12. Grand Eldorado Cinema

Inaugurated in the autumn of 1933, the Eldorado Cinema is a remarkable example of the luxurious “exclusive” cinemas that emerged in the 1930s. Built to rival the Métropole on Rue Neuve, its original single auditorium with 2,700 seats was divided in the 1970s. Now operated by the UGC group, it nevertheless remains the largest cinema in the capital and a rare gem of Brussels Art Deco. The venue features magnificent gilded stucco bas-reliefs depicting scenes inspired by African imagery—inviting the viewer to escape, while also bearing witness to the colonial propaganda of the past.