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International in Belgium


International in Belgium

As a small country in the centre of western Europe, the cuisine is influenced not only by the surrounding countries but also by many other countries. This is also emphasized by many foreigners coming to this country to make a living here, for instance by starting a restaurant. You can find all types of restaurants:
  • French/Belgian: A traditional Belgian restaurant serves the kind of food you will also find in the best French restaurants. Of course there are local differences: at the coast (in France as well as in Belgium) you have a better chance to find some good seafood, like mussels, turbot, sole or the famous North Sea shrimp. In the southern woods of the Ardennes (remember the battle of the Bulge?), you are better off choosing game or local fish like trout.
  • English/Irish: There are Irish bars and pubs everywhere and Belgium is no exception, try the Schuman area of Brussels for more Irish pubs than you can shake a stick at. There is also an English pub just off of Place de la Monnaie in central Brussels.
  • American: There are McDonald's or lookalikes in most every town. The Belgian variant is called "Quick". You may also find a local booth serving sausages, hot dogs or hamburgers. Try it: the meat tastes the same, but the bread is much better. Ketchup in this region is bland and made with less sugar (even the Heintz brand). Pizza Hut, Domino's, and Subway also have establishments. There are no real American restaurants, although there is an American bar on the Toison d'Or in Brussels that serves food.
  • Mexican: Only in the cities and rather costly for only medium quality. ChiChi's (near Bourse) and Pablo's (near Port des Namur) serve Mexican American food, neither of which would be considered a good value by American standards. ChiChi's uses reconstituted meats. Pablo's uses higher quality meat, but you pay a premium for it.
  • Chinese: They have a long tradition of restaurants in Belgium. Rather cheap, but an acceptable quality.
  • German/Austrian: Maxburg in the Schuman area (next to Spicy Grill) makes a good schnitzel.
  • Greek/Spanish/Italian: Like all over the world, nice, rather cheap, with a good atmosphere and typical music (Greek: Choose meat, especially lamb) (Spanish: Choose paella and tapas) (Italian: Choose anything).
  • Japanese/Thai: You usually find them only in the cities and they are rather expensive, but they give you great quality. The prices and thequality are both satisfying in a concentrated cluster of Thai restaurants near Bourse station. Avoid Phat Thai though if you don't want disruptions - as they let pan handlers and flower pushers enter and carry out their "work".
  • Arabic/Moroccan: Rather cheap, with a great variety of local dishes, especially with lamb; no fish or pork or beef.
  • Turkish: Rather cheap, with a great variety of local dishes, especially with chicken and lamb and also vegetarian dishes, dishes with fish are rare; no pork or beef.
  • Belgium offers a wide selection of other international restaurants.

  • The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Belgium


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    Belgium Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.

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