The Clockworker and the Uurwerkertje were already owned by catering man Koen Hoiting, there is now Belgian Café de Pintelier arrived. According to him and his manager Alec van Kampen, it is the most beautiful Belgian specialty beer café in Groningen, in the cozy Kleine Kromme Elleboog.

Extensive offering and service
A place where many students come and where most of these pub tigers return once they have outgrown their student days. Because where in the city can you find so many beautiful Belgian beers together and what sets De Pintelier apart from other cafés?
According to Alec, in addition to the extremely extensive range, it is really the service. 'We mainly have students behind our taps, but we ensure that they all have sufficient knowledge about the beers and that they know what they are serving. We can always recommend something nice to guests and we work together with many different breweries so that we can always bring something new to the table. We also have beers from local breweries such as Folkingebrew, Bax and Graansilo.'

Microbreweries on the decline
The beer market sometimes seems saturated, especially when you look at all the microbreweries that keep popping up. According to Koen, that peak is now over and we are going back to the Belgian old styles. 'Quality is what everyone wants and it is not always consistent at microbreweries. Beer drinkers prefer to just have tasty Belgian beers.' Alec adds: 'At one point every brewery had its own IPA. But you see that the quality of those Belgian styles is much better, and they are also much tastier to drink.'

Scoop
The men at De Pintelier have direct links with local brewers, which means they often have it in stock the day a beer is released. 'That's why I prefer to have it delivered by the brewers themselves, without anyone in between. Then we know for sure that we are the first.'

Secret stash
For the real enthusiasts who want to get off the beaten track, the gentlemen have some goodies available, which they refer to as their 'secret stash'. For example, Koen has beautiful aged Westmalle's and Orval in his cellar, Alec in turn can't wait until he can serve the large bottles of Fourchette, matured in sauvignon barrels, to 'beer geeks'.

Helpful
"In general, you notice that the people who come here often go back to the older Belgian beer styles and don't even go for the most special," says Koen. 'The best-selling beers are always the Tripel Carmelite, Bruges fool en Le Fort Tripel. '
And, you may not expect it, but in addition to all the Belgian barley beer, non-alcoholic beer also appears to sell very well.
For more information on www.depintelier.nl.
