Meeting people in a city is easier when you attend a recurring event: a board game on Monday, a conversation table on Thursday, a dance class every week. You see the same faces again, and a stranger quickly becomes someone you know. This guide only lists events that the organiser describes on its own page.
The options at a glance
| Name | Municipality or area, venue | Format | When | Price (year) | Language |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SINGA, Bazar and activities | Ixelles, Molenbeek, Schaerbeek, Saint-Gilles, Bruxelles-Ville | Games, conversation, running, drawing | Several times a week | Free (2026) | Website in French, English and Dutch |
| Conversation Exchange in Brussels | Ixelles, L'Amour Fou | Language exchange | Tuesday 7 pm | Order one drink (2026) | All languages |
| Conversation tables | Bruxelles-Ville, Maison de la Francité | French conversation in small groups | Thursday 10 to 11:30 am and 6:30 to 8 pm, not in the holidays | 4 € a session (2026) | French, level A2/B1 minimum |
| Fuego Dance | Ixelles, Flagey | Salsa and bachata classes | Tuesday and Thursday evenings | 15 € a class, 120 € for ten (2026) | Classes in French and English |
| Soirée jeux de société | Bruxelles-Ville, Neder-Over-Heembeek, place Saint-Nicolas | Games night for local residents | One Friday a month, 8 to 10 pm | Not stated | Website in French |
| C'est nous les chef·es! | Bruxelles-Ville, Neder-Over-Heembeek, place Saint-Nicolas | Cooking and eating together | One Friday a month, 9:30 am to 2 pm | 5 € on site (2026) | Website in French |
| Ludobox games night | Bruxelles-Ville, Laeken, boulevard Émile Bockstael | Games night | One Friday a month, 6:30 to 11 pm | Free (2026) | French |
| Timeleft | Restaurants, bars and cafés; venues vary | Dinner, drink, coffee or walk with four to six strangers | Dinner Wednesday and Friday 8 pm, drink Thursday 8 pm, coffee Saturday 3 pm, walk Sunday 10 am | Subscription, plus what you order (2026) | French or English |
"Not stated" means we found no price, not that it costs money.
Playing, talking and moving with SINGA
SINGA, Bazar and activities (several municipalities)
SINGA is an association that brings together people from Brussels and people who have recently arrived through shared activities led by volunteers: six to eight activities a week, free, with no commitment and open to everyone, whether you come once or every week. The Bazar usually takes place on Mondays in Ixelles and on Thursdays in Molenbeek: people get together over board games, a cup of tea or a game of table tennis, with the regulars and those coming to find out what it's about. There is also, for example, a French conversation table on Thursdays from 6 to 8 pm, rue Kessels in Schaerbeek, a run on Sundays from 5:30 to 6:30 pm from the abbaye de la Cambre, and a drawing and painting workshop every other Sunday, from 3 to 5 pm, in Saint-Gilles. The times and places of each activity are in the calendar. singa-belgium.org
Talking
Conversation Exchange in Brussels (L'Amour Fou, Ixelles)
Every Tuesday at 7 pm, you can join a language exchange in a reserved area of the café L'Amour Fou, at 185 chaussée d'Ixelles. All languages are welcome; the idea is to talk with people who are fluent in the language you are learning. You sign up on Meetup, and everyone orders a drink at the venue. Conversation Exchange on Meetup
Conversation tables at the Maison de la Francité (rue Joseph II)
You can take part from the age of 18 if you have some French, at least level A2/B1. On Thursdays from 10 to 11:30 am and from 6:30 to 8 pm, except during the holidays listed in the programme, four to eight people meet around a table with a facilitator, and each session is about a topic from everyday life. The first time, you register and your level is checked at the office, 18 rue Joseph II, or by phone; after that, you book the sessions you want. A session costs 4 €, paid in advance (2026). maisondelafrancite.be
Dancing
Fuego Dance (Flagey, Ixelles)
A salsa and bachata school that teaches its group classes in French and English, at rue de la Digue 10, near Flagey. The autumn course runs from September to December 2026, with classes on Tuesday and Thursday evenings; on Thursdays there are beginners' classes, at 7 pm for salsa and at 8 pm for bachata. Beginners can join a course during its first two or three weeks; after that, ask about the next one. At intermediate or advanced level, you can join whenever you like, if you can keep up with the group. No partner needed: according to the school, most people come on their own, and partners change during the class. For your first class, arrive 15 minutes early. A class costs 15 €, a pass for ten classes 120 € (2026). Several times a year, the school also organises Noche Latina evenings, open to all, students or not. fuegodance.be
Playing and cooking in the neighbourhood
Soirée jeux de société (Neder-Over-Heembeek)
One Friday a month, from 8 to 10 pm, residents of Neder-Over-Heembeek meet at place Saint-Nicolas to play games together; the themes change every month. It is a residents' initiative, supported by the asbl Baobab and announced by the Maison de la création. No booking needed, just come as you are. maisondelacreation.org
C'est nous les chef·es! (Neder-Over-Heembeek)
A workshop where you cook together and then eat together, one Friday a month from 9:30 am to 2 pm, at place Saint-Nicolas, in partnership with the Ferme urbaine de NoH. Some workshops are led by volunteer participants, who put their own spin on their favourite recipes. Taking part costs 5 €, paid on site (2026); you book on the workshop's page. maisondelacreation.org
Ludobox games night (Laeken)
The games library of the City of Brussels organises a games night in French one Friday a month, from 6:30 to 11 pm, at boulevard Émile Bockstael 122, in Laeken. Entry is free (2026), and the dates are in the City's calendar. bruxelles.be
At the table with strangers
Timeleft (venues vary)
An app that brings you together with four to six people you don't know yet. In Brussels, there is a dinner on Wednesdays and Fridays at 8 pm, a drink on Thursdays at 8 pm, a coffee on Saturdays at 3 pm and a walk on Sundays at 10 am. You book on your own, in French or English, and the app tells you the venue twelve hours before. You need a subscription, whose price is shown in the app, and you pay for what you order (2026). timeleft.com/brussels
How to choose
- Frequency: every week (SINGA, Conversation Exchange, Maison de la Francité, Fuego Dance, Timeleft) or once a month (the two games nights and the Friday cooking workshop)?
- Language: do you want to practise your French, another language, or simply play games? The Maison de la Francité asks for level A2/B1.
- Timing: Monday or Thursday for the Bazar, Tuesday evening for the language exchange, Thursday for French and dancing, Friday for games.
- Price: SINGA and the Ludobox are free; elsewhere, budget for a drink, a few euros per session or a subscription. Check the conditions in each announcement.
- Signing up: no booking for the Neder-Over-Heembeek games night, Meetup for Conversation Exchange, a first registration at the Maison de la Francité, the workshop's page for the cooking workshop, the app for Timeleft; for SINGA, check the calendar.
For organisers
If you host evenings like these, you know the moment: people get on well and then lose touch. before is a web app for organisers. Guests check in at the door with a QR code in their browser, without installing an app, and anyone who likes takes a selfie. The day after, the afterparty is open from 10 am to 8 pm. Anyone who shared a selfie sees everyone else who shared one there and can press the button for meeting again for up to five people. At 8 pm everyone finds out at the same time who wants to see each other again, and only then does a chat open. One-sided wishes stay invisible, and nobody receives a rejection. Nobody needs a profile. More on the page before for organisers.