Seminars and company events
Espace Del Goutte hosts seminars, training days, team building, trade shows and staff parties for groups from 10 to 1,200 people. The venue occupies a restored abbey farm in Ophain, a village of Braine-l'Alleud on the southern edge of Brussels. It was rebuilt as a business center, so the rooms are laid out for working days rather than adapted from a banquet hall.
The building holds eight modular rooms. Movable acoustic partitions open them into one large volume or split them into independent rooms, and there are no load-bearing walls or columns inside to block the view. Every room has free Wi-Fi, a fixed screen, a ceiling projector, a BOSE sound system, an LED TV for videoconferencing and streaming, air conditioning with ventilation, and a flip chart. A private, lit car park with more than 400 spaces is on site.
Weddings and receptions
For weddings the farm is hired exclusively: one couple per day, with the courtyard, the rooms and the car park reserved for the party. The venue works with a range from 70 guests for a smaller wedding to 320 for a large reception. Civil or religious ceremonies can take place on site in a dedicated ceremony area, and guests arrive through a large carriage gate. Birthday parties and other private celebrations are also accepted.
Rooms and capacities
Le Patio, with its bar, is the central room of the barn: 114 m², 120 in theater layout, 90 for a seated dinner and up to 150 for a reception, with good daylight. La Moisson takes 110 for a seated dinner and 180 for a walking dinner. Le Peson is the training room, with 90 to 100 in theater layout, 45 in classroom and 30 in a U. Le Manège is bright and opens onto a terrace; it seats 50 in theater, 60 at a banquet, 34 in classroom and 24 in a U.
Catering
Catering is run by The Two of Us Event Experience, the in-house team led by chef Fabian Hermans, who has more than 20 years of experience. Options run from welcome coffee, breaks and sandwich lunches to buffets, three- or four-course served menus, barbecues and cocktails. Menus are built around the client's budget.
History and setting
Cistercian monks from the abbey of Nizelles built the farm in 1611 to collect tithes. It was later abandoned after the Brussels ring road cut it off from its best pastures. In the 1990s, local history and ecology enthusiasts saved the stones and restored the site as a business center, using non-toxic materials such as bricks fired with sawdust and lime mortar. Mason's marks remain on the stones, including a fish that the venue now uses as its emblem. The inner courtyard is sheltered and has a water feature, and the grounds are wooded.
Getting there
The address is 40 Rue de Bois-Seigneur-Isaac in Ophain, close to the Brussels ring road. Most guests arrive by car and park on site. The nearest railway station is Braine-l'Alleud, and Brussels Airport is the closest international airport.
