Beer and Chocolate in Brussels
Brussels - the capital of Belgium, the administrative capital of the EU, the headquarter of NATO, and European base for many international companies - is a truly cosmopolitan city. Compared to other European capital cities, Brussels is relatively small in size and number of residents; however there you can meet people from virtually any country in the world. That’s what makes Brussels colourful and multicultural place to live.
In Brussels you can find all kind of food bars and exotic cuisine restaurants - African, Indian,Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese, French, Spanish, Italian even Bulgarian. As for the Belgians their favourite meal is french fries. They eat french fries with any meal, snack or dish. French fries come with hundreds of sauces - from hot sauce Samourai to white sauce with garlic. My all times favourite is sauce andalouse….yummy - I got the recipe for you here!
Another little pleasure not to miss in Brussels is the real and delicious Belgian chocolate - trust me guys, I know what I am talking about. You will find it in all unimaginable shapes, colours, and taste. What makes it different from the traditional chocolate is the amount of cocoa in the chocolate - it gives you a real flavour and leaves this smooth taste in your mouth!!! A piece of advice: if you cannot make up your mind which one to buy, go for the pralines. You can find them everywhere, however some of the best pralines you can ever savour are Neuhaus, Leonidas, Godiva, Galler.
Speaking of chocolate and pastry I can’t skip the famous Belgian waffles. Warm waffles are sold in every cafe, bistro, or food bar in Brussels. You can also buy them on the streets around Grand Place, in every pastry or bakery shop. They come with cherry jam, sugar, chocolate, scoop of ice-cream, and many other sweet flavours. Every city, town, region and village has their proper recipe of making waffles and naturally the waffle is called after it, like the most famous Gaufre de Liège. Personally, some of the best waffles I haver tasted was in Anwerp.
And last but not least I have to honour the Belgian beer. Belgian beer comprises the most varied and numerous collection of high-quality beers in the world and varies from the popular pale lager to the Flemish red beer. There are approximately 125 breweries in Belgium, producing about 500 standard beers. When special one-off beers are included, the total number of brands of Belgian beer exceeds 1000. Therefore it is no surprise that a glass of beer costs less than a cup of coffee. My favourite beer is Duvel, Leffe Blonde, and Kriek! So feel free to order and taste different beers when you go to Belguim!
The flower carpet in Brussels is an absolute must-see. You can admire it every two years on the Grand Place. Don’t miss it out from 14 to 17 August 2008.
More astonishing pictures and video at www.flowercarpet.be
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