We Dutch always make jokes about Belgium, but to be fair, they got us beat with everything that truly matters in life: better food, better beer, better music, better footballers. If only they would learn how to pave roads....
A few years ago, I drove from The Hague to France. You could tell instantly when you crossed the border into and out or Belgium. The roads were AWFUL in Belgium.
@WizardOfOss: I lived with two Dutch some years ago and they used to prepare a strange but tasty Dutch dish - simply put, a kind of roulade of mashed potatoes, filled with green salad and peanut butter. Do you know the name of this dish and how to prepare it ?
@@swissfoodie3542 this sounds a lot like andijvie (endive) stamppot, but the use of peanut butter would be new to me. But maybe some kind of fusion version with an Indonesian satay twist?
It may be well a cliché, but as a Belgian I think Dutchs have an internal sun while we are more materialists (like pleasures of life were a consolation for all misfortunes and wars our small territory had to endure).
Belgian people don't eat waffles with chocolate sauce, cream or strawberries, it's a tourist thing. And for the veggies : there is not just muscels, fish, beef stew, rabbit, horse (!) etc but you'd find a lot of veggie/world cuisine snackbars in the major cities which have veggie/vegan options. Like poke bowl, pizza, pasta, falafel, currys, veggie durum (rollo) ...
Whenever I want to remember my time in Belgium, I just drink a bunch of delirium. That hangover the next morning always reminds me of how I felt every morning in 🇧🇪
There are actually 3 distinct different kinds of waffles we have regularly. The ones you showed in the video are Liège waffles. They are made from a risen dough with sugar pearls in it. We usually don't put anything on it. Another kind is Brussels waffles, which are made from more of a pancake batter and we usually do put whipped cream on these. The third kind can only be found at fun faires and markets and those are the Laquemans or Galetten. They are my absolute favorite: a crispy thin waffle that's sliced open and filled with a dark syrup with molasses.
*Excellent list, Mark.* Belgium is one of my highest rated food countries! *waffles* - Folks need to know there are two kinds of Belgian waffles - Brussels and Liege. Brussels are made with a thin yeast batter so the waffles are perfectly rectangular, light and airy. Liege are made with a ball of dough with chunks of sugar; oval with irregular edges; thick and chewy. Both delicious. *white asparagus* - In season you have got to try the asparagus a la Flamande...often served with frites. 😆 It’s a national dish. Perfect lunch.
meatballs with cherries in cherry sauce with a good piece of bread , a Flemish classic. Also skip all pils beers of around 5% you can drink these anywhere in the world. Go for the beers above 6%.
As a Belgian: - 1 pot of mussels is actually considered a normal portion for 1 person.; we like our food innit fam - the chicken dish is called "vol-au-vent" You should visit Ghent too if you didn't :)
In my youth we had alot of family dinners with pans of mussels. So I grew up with mussels and I always found them fantastic. Mussels steamed in Trippel Beer along with fries is still in my top 3 most favourite dishes, you can wake me up for that! Mussels and also waffles is not only typical for Belgium but also The Netherlands. But as a Dutchman I have to admit the Belgians absolutely nail the way they prepare and serve mussels and serve waffles. They do it better then we do (personal opinion). Also a stoofpotje is an absolute marvelous Belgian dish. I live about 20 KM away from the border with Belgium but food and drinks-wise I think my taste belongs in Belgium :) I take my Dutch hat off for our Belgian friends. Respect :)
The Belgian waffles you can buy on the street used to be without toppings. Most Belgians still prefer them that way (they are sweet enough). I like them hen they are still a bit doughy inside. Sometimes they prebake a few (for the busy moments) and warm them up when you ask them, but this way they taste less well.
Worked in Ghent for several weeks on a project. Fabulous people, tremendous food, and oh man the beer (Westmalle Dubbel is my favorite)!!!!!! Note that mussels are seasonal. Just go there, people.
Belgium is amazing. We watched an earlier video of yours when we went to Belgium in 2016. Belgium IS beautiful food. Brussels, Brugge, Ghent, & Dinant are enchanting. Hope to get to Antwerp the next go around! Thank you for your videos & it’s nice to see your family in the new video content.
as a belgian, here´s my advice, stay far, far away from Antwerp on your next and start Limburg & De Kempen, less rules, more friendly, normal people. Drop a dm if you. I´d be more then happy to show you around belgians finest. Beside of the cathedral and 2- 3 more buildings, Antwerp is just a lost hole to me.
@@billibabkus1917 Euhm no, dont stay away from Antwerp?? What lol? It depends on what the people want to see on their visit. Antwerp is a lot nicer than Brussels imo. As a tourist visiting the country it is definitely a must. If they want to see more rural, natural things or go for walks etc, sure go to de Kempen en Limburg.
@@billibabkus1917 Shit advice, regardless on your personal opinion of the city it's one of the must sees in Flanders, certainly over fucking Limburg of all places.
