Discover some Benelux culinary specialities

Mussels with chips, stoemp, various cheeses or paschtéit, discover the gastronomic pleasures of Benelux during your business travels

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During a restaurant visit with a client or supplier, business travel often offers the opportunity to sample the local gourmet cuisine. To get your taste buds tingling, we focus here on a few typical and unmissable Benelux dishes and where to find them.

In Belgium

Apart from chips, beer and chocolate, Belgium’s culinary heritage will delight the most discerning of palates! The real classics include the likes of waterzooi (a stew of fish or chicken and vegetables), carbonnades flamandes (chunks of beef stewed in a beer sauce), lapin à la gueuze (rabbit in gueuze beer and with prunes), and also chicons au gratin (endive and ham gratin). Other highly popular specialities are moules-frites (mussels with chips), stoemp (potato purée and mashed vegetables) and boulets à la liégeoise (meatballs in beer sauce with Liège syrup).

Some good addresses 

Ballekes (Brussels) - A restaurant which serves meatballs in all different sauces, including tomato, rabbit, kriek and trappist beer, etc. 

Les Brigitinnes (Brussels) - This brasserie has a great menu that’s in tune with the region and the seasons. 

Viva M’Boma (Brussels) - Specialising in offal, this restaurant cooks and serves it with respect and inventiveness. 

ibis Wavre Brussels East - You can find locally produced seasonal dishes here, such as chicons, stoemp, carbonnades flamandes, etc. 

ibis De Panne - On the menu here is “North Sea Caviar”, otherwise known as shrimps! The house carbonnades are also well worth trying. 

Novotel Brussels Airport - Don’t miss the splendid carbonnades flamandes served in the hotel restaurant! 

Novotel Brussels City Centre - The stand-out dishes here are carbonnades flamandes and vol au vent with chips. And for dessert? Chocolate mousse or crème brulée. 

Ibis Styles Nieuwpoort - Choose from chicken waterzooi , carbonnades flamandes or Nieuwpoort breaded fish. 

In the Netherlands

Holland is of course synonymous with cheese (Gouda, Edam, Maasdam, etc.), but there’s so much more than that! For instance, don’t hesitate to try the national dish, raw herring! Other possibilities include erwentsoep (split pea soup) and stamppot (puréed potato with cabbage or other vegetables). Or there’s the famous bitterballen (small balls of fried meat)! And what about sweets? A special mention is merited for stroopwafels (thin waffles filled with caramel) and poffertjes (a sort of souffléd pancake, coated with butter and icing sugar), not forgetting good old appeltaart.

Some good addresses 

Winkel 43 (Amsterdam) - A very popular café thanks to its renowned apple pie (with whipped cream). 

Wilde Zwijnen (Amsterdam) - Inspired by Dutch cuisine, this restaurant works with local, seasonal products. 

Moeders (Amsterdam) - Here you can sample a rijsttafel, an assortment of small dishes ideal for sharing! 

Mercure Amsterdam Centre Canal District - Try the stroopwafels or bitterballen here. 

Pullman Eindhoven Cocagne - On the menu are bitterballen and appeltaart (voted best apple tart in the Netherlands in 2005 !) 

In Luxemburg

It may be a small country but Luxembourg still boasts a plethora of culinary specialities! Its traditional cuisine includes such delights as judd mat gaardebounen (neck of pork with broad beans), bouneschlupp (haricot bean soup), feierstengszalot (beef salad with hard-boiled eggs, gherkins and shallots). The Moselle region in particular is home to the famous friture de la Moselle (small fried fish), best accompanied by a local white wine! 

Some good addresses

Um Dierfgen (Luxembourg) - For 40 years, this restaurant has been serving up mouth-watering examples of Luxembourgian haute cuisine. 

Am Tiirmschen (Luxembourg) - Here you can sample local specialities within a meticulously restored medieval building. 

Novotel Luxembourg Centre - It’s worth visiting the hotel’s restaurant to tuck into the renowned paschtéit (vol au vent)! Happy eating! 

Published by Gary on 30/05/2018 Photo credit: © Istock

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