De Tramstatie

Photos and words by Cliff Lucas.
Edited by Breandán Kearney.

Café Society is a photographic series which celebrates the spaces at the heart of Belgian beer culture. See more here.

Peter Henderikx (59)—the youngest of the five Henderikx brothers—took over Café De Tramstatie (“Tram Station Café”) in Emblem village 25 years ago from his parents. His intention from the start was to close the café, family-owned since 1963, and curate a museum exhibiting enamel beer signs and antique advertising. For five years, he did just that—periodically welcoming small crowds of friends, family, and local enthusiasts to enjoy his expansive collection. Eventually, the café returned in response to the popularity of its enamel sign fair, held annually in August. De Tramstatie is still a family show: Robin Henderikx (66)—the middle brother and a retired chef—can be found with a cue in hand, playing his beloved 3-ball carambole billiards on a pocketless felt table not far from the 1930s Chevrolet pickup which is parked inside the café. Peter’s daughter, Lennie Henderikx (27), splits her time between a home nursing career and pouring beers for regulars who hang out in the tiny, well-decorated drinking room named by Het Laatste Nieuws as the most beautiful smoking area in Belgium. Harry Henderikx (68), the oldest of the five and often cloaked in a flannel button-down, worked at his parents’ fish shop, Emblemse Vishandel, alongside Alfons Henderikx (67) and Ivan Henderikx (62) until their respective retirements. Now they gather as a family at De Tramstatie on Tuesdays. And two Sundays a year, Robin Henderikx—“I’m the chef”—cooks eggs and bacon on four stove tops out back, for his four brothers and the hundreds of guests that stop by.