Hey Mark, I noticed you forgot to mention one staple of Belgium, the "frituur"! In case you have not been to one, you have to travel back to Belgium and do a video on this topic (yes, I think it deserves a video just for itself)
Belgium is the European contry I have visited the most, a couple of times a year for the last 20 yeats and I enjoy most of the food. Unfortunately I'm allergic to mussels, so I never eat that. But I love tgh charcoal grilled bbq ham hock. My favorite place fot that was the Brussels restaurant Aux Paves de Bruxelles which unfortunately hasn't survived the pandemic. I'm not too much of a beer drinker, but I love Belgian lambic /geuze.
Thanks for the Bruges footage! I'm glad you have a lot of great pre-Covid footage to share with us! Been through Brussels and stayed in the country side so never had a chance to taste all this great food, but next time I will!
The last dish with chicken is called vol-au-vent (French [voll o vawn]). Other great dishes to try out are Gentse waterzooi (rich broth with fine vegetables and chicken), Liege meatballs (meatballs served with a gravy made with apple syrup) and asperges à la Flamande (asperagus prepared in cleared butter, eggs and parsil). Do try not to eat at the most touristic sites as these - like everywhere - often serve less quality and charge more… As for beers… what can I say? Even I haven’t tried all of them - there’s simply too much good stuff. Especially local or micro breweries have some excellent products made… My favourites: - Karmeliet 8.4% - Duvel 8.5% - Keizer Karel 8% (as shown in the vid) - Steenuilke 6.5% - St Bernardus 12 10% - Chimay Blue 9% - … Do visit Gent, Brugge, Ieper, Aalst, Kortrijk, Liege, Dinant, Antwerp, …
Belgium is a lovely mixture of a french cooking tradition with a germanic brewing tradition. 🇧🇪🖤💛❤ With even higer refinement of food/beer quaity than in France or Germany.
As a former Belgian,Yes you eat very well in Belgium.If you eat moules (mussles) you don't have to use your fiingers -I never did- but small special forks. Very nice vlog,thank you !
Belgian food to try before you die: Starters > Cheese or shrimp croquettes, in season Green Asparagus dutch way, Tomato and grey shrimp cocktail, Main courses all served with fries or potato croquettes > Mussels, Flemish beef stew , Vol au vent, Americain prépare, Rabbit with plum sauce, Steak Bearnaise other main courses Gentse Waterzooi, Chicory rolls with ham and cheese with mashed potatoes, Meatloaf or meatballs with black cheries in syrup warm, Stoemp with sausage
Mussels are normally, and it's the best way anyway, eaten with brown bread. Great anyway to mention the other classic/traditional foods. Rabbits in prunes is delicious, Waterzooi is heavenly, Ox tongue in madiera saus with mashed potatoes blows your mind out, and not forgetting Hutsepot with pig tail,feet and snout should be on the top of your list.
Important warning! Yes, mussels are great, but they're not available all year round. They are more or less a seasonal product. The new season starts in the first half of july and they're available until early spring (+/- april), but towards the end the quality might drop off somewhat. For that reason those last few months you will find them in stores to prepare yourself, but many restaurants will not put them on their menu's anymore. So if you come in march 'till early juli, it might turn out to be impossible to find mussels. The same goes for a few vegetable based Belgian specialties that have not been mentioned in the clip. First we have the asparagus, which are typically Belgian. They are used in a variety of dishes, often combined with (white) fish, or in soup. They taste fantastic, but they are only served from april to june, which coincidently largely overlaps the period that there are no mussels. We also have a very unique oven-dish with chicory: we call it "gegratineerd witlof" ("chicory with grilled cheese") or just "witlof in de oven", meaning "chicory in the oven" (not very far fetched huh). It's pre-coocked chicory rolled in cooked ham, covered in a béchamel sauce and topped with a cheese grating (and then obviously put in the oven to grill the cheese), generally served with mashed potatoes. Not everybody likes the bitterness of the chicory, but if you do, it's amazing. This dish is mostly available during the winter months.
planning on going to Europe again this July or August. Will have to watch your videos for all destinations plan to visit! One of the Best youtuber for travel
I'm from Belgium (and you're spot on with all these foods!!!), and after a bad incident involving Maltese tap water (which before then I'd always thought was safe to drink anywhere in Europe, UK or USA) I've started to ask about tap water in any hotel I stay in. The best reaction so far was in New York when I asked if the tap water was okay to drink and the man just looked at me and my brother with a look of utter horror at the concept and asked if we were from London...still not sure about the correlation but the water was perfectly fine! 😂🤷♀️
Hey mark, great video! I am happy to see that you are enjoying my country! I must agree with you on you list of good foods, i Enjoy them all myselfs. I would like to recommend you Witloof met Kaas en Ham (chicory with ham and cheese, cooked in the oven) , that is also a very good national dish. Greetings from Leuven! BTW, Real Belgians eat a bowl of mussels all by them selfs XD
Nice one, Wolter. FYI - the friets/frites are either double or triple fried. First to seal the fry. Second to cook the fry (fries can be served after this stage). Third for extra crispiness (what often happens at the best frietkots). Each frying uses a different oil temperature. Actually, the cooking starts earlier. The friet are normally par-cooked first by blanching (placed in small batches into boiling water, removed and chilled in iced water, before being allowed to dry thoroughly). The blanching stops the starches in the potato fry from caramalising to an unappealing dark brown colour thereby maintaining a lovely, evenly golden, fry appearance.
