Food, Beer & Fries

Frietkot nationalism, Trappist beer, waffles, the chocolate, and the eternal "with or without mayonnaise" debate.

Part of Belgium

23 moments in this segment.

1. 1500-01-01 - Couque de Dinant. The rock-hard honey biscuit of Dinant, pressed in carved moulds, more keepsake than snack.
2. 1700-01-01 - Jenever. The juniper spirit and ancestor of gin, a Low Countries tradition with protected origin.
3. 1800-01-01 - Mattentaart. The curd-cheese tartlet of Geraardsbergen, an EU protected-origin Flemish pastry.
4. 1839-01-01 - Trappist Beer (Westvleteren etc.). Monk-brewed beer; Westvleteren 12 is routinely rated the best in the world. Beer is Belgian UNESCO heritage.
5. 1850-01-01 - The Liège Waffle. Dense, caramelised pearl-sugar waffle eaten warm on the street, the Walloon waffle.
6. 1850-01-01 - Belgian Waffles (Gaufres). Liège vs Brussels, the waffle schism. A diaspora ambassador and tourist cliché.
7. 1850-01-01 - The Brussels Waffle. Light, rectangular, crisp, dusted with sugar or piled with cream and fruit.
8. 1850-01-01 - Belgian Endive (Witloof). Chicon / witloof, the bitter white vegetable accidentally invented in a Brussels cellar.
9. 1870-01-01 - Speculoos. The spiced caramelised biscuit, and the cult spread made from it.
10. 1873-01-01 - Cuberdon (Neuzeke). The cone-shaped raspberry sweet of Ghent, soft inside, and fiercely local.
11. 1900-01-01 - Stoofvlees / Carbonnade. Beef slow-braised in brown Belgian beer, comfort food, frietkot-side.
12. 1900-01-01 - Waterzooi. The creamy Ghent chicken-or-fish stew, Flemish comfort cooking.
13. 1900-01-01 - Moules-frites. Mussels and fries, the unofficial national dish, eaten by the pot.
14. 1900-01-01 - Paling in ’t Groen. Eel in green herb sauce, a riverside Flemish delicacy.
15. 1900-01-01 - The Pistolet. The round crusty Sunday-morning bread roll, a small but fierce Belgian breakfast ritual.
16. 1900-01-01 - Belgian Fries (Frieten/Frites). Double-fried, served from a frietkot in a paper cone with mayo. A point of fierce national pride.
17. 1912-01-01 - The Belgian Praline. Jean Neuhaus invented the filled chocolate in 1912, the birth of an industry.
18. 1912-01-01 - Belgian Chocolate (Praline). Jean Neuhaus invented the praline in 1912 Brussels, the gold standard of chocolate.
19. 1915-01-01 - The Praline Box (Ballotin). The ballotin, the elegant Belgian chocolate box invented by Neuhaus’ wife in 1915.
20. 1920-01-01 - Filet Américain. Seasoned raw minced beef with fries, a Belgian brasserie staple that startles every visitor.
21. 1950-01-01 - Tomate-Crevettes. A hollowed tomato stuffed with grey shrimp and mayo, a brasserie starter of quiet national affection.
22. 1950-01-01 - Shrimp Croquettes. Garnaalkroketten, the beloved North Sea grey-shrimp croquette, a brasserie classic.
23. 1950-01-01 - Mayonnaise on Fries. The "fries with mayo" stereotype, a genuine cultural marker and a recurring international meme.