Belgium is famous for its fine cuisine, which has influences from France and Germany. Belgian chocolate is considered some of the finest in the world due to the high quality ingredients and traditional production methods. Another iconic Belgian food is fries, which are deep fried and served with a variety of sauces and often as part of meals like moules-frites (mussels and fries). Hearty stews such as waterzooi and beef stew made with beer are also popular local dishes. Desserts include waffles served with toppings like whipped cream and fruit sauces, as well as pancakes served with ice cream. Visiting Belgium offers a gastronomic experience with many rich, flavorful dishes

1. Belgium is a country that produces fine food. With influences both from France and
Germany, Belgian cuisine
has the finest gourmand
selections with a wide
array of choices for the
food lover to enjoy.
Belgium is famous for its
chocolates, which are
widely considered to be
gourmet standard other
chocolate confections
are benchmarked. The
quality of ingredients of
Belgian chocolate is what
makes it unique. Despite
today’s modern-day
equipment, most of their
chocolates are made by
hand, using the original
equipment. They cost more, but compared with other chocolates, especially mass-
produced chocolate, the price really speaks for the quality.
Belgian chocolate in its cuisine is just icing in the cake. There are other delicious
foods to savor when one visits Belgium such as fries, which are potatoes cut into
strips, deep fried and served with a variety of sauces. These fries (or pommes frites)
are served in rolled up cardboard topped with sauce instead of having a separate
container like the fries in American fast foods. However, just like American fast food,
Belgian fries are also served with other snacks like sandwiches and burgers. There
are mainstream stands today that serve fries this way. Fries may also be served with
mussels, and this dish is called moules-frites, quite similar to fish and chips.

2. Hearty stews such as waterzooi (made of fish or chicken, vegetables, potatoes, and
herbs) or Vlaamse stoofkarbonaden (a beef stew made out of beer) are popular
meals for those who are hungry and want something filling. They may be served with
bread and other sidings.
Another popular dessert in Belgium, are the waffles. These waffles may be simply
dusted with sugar or topped with whipped cream and fruit and sometimes a bit of
sauce. Pancakes, sometimes referred as a breakfast food, takes a different role in
the dessert section topped with ice cream, honey, as well as sliced fruit and candied
ginger. The hot fudge sundae in today’s soda fountains has a Belgian version, the la
dame blanche consisting of vanilla ice cream, fresh Chantilly cream, and cherries
with chocolate fudge sauce on the side.
Travelling to Belgium can be a gastronomical experience as it contains a lot of the
richest and most flavorful dishes unimaginable. Some popular favorites have Belgian
versions, or probably these popular dishes may have gotten inspiration there. Either
way, it shows that food is indeed a universal language that unites a lot of nations in
one common interest.