Vanilla icecream served with hot chocolate sauce and (optional) whipped cream is known as a "Dame Blanche" (White Lady) everywhere in Belgium including Flanders as there is no Flemish translation. A very common dessert . The whipped cream is optional for those people "watching their diet". Riiiiight.
Another great dessert is a Banana Split. It's a Dame Blanche with banana added. In it's original form it's a spliced Banana with icecream and chocolat sauce in between, hence the name.
Also... don't miss the chocolate in Belgium! IMO, it's the best chocolate in the world and there are so many shoppes providing free samples that are all delicious! My personal favorite brands are Dolfin & Galler but you'd be hard presses to find any "bad" chocolate there!
The reason Belgian chocolate is so good is because it's made with 100% pure cacao butter. No other cheap vegetable oils allowed. By law. You wanna use vegetable oils; no problem but you will not be allowed to name that 'Belgian chocolate'. It's just 'chocolate' in that case. Beware; this kind of chocolate is being sold in Belgium. So make sure to look for the 'Belgian chocolate' markings on the package. Don't expect the cheapest chocolate in the supermarket is 'Belgian'... Also; in Belgium, we tend to grind the beans finer so the chocolate will have that typical smooth, soft texture. The machines that can grind that fine are also invented in Belgium.
You need to taste all the sauces on the fries, not only ketchup or Mayo. An average Fries place will propose close to 20 different sauces... just a tip
Waffles and the chips (fries for the rest of the world! 🤣). And those Belgians sure know how to make chocolate. Thanks for the video, I’m now hungry! Xx
What I ate and enjoyed: - Mussels - Fries - Bitterballen - Stroopwafel - Waffles - Icecream - Chocolate - Had fantastic lasagna at the spot near the Delirium pub but can't recall the name - Beer... beer and did I mention BEER! :-) The steak houses and more formal (fancy) restaurants were a bit... meh. The interesting side dishes tended to be the star of the show while the main meat seemed to be somewhat of an after thought. My best experiences were at smaller restaurants/cafes.
Loved your video Mark, and you definitely pointed out the must try foods in Belgium. Other foods that are less common in restaurants but still really worth seeking out are: Forel Ardennois (Trout of the Ardennes), Asparagus a la Flamande (White Asparagus - you will find this EVERYWHERE in spring, the Germans make a really good version of this too), Paling int Groen (Eel in green herb sauce), Gentse waterzooi (a chicken- of fish soup with green vegetables), zeetong (sole fried with fries) and Limburgse vlaai (a tart filled with fruit). Enjoy!
This guy is giving some good tips, however when in Brugge (Brughes) definately go toe brouwerij halve maan and do their tour. This brewery makes some amazing beer in various styles. Do go there for a sampling. and a little way, about a street away from them there is this chocolatshop which sells handpoured belgium chocolat by the kg-blok (as in a solid blok of hand poured chocolat of 1 kilogram). For any chocoholic, i can recomend
A general tip I would like to give Is to ask a local what are the best restaurants are espesially in places like Brugge becouse many are tourist traps. I know we are not the most friendly people and like to keep to ourselves. That doesn't mean we can't help you.
It is also always worth to ask if there is a local specialty. In Nivelles, which is a small, but quite old city in Wallonia (southern part of Belgium), there is regional Tarte al d'jote which you will not meet anywhere else, and which of course is amazing :)
as a belgian croquettes are from the netherlands we are not very proud of it steak with fries and champigonsauce and mayo thats alsoa belgian classic lovved by the flemish people
The secret of why Belgian fries (the original French fries) are so good... they are boiled in beef fat. They aren't good for your heart but my Lord!!!! They are so good!
You have to try everything from Trappist beers to La Chouffe and Duvel. I loved the mussels, and the fries were exactly what I expected. I went from Antwerp, Ghent, to Bruges then I went to Brussels and Namur. My great great grandma was from Namur and it was amazing to visit The Citadel and the tours. The food in Namur was amazing
I wish I could have gone to Belgium with you guys! I stayed with some pretty boring healthy dog sport people that didn't drink and did not expose me to anything yummy. I begged the wife to take me to a chocolate shop so I could bring home some. But I didn't have waffles or anything like that.
am sorry you don't know me I was browsing through my suggestion list when I came across your eye catching profile and thought of knowing more about you,I hope you are not mad? Where are you from originally
my man!! Finally going to Belgium and you dominate the content about it.. Thats about to change :) we should have a beer sometime if you are ever in Miami!
