Belgian Food and Beer

We went back down the twisty, narrow stairs and over to the

Crown Plaza (not where we’re staying unfortunately) to see the ruins of the church that are in their basement.  So, there was a huge church in Bruges that there are drawings of in the skyline of Bruges and it just is gone, but in building the Crown Plaza hotel, they ran into the apse of it.  I’m sure that they 

knew that it was there, how do you just lose a church that has always existed in your city?  It’s not like the Goths sacked and people forgot that stuff was there.  But they were allowed to build the hotel there if the hotel agreed to allow anyone who asked to look at it when there

wasn’t a conference in session.  What was amazing was how much of it was still there, with curves in the walls and huge foundations stones, frescoes.  It was weird to see drywall and stuff around it and horrible conference furniture, tables, and stuff.  We didn’t 

 have much of a lunch and the waffle that we got for a snack didn’t tide us over much, so even though it is indecently early, we will be going to dinner.  By indecently early, I mean 6pm, but that’s the way it is over here.  Food.  We have been in Europe for a while and the food in Italy was delicious,

but I’m so over Italian food, I might never eat it again.  Netherlands, beyond frites, I can’t see a national food there.  But here in Belgium…..where to start?

So, the beers are awesome (according to John), but they also have beers that are fruity and yummy.  They have them  

 in all different flavors like cherry, peach, black currant, apple, and even woodfruit.  So, that was fun to try a couple of.  Now, they are known for mussels and John got them, but said that they weren’t as good as the ones that we caught ourselves with Hesther and Jean-Marie.  A Flemish stew was mentioned that I ended up getting both nights in Bruges which is like pot roast, but cooked in their brown beers.  It 

was so moist, so good.  This doesn’t begin to get to the chocolate.  So, Belgian chocolate is almost more renowned than their beer, but we had gotten some absolutely fabulous chocolate from St. Petersburg, Red Oktober chocolate that John remembered from his study 

abroad.  I was prepared to not be impressed by Belgian chocolate, but while I think that I would prefer a piece of Red Oktober over a piece of Belgian, taken as a whole, the Belgian mix was sublime.  You never knew what you were going to bite into with every chocolate and we got a half kilo for 7 euro.  I’m pretty sure that’s cheaper than a Whitman’s sampler back home.  Absolute heaven and the best part about them, is you can’t overindulge.  They are so rich that you have two and 

you have to stop and have some water because you feel like you have overdone it already.    I’m going to continue on the food vein even though this will involve a jump to Ghent which was our next stop.  Waterzooi soup: what the hell is that?  Well, it was in the 

guide book as a specialty and I always want to try something native when I’m in a town.  This was a “rich chicken soup with vegetables”, so Campbells right?  It was raining and chilly and I thought that this would be a perfect thing to try at the restaurant that a native

 recommended.  More about Belgians and talking later…But this soup was 16 euro!!! A soup that is 16 euro?  I don’t understand and then it came.  There was half a chicken with bone in my bowl, 4

potatoes, artichoke hearts, carrot slices, leeks, and celery in a rich broth that was like the blue cheese soup that we had made in the past.  This was not a soup, it was something different.  And I couldn’t eat even a third of it because it was so huge….I will definitely be trying to make this and the Flemish stew at home.  Not going to try the Belgian chocolate, but there was a favorite candy in Ghent that we could try called whippets.  They are toffees rolled in powdered sugar and they were delicious.