The Berlaymont (sometimes nicknamed "the Berlaymonster" or "le Berlaymonstre" in French) is an office building in Brussels, Belgium that houses the headquarters of the European Commission, which is the executive of the European Union (EU). The structure is located at Schuman roundabout at 200 Rue de la Loi, in what is known as the "European district". The building has housed the European Commission since its construction, and has become a symbol of the Commission (its name becoming a metonymy for the Commission) and the European presence in Brussels. The Commission itself is spread over some 60 odd buildings, but the Berlaymont is the institution's headquarters, being the seat of the President of the European Commission and its College of Commissioners. The building, under the provisional name "Centre Administratif Europe", was designed by Lucien de Vestel. It was directly inspired by the 1958 secretariat building of UNESCO in Paris.

The Justus Lipsius building is a building in Brussels (Belgium) which has been the headquarters of the Council of the European Union since 1995. The building is located in the European quarter at Rue de la Loi 175 next to the Schuman roundabout and opposite the Berlaymont building of the European Commission. Like most state buildings in the EU district its architecture is very modern and functional. Many architects, engineers and firms from several Member States of the European Union participated in that large-scale operation. The result was the "Justus Lipsius" building of the Council. It has a total surface of 215,000 m2 (with 24 km of corridors.), divided into three distinct but closely linked parts: the Conference Centre, the Secretariat and the substructure. The building is named after Justus Lipsius, a Flemish philologist and humanist, who previously lent his name to a street that was removed to make way for the large complex.

The Residence Palace is composed of three buildings and a press center. The buildings were constructed in the 1920s and feature a mix of Art Deco and Postmodern architectural styles. The major architects that had a hand in the design over time include Michale Polak, Philippe Samyn, and Buro Happold. The buildings were first envisions as a luxurious apartment block that would serve the Brussels bourgeoisie. In the 1940s, the residents were forced to vacate the building as it because the headquarters of the occupying German forces during World War II. Following liberation, the building was used by the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force and the Second Tactical Air Force and then became administrative office for the Belgian government. Today, the complex has different uses. The Belgian government continues to use portions of the building. New apartments are under construction in the courtyard area and the pre-war swimming pool, restaurant and theater have been maintained. Ongoing renovations have occurred over the years and in 2004 an international design competition was held to remodel the Bloc-A building to house the Council of the European Union and the European Council. The renovation is nearing completion, but has faced delays.

The 206-foot, 17-story Charlemagne Building is part of the European Quarter of Brussels and is home to the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Trade and the Directorate-General for Enlargement. A Directorate-General is similar to a department or government ministry. The Directorate-General for Trade’s focus is to secure solidarity, security and prosperity for in Europe relating to manufactured goods, intellectual property, investment and services. The Directorate-General for Enlargement deals with matter related to the expansion of the European Union (EU). Over the years, the EU has expanded from six Member States to 27 members. Architect Jacques Cuisinier designed the building and construction was completed in 1967. The building recently underwent a renovation between 1995 and 1998 by Helmut Jahn, an American architect born in Germany. That renovation replaced the concrete exterior with the glass that is seen today. The exterior of the building along Rue de la Loi features several whimsical bronze statues of young girls. These eight statues are the work Belgian sculptor Rene Julien and were erected in this location in 1998. In 2010, the building was under consideration to serve as the headquarters of the newly formed European External Section Service (EESS), an organization that manages the EUs response to crisis. This ended up being rejected, as the EESS wanted to maintain an appearance of separation from the two other Directorate-Generals that were already located in the building.

The 181-foot, 15-story Lex Building is a government office in the European Quarter of Brussels. The building was constructed over a two year period and completed in 2006. The façade is made of a glass curtain system. Prior to construction of the Lex, an old mansion on the site had to be demolished. Instead of trying to renovate or incorporate the old building, it was demolished in favor of starting with a blank slate and designing a building that could suit the end users needs more appropriately. The desire for additional government offices was driven by the fact that the European Union (EU) was expanded in based upon the Treaty of Accession 2003 with the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia, and Slovakia. The design for the building came out of an international competition, with Belgian architects Jasper-Eyers having the winning design. The design features two opposing shells. The building served as an annex to the Council of Ministers, which represents the Member States’ governments. Any acts that are relevant to the lives of EU citizens or have a large international impact are adopted by the Council, typically in conjunction with the European Parliament.

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) Building, which is also known as the Delors Building, is the home of the EESC. It was named after the French economist and politician, Jacques Delors, who was a prominent President of the European Commission from 1985 to 1994. He was the only president of the European Commission to serve three terms. The EESC is an assembly of employer organizations, trade unions and other representative groups of related interest. The EESC was established in 1957 under the Treaty of Rome, with the goal of establishing a single market out of differing economic interest groups. The EESC acts in a consultancy role, however, based upon provisions of the Treaty of Maastricht, the EESC has influence in the areas of social policy, environment, education, health, consumer protection and indirect taxation, among other areas. The EESC provides input on subjects relating to European integration and issues opinion papers on various topics. There are 344 members of the EESC and membership is proportional to the population of each EU state. The highest representation of members is from Germany, France, Italy and United Kingdom, with 24 members each. Malta, with five members has the smallest representation.

The Espace Léopold is a collection of buildings that house the European Parliament, a legislative chamber of the European Union (EU). The building boasts a Postmodern architectural style and was designed by Atelier Espace Léopold with additional assistance from Michel Boucquillon. Construction started in 1989, the building opened in 1993, and construction was complete in 1995. Expansions to the building occurred, with the last expansion completed in 2008. The EU has many institutions in Brussels, so it made sense to have a place for the European Parliament as well, though the official seat of the Parliament is in Strasbourg, France. The public may tour the building as long as there are no Parliament meetings being held. It is free and an audio guide is provided. There is also a visitor’s center which provides more information on the complex. The European Parliament has an impressive collection of over 360 paintings and sculptures and they are displayed throughout the buildings Outside of the Paul-Henri Spaak building of the complex is May Claerhout’s “Europe” statues, which depicts the figure Europa. She is depicted as being supported by a mass of people, but also separate from them. Europa carries an “e” symbol, which is the currency symbol of the euro.