Great video. Love it. Just arrived in Brussels and loved the vibe of the restaurant that your kids had eaten the mussels. What’s the name and it’s location? My kids would love to try
I always felt like the Belgian cuisine doesn't look that particular, it felt more like something we eat everyday, but I am curious how they handle those. I would love to try them.
Not sure how well-known this is, but Belgians actually invented fries. (then the French tried to still the idea and that's where you get the term 'French fries' from in America)
First-hand experience: the Belgian waffles ARE amazing! Not to be duplicated anywhere else I’ve found. They’re prepared in a very specific way & are super-delicious!😋
A quick tip be carefull with the beers. I have seen tourists ruin a day of their vacation becouse they thought they could drink our beers like german ones and end up with a terrible hangover.
You can pretty much get mussels all year long, but the best are from september to begin of march. Oh, and REAL Brussels waffles are crispy, not the ones you showed, which are softer and also good. Don't be shocked at the price of eating out, especially in the tourist traps of Brussels, Bruges, Ghent.
Its AMAZING! Your children seem to try everything thats local to eat, and not just ask for McDonalds everyware. How do you two get them to TRY everything? (Apart from fried beatles in Laos!?!)
Thanks Mark for another great video. Just a tip and a request: Moules et Frites are indeed amazing and I could eat bucket loads of mussels (my favorite is with wine, garlic and herbs). In terms of pronunciation, you did really well. But you dont say Moules, only Moul (the "es" is silent). For all your videos it would be very helpful to mention when you where there. So much has changed since COVID-19, and knowing if you where there before the pandemic, or now, would really help to judge how the situation is in a particular destination.
I was so impressed by the food in Belgium being my first time time (I had no real concept of BE food). When I did interrail with an ex, we had 1 day left over. So we went to Brussels from Amsterdam, tried the food, see the city & returned to Amsterdam🚊
The concept of making fries may have started in Belgium. It used to be that they would fry fish, but in winter months (as rivers froze), potatoes were the food of choice. In addition, I would recommend waterzooi, a cream, egg yolk, and broth-based Flemish soup made with chicken, or fish. Crepes are another option.
We Dutch always make jokes about Belgium, but to be fair, they got us beat with everything that truly matters in life: better food, better beer, better music, better footballers. If only they would learn how to pave roads....
A few years ago, I drove from The Hague to France. You could tell instantly when you crossed the border into and out or Belgium. The roads were AWFUL in Belgium.
@WizardOfOss: I lived with two Dutch some years ago and they used to prepare a strange but tasty Dutch dish - simply put, a kind of roulade of mashed potatoes, filled with green salad and peanut butter. Do you know the name of this dish and how to prepare it ?
@@swissfoodie3542 this sounds a lot like andijvie (endive) stamppot, but the use of peanut butter would be new to me. But maybe some kind of fusion version with an Indonesian satay twist?
Better music?
It may be well a cliché, but as a Belgian I think Dutchs have an internal sun while we are more materialists (like pleasures of life were a consolation for all misfortunes and wars our small territory had to endure).
As a Belgian, I can confirm that this video is made of 100% good advice. But don't be scared of the stronger beers, they tast better.
It's named after the devil but it tastes like heaven!!!!
@@louisvermorgen7059 and if you drink more than 5-6 u go to hell :D (the next day)
Belgian beers have spoiled me. I just can't have any other beer.
Ja da’s waar
Belgian people don't eat waffles with chocolate sauce, cream or strawberries, it's a tourist thing. And for the veggies : there is not just muscels, fish, beef stew, rabbit, horse (!) etc but you'd find a lot of veggie/world cuisine snackbars in the major cities which have veggie/vegan options. Like poke bowl, pizza, pasta, falafel, currys, veggie durum (rollo) ...
As a Belgian, all he says is completely true!
At the end when he's talking about the coocked chicken breasts: it's called "vol au vent"
Hello 👋
I must say you're beautiful hope you're doing good??
Vuil-e-vent
Whenever I want to remember my time in Belgium, I just drink a bunch of delirium. That hangover the next morning always reminds me of how I felt every morning in 🇧🇪
There are actually 3 distinct different kinds of waffles we have regularly. The ones you showed in the video are Liège waffles. They are made from a risen dough with sugar pearls in it. We usually don't put anything on it. Another kind is Brussels waffles, which are made from more of a pancake batter and we usually do put whipped cream on these. The third kind can only be found at fun faires and markets and those are the Laquemans or Galetten. They are my absolute favorite: a crispy thin waffle that's sliced open and filled with a dark syrup with molasses.
*Excellent list, Mark.* Belgium is one of my highest rated food countries!
*waffles* - Folks need to know there are two kinds of Belgian waffles - Brussels and Liege. Brussels are made with a thin yeast batter so the waffles are perfectly rectangular, light and airy. Liege are made with a ball of dough with chunks of sugar; oval with irregular edges; thick and chewy. Both delicious.
*white asparagus* - In season you have got to try the asparagus a la Flamande...often served with frites. 😆 It’s a national dish. Perfect lunch.
