Brasschaat · BE

Katerheide mill

At the crossroads where the Kapelsesteenweg meets the Molenweg in the Brasschaat hamlet of Sint-Mariaburg, a round stone windmill rises where a miller's trade has echoed since the Middle Ages. Today the Katerheide Mill no longer grinds grain or turns sails: after careful restoration its brick-and-cedar hull has been reborn as a tapas bar, pairing seven centuries of milling history with a sunny little square made for cyclists and walkers to pause. This is a heritage landmark you can step inside and sit in, rather than view from behind a fence. The five-storey tower, with its arched window openings and the ghostly traces of an old wooden gallery, is a protected monument, and its lively afterlife as a café is what makes it such an easy and rewarding stop on a walk through the Voorkempen countryside just north of Antwerp.