5 Best Places to Eat in Brussels
One thing I never fail to do whenever I travel somewhere is searching all over the internet where I should eat. In this blog post, I will be giving my honest review of the 5 best places I ate in Brussels in no particular order. It will include a variety of dessert spots, traditional food and random cravings so there’s a little bit of everything to help you plan your trip better.
FYI I will not be including any fries recommendations in this blog post. Honestly, I don’t really understand the hype behind it since I personally think it’s just alright and bel
Table of Contents:
Maison Dandoy
Mary Chocolaterie
Nuetnigenough
Fin de Siecle
Poke House
Maison Dandoy
🏢 Type of Store: Desserts - Waffles + Biscuits
📍 Address: Galerie du Roi 2, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium
💷 Cost Range: €10 - €20
⭐ Personal Rating: 7/10 ⭐
Maison Dandoy is a popular dessert shop which was highly recommended by the internet and by some friends. A couple must-haves in the store: the speculoos and waffles.
Speculoos
Speculoos is better known in the UK as Biscoff. It’s a thin biscuit that packs a crunch even after a couple of days. It has a distinct flavour that reminds you of a comforting oat drink - it’s not too sweet (the ultimate asian compliment) but can be quite dry if it’s eaten on its own.
I like to eat it with a cup of milk or as a waffle topping since it gives a nice texture and doesn’t make you feel like you’re eating straight up diabetes even after munching a couple of them.
Waffles
There are two types of waffles that are sold at Maison Dandoy: Brussels Waffles (bottom waffle in the picture above) and Liège Waffles (top waffle in the picture above).
The main difference between the two types of waffles is that the brussels waffles have a fluffier texture whereas liège waffles are crunchier and a little sweeter. I personally like the liège waffles more since it doesn’t get soggy from the toppings as easily and it’s just nicer to chew.
Chocolaterie Mary
🏢 Type of Store: Chocolatier
📍 Address: Lombardstraat 28B, 1000 Brussel, Belgium
💷 Cost Range: €1 - €10 per piece
⭐ Personal Rating: 7.5/10 ⭐
The customer service is top tier. If you’re a new customer, they will tell you a little history behind the main chocolatier, Mary, her love for chocolate and how she became a patented royal chocolatier. They also speak english which made the experience a lot easier on our end!
You can choose a box from a variety of designs that’s paired with a matching bag and choose any chocolate that is on display for a fixed price. The designs were initially hand-drawn by Mary (if i’m not mistaken) which adds a cute detail to things.
We chose a variety of chocolate favourites from the Queen and King, their most popular chocolate, a coconut flavoured one and some chocolate truffles. All of them were really good - but you can also ask the staff for some recommendations based on your preferences.
They also make seasonal chocolate. We saw some that looked exactly like chicken eggs and stored on a carton which was adorable!
Poke House
🏢 Type of Store: Poke Bowls
📍 Address: Rue Sainte-Catherine 37, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium
💷 Cost Range: €10 - €20
⭐ Personal Rating: 6.5/10 ⭐
Poke House ticked all the right spots when I had really strong food cravings for salmon poke bowl. If you’re not a raw fish kind of guy, don’t worry! They also have cooked meat and fish, and vegetarian options as well.
We ordered a salmon and a chicken katsu poke bowl, and it was so good! It really hits the spot if you’re used to eating rice regularly at home and start having that itch for it. In most places in Brussels, you’ll usually get some form of a potato as your source of carbs which taste good but, you know, rice hits different.
The salmon sashimi didn’t have a heavy fishy taste and it was drenched in a sweet sesame-soy sauce mixture. However, don’t assume that everywhere in Brussels will have amazing seafood because I’ve walked into a couple asian restaurants and sometimes they have it on display, and you could tell it’s been there for a good while.
The toppings on both bowls were generous, but if you’re picky and don’t like some of the toppings like me, you will still end up paying the same price regardless if you asked to remove it. I ordered it online using Uber Eats, but you might be able to negotiate adding more of the other toppings instead when removing in the store but it should still be on somewhat equal value to what you removed.
Nuetnigenough
🏢 Type of Store: Traditional Belgium Food
📍 Address: Rue du Lombard 25, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium
💷 Cost Range: €20 - €30
⭐ Personal Rating: 8/10
Nuetnigenough is a small restaurant that sells delicious traditional Belgium food. There’s only a handful of tables, so I recommend going there early. They also don’t take any reservations, so it’s first come first serve.
We ordered the Flemish beef stew with St-Bernardus Prior and Meatballs "à la Gantoise". Each main dish comes with a side dish of either stoemp (i.e. mashed potatoes and other root vegetables), belgium fries or vegetables. If you want a closer look into their menu, you can look here.
Between the two orders, the meatballs were way better than than the beef stew. The main reason is because the beef stew flavour is quite overpowering. Maybe if it was a little milder, it would’ve tasted better? After having a bite of it, it’s hard to taste anything else.
For the side dishes, I will always choose the stoemp over the belgium fries any day, and you can’t change my mind! The stoemp is so smooth and even though it looks a little colourful, it taste just like mash potatoes (if you’re worried about the taste). It also just makes a better side of carbs to go with any of the main dish you order. Personally, the only time fries are acceptable is if they’re with a burger or a kebab.
Fin de Siecle
🏢 Type of Store: Traditional Belgium Food
📍 Address: Rue des Chartreux 9, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium
💷 Cost Range: €15 - €30
⭐ Personal Rating: 8.5/10 ⭐
Fin de Siecle is another good traditional Belgium restaurant. It has more tables compared to Nuetnigenough, so it’s easier to find a seat but it also doesn’t accept reservations. For the menu, it’s written on a chalkboard on the wall and in front of the store in French (i think), so you’ll have to translate it yourself but you can order in English just fine.
We ordered the Carbonades à la bière (a.k.a. Belgium beef and beer stew) served with a side of stoemp and some spare ribs served with a jacket potato and salad.
For this meal, the beef stew stole the show for sure. The stoemp was ridiculously smooth, almost a melt in your mouth consistency and it paired with the stew perfectly. The spare ribs tasted average, but it makes up for it with quantity and definitely gives you your money’s worth. The salad also tasted better compared the one we had in Nuetnigenough.
We also ordered a belgium beer to share, since we heard that we had to try it at least once but it was too bitter for our taste. It could’ve been because we chose a bad pairing since we don’t really know our alcohol, so I would still suggest trying if you’re a fan of beer and maybe you’ll have better luck on it.
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May your passports be full, and see you in the next post!