White asparagus à la flamande is a gift from god ♥
I would even say there are more types of waffels in Belgium like the suikerwafel
meatballs with cherries in cherry sauce with a good piece of bread , a Flemish classic. Also skip all pils beers of around 5% you can drink these anywhere in the world. Go for the beers above 6%.
As a Belgian:
- 1 pot of mussels is actually considered a normal portion for 1 person.; we like our food innit fam
- the chicken dish is called "vol-au-vent"
You should visit Ghent too if you didn't :)
Absolutely love your videos, mark!. This one was exactly what I needed!!!
In my youth we had alot of family dinners with pans of mussels. So I grew up with mussels and I always found them fantastic. Mussels steamed in Trippel Beer along with fries is still in my top 3 most favourite dishes, you can wake me up for that! Mussels and also waffles is not only typical for Belgium but also The Netherlands. But as a Dutchman I have to admit the Belgians absolutely nail the way they prepare and serve mussels and serve waffles. They do it better then we do (personal opinion). Also a stoofpotje is an absolute marvelous Belgian dish. I live about 20 KM away from the border with Belgium but food and drinks-wise I think my taste belongs in Belgium :) I take my Dutch hat off for our Belgian friends. Respect :)
Black and white sausage with apple sauce, chicory with ham, cheese sauce and mashed potatoes are also Belgian classics you should definitely try
The Belgian waffles you can buy on the street used to be without toppings. Most Belgians still prefer them that way (they are sweet enough). I like them hen they are still a bit doughy inside. Sometimes they prebake a few (for the busy moments) and warm them up when you ask them, but this way they taste less well.
Worked in Ghent for several weeks on a project. Fabulous people, tremendous food, and oh man the beer (Westmalle Dubbel is my favorite)!!!!!! Note that mussels are seasonal. Just go there, people.
The beer is a wonder all its own :)
Belgium is amazing. We watched an earlier video of yours when we went to Belgium in 2016. Belgium IS beautiful food. Brussels, Brugge, Ghent, & Dinant are enchanting. Hope to get to Antwerp the next go around! Thank you for your videos & it’s nice to see your family in the new video content.
as a belgian, here´s my advice, stay far, far away from Antwerp on your next and start Limburg & De Kempen, less rules, more friendly, normal people. Drop a dm if you. I´d be more then happy to show you around belgians finest. Beside of the cathedral and 2- 3 more buildings, Antwerp is just a lost hole to me.
@@billibabkus1917 Euhm no, dont stay away from Antwerp?? What lol? It depends on what the people want to see on their visit. Antwerp is a lot nicer than Brussels imo. As a tourist visiting the country it is definitely a must. If they want to see more rural, natural things or go for walks etc, sure go to de Kempen en Limburg.
@@billibabkus1917 Shit advice, regardless on your personal opinion of the city it's one of the must sees in Flanders, certainly over fucking Limburg of all places.
We Belgians are basically the Hobbits of Europe
yeap that's right :D
Giant hobbits :)
Nothing wrong with that!
Im going to visit there soon
Hi from belgium 😊 but for *mussels* take them in the summer when its the season whey better😊
Hey Mark, I noticed you forgot to mention one staple of Belgium, the "frituur"! In case you have not been to one, you have to travel back to Belgium and do a video on this topic (yes, I think it deserves a video just for itself)
Belgium is the European contry I have visited the most, a couple of times a year for the last 20 yeats and I enjoy most of the food. Unfortunately I'm allergic to mussels, so I never eat that. But I love tgh charcoal grilled bbq ham hock. My favorite place fot that was the Brussels restaurant Aux Paves de Bruxelles which unfortunately hasn't survived the pandemic. I'm not too much of a beer drinker, but I love Belgian lambic /geuze.
There's a place in Brussels that cooks mussels in 69 different ways! Awesome, it's called le zinneke
My Favorite Country is Belgium 🇧🇪❤😍
Thanks for the Bruges footage! I'm glad you have a lot of great pre-Covid footage to share with us! Been through Brussels and stayed in the country side so never had a chance to taste all this great food, but next time I will!
The last dish with chicken is called vol-au-vent (French [voll o vawn]).
Other great dishes to try out are Gentse waterzooi (rich broth with fine vegetables and chicken), Liege meatballs (meatballs served with a gravy made with apple syrup) and asperges à la Flamande (asperagus prepared in cleared butter, eggs and parsil).
Do try not to eat at the most touristic sites as these - like everywhere - often serve less quality and charge more…
As for beers… what can I say? Even I haven’t tried all of them - there’s simply too much good stuff. Especially local or micro breweries have some excellent products made…
My favourites:
- Karmeliet 8.4%
- Duvel 8.5%
- Keizer Karel 8% (as shown in the vid)
- Steenuilke 6.5%
- St Bernardus 12 10%
- Chimay Blue 9%
- …
Do visit Gent, Brugge, Ieper, Aalst, Kortrijk, Liege, Dinant, Antwerp, …
I love Belgium! Lived there for a couple of years as a kid. We always love going back there.
