Schmap Antwerp Dining & Drinking

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Antwerp - Dining & Drinking
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Antwerp Home
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Belgium is of course well-known for its good cuisine, fine chocolates and sweets and its variety of beers. The metropolis, as Antwerp is often called, is the ideal place to discover the joys of good eating and drinking and there are literally hundreds of restaurants, eateries and cafés.

Wining and Dining

Many visitors have said that you can probably eat the most delicious variety of French cuisine in Belgium and Antwerp is no exception. You'll find a wide variety of restaurants in the old city and mainly around the Cathedral and the Grote Markt but also in the streets which lead to the river Scheldt. Another popular area for wining and dining is 't Zuid, The South area of Antwerp where many new chefs are making their mark. The De Keyserlei/Meir and small side-streets also have a lot to offer but this area is not so pleasant later in the evening.

A Gourmet's Paradise

Gourmets agree that the traditional French dishes you eat here are often more refined even though the portions are more generous. You also have at least two vegetables with meat dishes. Restaurants usually serve soup, salads or other small dishes for starters and a selection of sweets or ice cream as dessert. Cheese after a meal is not the rule but many restaurants do serve them. There's no obligation to order a complete menu and unless you're extremely hungry you often have sufficient with two courses. If you do take a full menu then be prepared to be at the table for two to three hours. This is also the case for lunch so be warned that those business lunches may take up most of the afternoon if you go to a really good restaurant. Quick lunches are served in the brasseries, bistros, cafés and snack bars and fast-food eateries.

The French-Belgian Cuisine

Most restaurants in the various neighbourhoods of Antwerp serve the obligatory steaks called Ossehaas or Rumpsteak in Flemish. These are generally very thick fillets and served medium to rare so tell the waiter how you want the steak otherwise it'll be red or even 'bleu'. Entrecôte tends to be cut thinner. 'Varkenshaas' is pork fillet. These meat dishes are served with a rich cream, pepper or other sauce and chips or potato-croquettes. You may want to try a nice juicy horse steak in one of the specialised restaurants.

Fish dishes are also very popular including cod, salmon, sole fillets (tongfilets). Some restaurants, for example in the Suikerrui near the river Scheldt, specialise in fish and serve the authentic eel in green parsley sauce (paling in 't groen) and various sea food dishes. From July to well into the autumn you can eat mussels which are generally imported from Holland. In Belgium, mussels are served in the shell and in big pots of 1.3 kg per portion. In Antwerp you should eat the 'Mosselen Nature' which are served with a delicious white mustard dip sauce. Most 'Sinjoren', as the local inhabitants are called, drink beer with their mussels -- a great digestive.

Traditional Flemish dishes include fresh asparagus with crushed boiled-eggs and lemon sauce, cherries with meatballs, tomato filled with shrimps (tomate crevettes) and don't forget to try a good old packet of French fries from one of the street stalls. Belgian 'frites' are probably the best in the world and prepared with utmost care -- usually fried in at least two or even three stages to obtain their typical crispness and flavour.

New Cuisine

Recently, many chefs are making a name for themselves in what are called the 'new' restaurants which serve creative and surprising dishes. These brasseries and bistros are often located in quieter neighbourhoods and the chefs will spoil you with delicious salads and unusual combinations of meat and fish.

Oriental and International

Antwerp is a major port and this is reflected in the very exotic range of tastes from all over the world: Chinese, Indian, Thai, Japanese, Cambodian, Vietnamese, Russian, Turkish, Greek and nearer home, Spanish, Italian, etc.

Chocolates and Waffles

Who hasn't heard of Belgian chocolates? All the main brands such as Leonidas and the super-deluxe Neuhaus and Godiva all have shops here. Besides typical 'pralines' with or without fresh cream you can also buy the local 'Antwerpse handjes'' (small hands in chocolate) which make a great gift. You should also try one of the various types of waffles which are baked on the spot at small street stalls.

Traditional Beers

Belgium and Flanders have built up quite a reputation as far as beer export is concerned but the beer story is a lot more interesting than the international export brands such as Stella Artois and Hoegaarden suggest. Antwerp has many cafés and pavement terraces where you can enjoy a wide variety of traditional and contemporary beers. Let's start with the Antwerp 'bolleke' named after the typical rounded glass that this light brown ale is served in. This beer has been brewed in Antwerp by De Koninck for the last 200 years and has become an icon for beer drinking in Antwerp and ideal for quenching your thirst on a hot summer day. But typically many Sinjoren drink draught lager beer, the so-called pils or 'pintje', and you'll find Maes Pils, which was originally brewed just outside Antwerp, or other competitors of Stella in many cafés. These beers are light and have generally about 5% alcohol. If you feel like a stronger beer then you should try the famous Westmalle Trappist brewed by the monks of Westmalle, a small village north of the city. The dark or double version (7%) is draught or bottled and the triple version (9%) only bottled. The bar tender may ask if you want draught beer (van 't vat) or non-chilled (van 't schap). Other traditional Flemish beers which you can drink at most cafés include Hoegaarden, Palm, Leffe, Grimbergen and Duvel. Each beer has its own typical glass.

