Brussels is a quirky city with a hipster feel to it. It is know for a few wonderful things as the title suggests: chocolate, beer, fries, waffles, & a peeing boy (and dog).
Brussels is full of CHOCOLATE shops everywhere!
We learned that many impostors have come from other countries attempting to pose as true Belgian chocolate.
Luckily, there is a way to know! if the chocolate shop as this symbol on the outside of its door, you know you are getting the real thing. this symbol is called the Quality of Labor mark to let you know the chocolate is made in Belgium.
Another thing that all of Belgium is known for is its BEER! There are 800 different beers made in this country. All of the beer is AT LEAST 5% alcohol.
There is even a beer with 28% alcohol called Black Dalmatian Beer. We didn’t try that one, but we did try a beer that was 14% which was plenty strong for us.
To our surprise, it was Belgian Beer Weekend.
There were hundreds of Belgian beers available.
The tents for the event were set up in the middle of the city and was decorated with real hops plants.
If you are a fan of Belgian beer and miss this weekend, no worries! There are plenty of amazing bars all throughout the city.
We stumbled upon this hidden gem called Au Bon Vieux Temps. This bar is down a dark alley off the square and you would never find it if you weren’t looking for it. It is an old looking church that is from the 1600’s. It is a perfect medieval style pub serving a handful of rare Belgian beers.
It is right next door to the popular L’Imaige Nostre-Dame bar. Another pub from the 1600’s serving a few more Belgian beers.
We also found a wonderful local pub called Au Soleil. We sat at the bar drinking some wonderfully strong beers recommended by the entertaining bartenders.
A third wonderful thing Brussels is know for is FRIES. The best place to get them is called Fritland and is located right in the middle of the city.
By best, I mean it had the longest line which means it must be good, right? There were at least 12 different sauces you could choose from. We went for the curry ketchup & garlic mayo. Yum!
Clearly Belgium is not the place to go if you are trying to lose weight. We can’t forget to tell you about the Belgian WAFFLES.
These stands were scattered all throughout the city. You could get tons of different types of toppings: chocolate, jam, peanut butter, Nutella, butter, sugar, syrup, strawberries, banana, kiwi… you get the idea.
The last thing I mentioned Brussels is know for has probably made you a bit confused if you haven’t been here. Yes, a PEEING BOY is the fourth big thing this city is known for.
There are many different stories as to how this became the statue that Brussels is best know for. Whatever the reason is, you find these figures everywhere!
There is also a popular statue of a dog peeing with some yellow paint for effect.
After Brussels we decided to head not to far to another well-known, but much smaller city in Belgium: Bruges!
Chasing Summer 