That's awesome!
Belgium is a lovely mixture of a french cooking tradition with a germanic brewing tradition. 🇧🇪🖤💛❤
With even higer refinement of food/beer quaity than in France or Germany.
If french and germans find this message one day they're going to put a bounty on your head 🤣
As a former Belgian,Yes you eat very well in Belgium.If you eat moules (mussles) you don't have to use your fiingers -I never did- but small special forks.
Very nice vlog,thank you !
Belgian food to try before you die: Starters > Cheese or shrimp croquettes, in season Green Asparagus dutch way, Tomato and grey shrimp cocktail, Main courses all served with fries or potato croquettes > Mussels, Flemish beef stew , Vol au vent, Americain prépare, Rabbit with plum sauce, Steak Bearnaise other main courses Gentse Waterzooi, Chicory rolls with ham and cheese with mashed potatoes, Meatloaf or meatballs with black cheries in syrup warm, Stoemp with sausage
Mussels are normally, and it's the best way anyway, eaten with brown bread. Great anyway to mention the other classic/traditional foods. Rabbits in prunes is delicious, Waterzooi is heavenly, Ox tongue in madiera saus with mashed potatoes blows your mind out, and not forgetting Hutsepot with pig tail,feet and snout should be on the top of your list.
Important warning! Yes, mussels are great, but they're not available all year round. They are more or less a seasonal product. The new season starts in the first half of july and they're available until early spring (+/- april), but towards the end the quality might drop off somewhat. For that reason those last few months you will find them in stores to prepare yourself, but many restaurants will not put them on their menu's anymore. So if you come in march 'till early juli, it might turn out to be impossible to find mussels.
The same goes for a few vegetable based Belgian specialties that have not been mentioned in the clip. First we have the asparagus, which are typically Belgian. They are used in a variety of dishes, often combined with (white) fish, or in soup. They taste fantastic, but they are only served from april to june, which coincidently largely overlaps the period that there are no mussels. We also have a very unique oven-dish with chicory: we call it "gegratineerd witlof" ("chicory with grilled cheese") or just "witlof in de oven", meaning "chicory in the oven" (not very far fetched huh). It's pre-coocked chicory rolled in cooked ham, covered in a béchamel sauce and topped with a cheese grating (and then obviously put in the oven to grill the cheese), generally served with mashed potatoes. Not everybody likes the bitterness of the chicory, but if you do, it's amazing. This dish is mostly available during the winter months.
Good info about the Mussels. Merci
planning on going to Europe again this July or August. Will have to watch your videos for all destinations plan to visit! One of the Best youtuber for travel
I'm from Belgium (and you're spot on with all these foods!!!), and after a bad incident involving Maltese tap water (which before then I'd always thought was safe to drink anywhere in Europe, UK or USA) I've started to ask about tap water in any hotel I stay in. The best reaction so far was in New York when I asked if the tap water was okay to drink and the man just looked at me and my brother with a look of utter horror at the concept and asked if we were from London...still not sure about the correlation but the water was perfectly fine! 😂🤷♀️
Mosselen met friet en wafels uit België zijn absoluut top. Jullie maken beide beter dan ons (Nederland). Hoedje af voor de Belgen
Hey mark, great video! I am happy to see that you are enjoying my country! I must agree with you on you list of good foods, i Enjoy them all myselfs. I would like to recommend you Witloof met Kaas en Ham (chicory with ham and cheese, cooked in the oven) , that is also a very good national dish.
Greetings from Leuven!
BTW, Real Belgians eat a bowl of mussels all by them selfs XD
Nice one, Wolter.
FYI - the friets/frites are either double or triple fried. First to seal the fry. Second to cook the fry (fries can be served after this stage). Third for extra crispiness (what often happens at the best frietkots). Each frying uses a different oil temperature.
Actually, the cooking starts earlier. The friet are normally par-cooked first by blanching (placed in small batches into boiling water, removed and chilled in iced water, before being allowed to dry thoroughly). The blanching stops the starches in the potato fry from caramalising to an unappealing dark brown colour thereby maintaining a lovely, evenly golden, fry appearance.
Super Food in Belgium ! The best!
Thank you so much. Keep doing what you're doing. This is a great channel.
If you like the sweeter beers try Triple Karmeliet. As a Belgian its my favourite.
Vanilla icecream served with hot chocolate sauce and (optional) whipped cream is known as a "Dame Blanche" (White Lady) everywhere in Belgium including Flanders as there is no Flemish translation. A very common dessert .
The whipped cream is optional for those people "watching their diet". Riiiiight.
Another great dessert is a Banana Split. It's a Dame Blanche with banana added. In it's original form it's a spliced Banana with icecream and chocolat sauce in between, hence the name.
Also... don't miss the chocolate in Belgium! IMO, it's the best chocolate in the world and there are so many shoppes providing free samples that are all delicious! My personal favorite brands are Dolfin & Galler but you'd be hard presses to find any "bad" chocolate there!