Gin and Liqueurs

Antwerp also his its own yellow liqueur called Elixir d'Anvers which is stilled produced in the city according to a secret recipe. You'll also find many 'jeneva' bars (de Vagant is one of them)where you can taste the many varieties of Flemish gins.

Take a tram or taxi if you plan a night out on the town because the fines can be very high for drinking and driving.

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Brouwerij De Koninck

Bolleke - Brewers of the Antwerp

Mechelsesteenweg 291
Antwerp 2018
Belgium
+32 3 218 4048
http://www.dekoninck.be/

Once you've been to Antwerp you'll never forget what a Belgian Bolleke is. This light brown ale is the popular De Koninck beer that is brewed in Antwerp and served in a very distinctive, high and round glass. More then 150 years ago, this brewery was established in this Antwerp suburb. The old listed building, with its art-deco windows, now houses modern brewery equipment incorporating the latest technologies. Nevertheless, traditional methods are still used—all ingredients are of natural origin and the alcohol content does not exceed 5 per cent. Guided tours last about an hour-and-a-half, and include tasting. So do not forget to sample your Bolleke. Cheers!

Review © 2007, Wcities

Brouwerij De Koninck photo by www.ober.be

Photo: www.ober.be

Cathedral

The Cathedral of Our Lady Handschoenmarkt
Antwerp 2000
Belgium
+32 3 213 9951
http://www.dekathedraal.be/ The Cathedral's construction began in 1352, and ended in 1518, resulting in the largest Gothic church in the Netherlands. Learn its amazing history, from the 'iconoclastic fury' of 1566 that destroyed much of the interior, to the repairs that discovered beautiful murals beneath the whitewashed walls. The cathedral was furnished with renaissance, baroque, rococo and classical works of art, which were plundered by French revolutionaries, though many were returned. The exceptional stained-glass windows are 16th and 17th century.

Review © 2007, Wcities

Cathedral photo by wcities
Photo: wcities

Grote Market

Antwerp's Grand Place Grote Markt
Antwerp 2000
Belgium
The Grote Markt (Grand Market Square) is a splendid sight right in the middle of the city. Dominated by the renaissance style Stadhuis (city hall), the square is lined with numerous guildhalls, high patrician houses with step gables and gold-plated ornaments and statuettes. The famous tavern Den Engel is located here. Admire the Brabo fountain, the late 19th century statue of the legendary Roman Silvius Brabo, who saved Antwerp from Druon the giant. Enjoy a Belgian beer, a Brussels waffle, or coffee at one of the cafés.

Review © 2007, Wcities

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The South

Antwerp
Belgium
The south of Antwerp houses its main attraction, the Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten (Royal Museum of Fine Arts). This temple for the arts houses a large collection of paintings by some of Antwerp's most prized painters -- Rubens, Van Dijck and Jordaens. However, if this gallery isn't exactly your cup of tea, there are plenty more to explore in this neighbourhood. Try the Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst Antwerpen (Museum of Contemporary Art) or the personal gallery of Hans Beers at Kunstgalerij Isabella Brant. Although high housing costs used to scare away the younger crowd from this area, a price drop in the 1980s brought a more "youthful" crowd to the area. Now you'll find many fine brasseries and bistros that serve great food at reasonable prices, priding themselves on the diversity and quality of the food.

Review © 2007, Wcities

Photo: Daniel Finnan

Vagant

The wandering scholar Reyndersstraat 25
Antwerp 2000
Belgium
+32 3 233 1538
http://www.devagant.be/ De Vagant is really something special: a genever bar and restaurant with a few hundred kinds of genever liquor. It's situated right in the heart of old Antwerp. Downstairs you can relax in the cozy café with old posters and photos and try one or two or more of the genevers. The genever card lists a few hundred fruit and grain genevers. Upstairs in the restaurant, genever is the main ingredient in most of the dishes. There are 4 different fixed menus with three, four or five courses or you can eat à la carte and just take one or two genever dishes.

Review © 2007, Wcities

Photo: International Marine Consultancy

Other Schmapplets in this city related to "Antwerp - Dining & Drinking"
Antwerp
Antwerp - Historical Background
Antwerp - Neighborhood Guide
Antwerp - Where to Stay
Antwerp - Art & Entertainment
Other nearby cities:
Antwerp (40 miles)
Brussels (40 miles)
Amsterdam (132 miles)
Dusseldorf (164 miles)
Cologne (180 miles)
Bonn (196 miles)
Paris (301 miles)
London (307 miles)
Brighton (323 miles)
Cambridge (324 miles)

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