Belgium: the land of beer, waffles, chocolate, and fries. As you can tell, I prioritize my travel based on food. So when I went to visit a friend in this promised land, my only request was that I would be able to taste those four things. There was one hitch—I was a walking contagion for probably one of the worst colds in history. But alas, my mission still stood. So with my best rain gear and a purse full of Kleenex, I embarked on my mission with the guidance of a local and friend.
The first stop on the mission was the lovely town of Leuven, which my friend said is like Bruges but less touristy. Think cobblestone streets, ornate architecture, and the smell of waffles. Even through my stuffed-up nose I could tell the air was perfumed with the classic treat. The verdict on the waffles themselves? Delicious. I could have eaten 10. But that would have been really expensive.
I debated whether or not I would have beer while on this trip. When I have a cold my sense of taste is off and beer in particular tastes weird. But then while walking past one of the university buildings we came upon a typical Belgian tavern, complete with wooden panels and tapestries depicting beer-drinking. I had to.
I was overwhelmed with choice when I looked at the beer menu. Back in Canada, I could decipher a beer menu pretty quickly, but most of these beers I had never heard of. I asked my friend what I should get—I wanted something I couldn’t get back home. She mentioned the beer Delirium Tremens, adding a few years ago the beer was banned in Canada. A controversial beer? Well, that decision was easy. Apparently the beer was pulled from the shelves of the LCBO back in 2004 over its name, which was after one of the withdrawal symptoms of alcoholism. That, and the artwork depicts pink elephants—an ode to hallucinations caused by alcohol withdrawal.
Sure enough, the beer arrived with a lovely snifter glass decorated with pink elephants. As for the taste, the beer is a nice smooth ale with a crisp flavour.
Next on the list: fries. I tried two places for fries but honestly, I’ve had better fries in Canada. The fry truck beside my work in the summer is still the best I’ve had. Maybe I missed out on the best Belgian fries—one of the places we wanted to go to was closed, and maybe they could have blown my mind.
On my final day we took a trip to the grocery store to buy my last delicacy: chocolate. In Belgium, there are tons of chocolate stores with colourful displays that Willy Wonka would be proud of, but unless you want to shell out 11 euros for a chocolate bar, locals recommend the grocery store. I bought two chocolate bars for under five euros and ate them within two days. I should have bought more. Lesson learned.