The reason Belgian chocolate is so good is because it's made with 100% pure cacao butter. No other cheap vegetable oils allowed. By law. You wanna use vegetable oils; no problem but you will not be allowed to name that 'Belgian chocolate'. It's just 'chocolate' in that case.
Beware; this kind of chocolate is being sold in Belgium. So make sure to look for the 'Belgian chocolate' markings on the package. Don't expect the cheapest chocolate in the supermarket is 'Belgian'...
Also; in Belgium, we tend to grind the beans finer so the chocolate will have that typical smooth, soft texture. The machines that can grind that fine are also invented in Belgium.
You need to taste all the sauces on the fries, not only ketchup or Mayo. An average Fries place will propose close to 20 different sauces... just a tip
Andalouse svp!
Waffles and the chips (fries for the rest of the world! 🤣). And those Belgians sure know how to make chocolate. Thanks for the video, I’m now hungry! Xx
looking forward to my Daytrip to Brussels, thanks for the inspiration Wolter (thumbs up)
wow, now another place is on the list we need to visit.
Dude, I really like your love for my country. Maybe we should have a Duvel together when you are back in Belgium 😉
Le Bier BLANCHE..IS MY FAVORITE..And LEFFE..😍😍😍😍😍😍🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺🍺
Mmmm... Stoofvlees met frietjes... 🤗
I also enjoy sauce andalouse on frietjes...
FYI: ketchup on frietjes is considered to be "for kids"... 😎
I sorely miss the Andalouse
one of the best and nicest video I see on the net , great, great description also the kids are excellent , greeting from Mexico ( I am from Belgium )
What I ate and enjoyed:
- Mussels
- Fries
- Bitterballen
- Stroopwafel
- Waffles
- Icecream
- Chocolate
- Had fantastic lasagna at the spot near the Delirium pub but can't recall the name
- Beer... beer and did I mention BEER! :-)
The steak houses and more formal (fancy) restaurants were a bit... meh. The interesting side dishes tended to be the star of the show while the main meat seemed to be somewhat of an after thought. My best experiences were at smaller restaurants/cafes.
This man know what is gourmand. I really like men know good food.
Great Video. Thank you for posting.
Loved your video Mark, and you definitely pointed out the must try foods in Belgium. Other foods that are less common in restaurants but still really worth seeking out are: Forel Ardennois (Trout of the Ardennes), Asparagus a la Flamande (White Asparagus - you will find this EVERYWHERE in spring, the Germans make a really good version of this too), Paling int Groen (Eel in green herb sauce), Gentse waterzooi (a chicken- of fish soup with green vegetables), zeetong (sole fried with fries) and Limburgse vlaai (a tart filled with fruit). Enjoy!
Wow sepertinya sangat lezat dan bergizi
Did you visit Delirium? Bar with a loooots of beer 🍻
That place is insane! At least it was when I was there last.
This guy is giving some good tips, however when in Brugge (Brughes) definately go toe brouwerij halve maan and do their tour. This brewery makes some amazing beer in various styles. Do go there for a sampling. and a little way, about a street away from them there is this chocolatshop which sells handpoured belgium chocolat by the kg-blok (as in a solid blok of hand poured chocolat of 1 kilogram). For any chocoholic, i can recomend
Don't forget the food on our 'kermissen'!! smoutebollen !!!! :)
A general tip I would like to give Is to ask a local what are the best restaurants are espesially in places like Brugge becouse many are tourist traps. I know we are not the most friendly people and like to keep to ourselves. That doesn't mean we can't help you.
We’re literally considered one of the most friendliest countries of Europe?
Do they produce any Beers that are Gluten-free?
It is also always worth to ask if there is a local specialty. In Nivelles, which is a small, but quite old city in Wallonia (southern part of Belgium), there is regional Tarte al d'jote which you will not meet anywhere else, and which of course is amazing :)
as a belgian croquettes are from the netherlands we are not very proud of it steak with fries and champigonsauce and mayo thats alsoa belgian classic lovved by the flemish people
The secret of why Belgian fries (the original French fries) are so good... they are boiled in beef fat. They aren't good for your heart but my Lord!!!! They are so good!
I have been to this place before. Thank you for sharing.
Hello 👋 how you doing dear
Frites, crockets,,,,hummm yummy!
When in Ghent specifically, you have to try cuberdons!! They’re so unique!
Hi there, I love Belgie, my favourite dish is waterzooi. Have you tried it? It’s delicious 😊
fries = frieten :p
Holly in my book :)
other thing then beefstew take (chicken) vole au vent or koninginnenhapje , enjoy :)
Love Bruge, beautiful
It is gorgeous
You have to try everything from Trappist beers to La Chouffe and Duvel. I loved the mussels, and the fries were exactly what I expected. I went from Antwerp, Ghent, to Bruges then I went to Brussels and Namur. My great great grandma was from Namur and it was amazing to visit The Citadel and the tours. The food in Namur was amazing
I wish I could have gone to Belgium with you guys! I stayed with some pretty boring healthy dog sport people that didn't drink and did not expose me to anything yummy. I begged the wife to take me to a chocolate shop so I could bring home some. But I didn't have waffles or anything like that.
