Roaming Numeral

Ghent, while beautiful, was definitely hiding its food from us.

We were staying in a gorgeous hostel that was smack-dab in the center of town, and while this gave us the best access to all the nearby scenery and gothic buildings, I suspect that those classic buildings were not easily retrofitted to house a kitchen.

We’d been recommended a few restaurants in the area by our tour guide, but at this point in our trip our wallets had really started to feel the strain of such an extended vacation and the small yet expensive dishes at the restaurants that we’d been recommended just were not fitting in our budget.

Food

Since we were in Europe for the entirety of the FIFA World Cup, Irish pubs were a regular part of our routine- and the Celtic Towers Irish Pub just a short walk from our hostel was a lifesaver with its hearty dinner options. I got a huge plate of curry for 18 euros, and the warm meal was very welcome after a long day exploring the city in the cold.

Soup Lounge was another budget friendly stop on our visit to the city. The small shop has a rotating menu of simple soups on offer, as well as a few drink and sandwich options. I chose a medium pumpkin soup, which came with my choice of toppings, an orange, and a bread roll for 7 euros. The restaurant had a bit of a fast food vibe that reminded me a bit of America’s Panera Bread restaurants, but the meal was honestly really good and the price was unbeatable.

Other than these two locations, we survived on what I like to call “college rations”, or small and cheap snacks with absolutely no nutritional value- aka fries and chocolate.

There are a ton of waffle stands scattered throughout Ghent- if you went to Belgium and didn’t eat your weight in waffles, did you even go? To be honest, no one waffle stand stood out to me in particular though I’m sure the locals have their own opinions. The waffles cost around 3-4 euros, plus the cost of any added toppings.

Frites Atelier were probably my favorite fries in Belgium- thick cut and crispy with a wide range of sauces. There’s plenty of seating in this two-story shops but it can be pretty crowded!

We made another stop for fries at a place called Frituur Tartaar . Don’t be mislead by the name of the sizes- since we could choose between “small” and “mini” sizes, we got two small fries and ended up with half a shopping bag full of fries. The fries were not as good as the ones we’d gotten at Frites Atelier but the quantity sure was something to talk about. We did our level best to finish our fries and did a horrifyingly good job, but did eventually have to admit defeat. I felt like I was sweating them out of my pores.

Drinks

What’s more Belgian than Belgian beer? Of course we needed to sample some local beers on our trip through the country, and Ghent was a great place to do so.

As mentioned in the previous food section, Celtic Towers was a great spot to watch some football, so of course it had a wide selection of beers to choose from. Nothing too fancy here, just a standard Irish pub/sports bar with some good vibes.

Dulle Griet is probably most well known for claiming your shoe in collateral when you order a MAX beer- simply because the unique mugs were such a target for theft! While we didn’t order the drink ourself, we watched in amusement as someone’s shoe was hoisted to the ceiling in a basket until they finished their drink. Beware of breaking the glass- a broken glass can run you a fee of 90 euros!

The bar also offers over 500 types of beer with a drinks menu that shared similarities to a short novella. I couldn’t help but wonder where they stored them all!

Although the concept of the bar seems a bit touristy, it actually felt fairly traditional with its floor to ceiling decorations and crowded interior.

For those with less of an interest in beer, there are plenty of cafes to hop into for a hot drink and a break.

Le Bal Infernal was one of my favorite cafes of the entire trip! A bar in the evenings, during the day this cafe is the perfect place to warm up and get a little work done. There is plenty of seating, and one wall is entirely lined with used books, creating a really cozy and welcome atmosphere- plus the coffee is excellent!

We had a surprise visit to Het Moment when our plans to visit Antwerp were disrupted by a train strike. It was a super cute little cafe that felt like we were sitting in someone’s living room, especially with all of the holiday decorations. The seating was really limited, but I suspect that the back gardens are open in warmer weather for additional space. They also served light snacks in addition to coffee so I ended up having a soup here as well.