effect the large room has in addition to the lack of enclosure.
Service
In my experience the service is generally very swift and efficient. I never have to wait long for a drink and food is usually served relatively quickly.
The staff tend to keep to themselves, but are always very happy to help. After taking your order at the counter, they won’t bother you at all here. You can be sure to have an intimate and private conversation at MOK without any interruption, except when being served your drinks and food of course. Don’t expect any overtly jolly and jumpy service. They keep it cool and efficient here. Personally I like this a lot.
A napkin is often added on to the plate right under pastries and cakes when serving. I personally don’t like this so much but understand why cafes do this. Easier to present and carry the small plates like this, looks better with a napkin (for some reason) as opposed to having the piece of cake by itself on the plate. But find the napkins to end up dirty and soggy by the time you finish eating and renders them quite unappealing if not unusable.
In terms of cleanliness, I compliment the cafe for maintaining a very clean space. The only detail I could critique is that the staff sometimes don’t notice cake crumbs on tables and thus don’t wipe them down. But as you can imagine this is nothing out of the ordinary, especially if you consider these crumbs easily camouflaging with the brown tables.
Recommendation
I can confidently say that MOK is an excellent cafe and definitely one of the best in Brussels. It is currently my favourite one in the city and I always recommend it to my friends, especially if they appreciate excellent coffee. I hope I didn’t sound too critical of the cafe in this review and that you will go see for yourself.
In 5 Words
Cool - Sleek - Elegant - Coffee Experts - Social
Notes for Future Cafe
Have a welcoming, multipurpose open space at the entrance for versatility and to encourage socialising.
Focus on few high quality dishes vs many standard ones.
Various seating options to accommodate all clientele.
Build toilets fully enclosed.
Figure out the ‘napkin under pastry’ dilemma.