Hello 👋
Hope you're doing great??
@@pauldavid8445 hahahahahhaahaha
Hello Marry how you doing? I guess we would have some
MUSSELS #1 BEER #2. FRITES #3 CHOCOLATE #4 WAFFLEES 5
Thank you so much 😊 learned a lot, and it has convinced me to take a trip to lovely Belgium 🇧🇪 (and maybe Luxembourg 🇱🇺 for a few days).
Belgium looks amazing. Started a travel vlog myself after watching your vlogs. Mostly in latin america for now. Hope you can check it out!
Great line: "your bunny is so tasty!"
It was!
Also great: In Belgium they just call them waffles!!
am sorry you don't know me I was browsing through my suggestion list when I came across your eye catching profile and thought of knowing more about you,I hope you are not mad? Where are you from originally
I really hope to hear from you soon
my man!! Finally going to Belgium and you dominate the content about it.. Thats about to change :) we should have a beer sometime if you are ever in Miami!
dit is een heel goede video
A Plate of FRIES AND MAYO AND MEATBALLS .!!!❤🇧🇪🇧🇪🇧🇪🇧🇪🍟🍟🍟🌭🥞🥞🧇🧇🧇🍖🍖🍖🍤🍤🍤🍤
I do like fries!
No Stanisodium-Floride in the Tap Water? Good.
Great video. Love it. Just arrived in Brussels and loved the vibe of the restaurant that your kids had eaten the mussels. What’s the name and it’s location? My kids would love to try
conejo con papas y moules muy bien hecho
Next tipe you visit bruges go to De Haan lovely belgium village at the coast with belle epoque buildings
My favorite chocolates were from The Chocolate Line in Antwerp. My ancestors passed on the Galette recipe, and I loved both Liege and Brussels waffle
Just go to the firtuur and order a Boulet and Mexicano/curryworst and fries with sate kruiden , top it of with some nice sauces like mamout or samurai
I always felt like the Belgian cuisine doesn't look that particular, it felt more like something we eat everyday, but I am curious how they handle those. I would love to try them.
Just got back from Brussels last week
Not sure how well-known this is, but Belgians actually invented fries. (then the French tried to still the idea and that's where you get the term 'French fries' from in America)
Never knew thank you
I need 2 kg for my self 😅and yes we make the best frys in the world
So in Belgium, get mussels in Brussels!
First-hand experience: the Belgian waffles ARE amazing! Not to be duplicated anywhere else I’ve found. They’re prepared in a very specific way & are super-delicious!😋
What a coincidence. About to book my tickets to go to Brugge for the 4th time in 2 years! Haha
#jealous
We Dutch often make fun of our neighbors to the South, but when it comes to food, they're better.
Not setting a high bar to begin with… :)
All freshly made fries have to be fried twice.
1:10 Note that this is only a small portion of fries meant for little children.
A quick tip be carefull with the beers. I have seen tourists ruin a day of their vacation becouse they thought they could drink our beers like german ones and end up with a terrible hangover.
What's MOUHLAY ? Do you mean moules ( MUHL )
If Belgian waffles didn't make the cut we would have been so surprised! They look so amazing, like a true deserts ! 🧇
Topping on waffles ? Very touristy !
You can pretty much get mussels all year long, but the best are from september to begin of march. Oh, and REAL Brussels waffles are crispy, not the ones you showed, which are softer and also good. Don't be shocked at the price of eating out, especially in the tourist traps of Brussels, Bruges, Ghent.
Its AMAZING! Your children seem to try everything thats local to eat, and not just ask for McDonalds everyware. How do you two get them to TRY everything? (Apart from fried beatles in Laos!?!)
Thanks Mark for another great video.
Just a tip and a request:
Moules et Frites are indeed amazing and I could eat bucket loads of mussels (my favorite is with wine, garlic and herbs). In terms of pronunciation, you did really well. But you dont say Moules, only Moul (the "es" is silent).
For all your videos it would be very helpful to mention when you where there. So much has changed since COVID-19, and knowing if you where there before the pandemic, or now, would really help to judge how the situation is in a particular destination.
I was so impressed by the food in Belgium being my first time time (I had no real concept of BE food). When I did interrail with an ex, we had 1 day left over. So we went to Brussels from Amsterdam, tried the food, see the city & returned to Amsterdam🚊
We loved Brugge! Could eat our weight in Moules et Frites!
The concept of making fries may have started in Belgium. It used to be that they would fry fish, but in winter months (as rivers froze), potatoes were the food of choice. In addition, I would recommend waterzooi, a cream, egg yolk, and broth-based Flemish soup made with chicken, or fish. Crepes are another option.