Best Chocolate and Beer Recommendations in Belgium?
 

Can you please recommend your favorite place for Belgium Chocolate and Beer? We will be in Brugge and Antwerp.

Thank you.

Leonidas chocolate is my fave.

It was interesting to learn lately that Godiva Chocolates, a Brussels chocolate institution is owned by a mega American company - Campbell Soup's parent company i believe!

Honestly, can you go wrong with any European chocolate? I think not!

The only thing to consider is whether you are a fan of milk or dark chocolate. Or if you like it filled.

And I'm hungry now, off to lunch :)

I'm not sure if they have it in those cities, but the boxes of Pierre Marcolini chocolates that we bought were the best amongst the ones that we've had during our trip a couple of months ago.

My favorite chocolate in Brugge is by the small family run Dumon. The caramels are heavenly.

My fave places for beer in Brugge are:
* Erasmus hotel (cafe in lobby)
* De Garre
* Bruges Biertje

Good resource for Belgian beer hunting in Belgium is babblebelt.com.

I second De Garre - great beer and wonderful atmosphere.

I personally love the little "mom & pop" chocolate shops as opposed to the Godivas. Brugge has tons of them and we had fun trying as many as possible.

There is a Pierre Marcolini chocolate store in Antwerp (Huidevettersstraat). Make sure to buy some chocolates at Chocolaterie Burie (Korte Gasthuisstraat) too. Hans Burie is an artist with chocolate.
For beer (we're always in Antwerp): if you like a big selection (500+ different beers), you should go to De Kulminator (Vleminckveld). It's just a café, it's absolutely not cozy or nice, it just has A LOT of beers!
't Pater's Vaetje (Blauwmoezelstraat), next to the cathedral has a 100 something different beers. It's on a good location, especially when the weather is nice and you can sit outside on the square.
Quinten Matsijs (Moriaanstraat) pretends to be the oldest café in Antwerp.
For a genuine Antwerpian beer, ask a "bolleke". It's a De Koninck amber-colored beer (brewed in Antwerp), in a ball-shaped glass, hence the name.

Hi Mym! :)

Every chocolate my daughter has brought home from Belgium has been the Best. This year we got Lambic beer (Peche) that was pretty darn good too :)

Leonidas is great chocolate.

I have found it for sale in the US so if you get hooked... you can still get it close to home!

I like Leonidas myself although it's the cheapest chocolate in Belgium. It's not artisanally made, which Marcolini and Burie (and some smaller stores) are.

Hi Scarlett!
How ya doin'?

For chocolate, any of the little shops in Brugge will do - have fun trying before you decide!
For beer, my all time fave Belgian brew is Palm Special, although some of the Trappiste beers are gorgeous - try Westmalle or Grimbergen if you can find them.

I have to disagree with the post that any little chocolate shops in Brugge, or even in Brussels, will do.

The OP asked for the "Best" in Belgium and even as I don't claim to be an expert on the nuances of chocolates, it was easy enough for me to distinguish the excellence of a Marcolini or a Burie from a mass-produced Leonidas or the multitude of chocolate shops scattered in the tourist areas that we've come upon.

Even at 3 or 4 times the price, these artisan chocolates are simply so much better. The closest that I can compare the Marcolini to would be La Maison du Chocolat in Paris.

BTW, if the OP is in New York City, Marcolini, just like La Maison du Chocolat, had recently opened a store in midtown. Fyi, a friend told me their products are not as fresh/good as the original in Belgium.

LOL Mym, &quot;<i>how ya doin&quot;</i>
We are doin fine..our girl is going to be visiting again in the fall, you two will have to have a mini GTG..
I look forward to my yearly supply of chocolates and goodies from Belgium :)

It's funny, shortly after we moved to Belgium, we were advised that while Leonidas is the chocolate most Belgians like to buy for themselves, you're not supposed to give it as gifts. Then later, some Belgians said, are you crazy? We'd love some Leonidas as a gift!
Doonhamer has a point. There is no really one best chocolate. The best thing is to try several and pick the ones you like best. Ditto with the beer. Try several and go with your favorite. We've tried dozens and dozends of Belgian beers over the years, but our favorite Belgian beer is Bel Pils, however we only drink it on tap at cafes/taverns, never by the bottle. It's brewed by the same group that makes Maredsous/Duvel. We just prefer pils, which is why we prefer Austrian and German beer to most Belgian brews. The lambic, trappist etc. beers just don't appeal to us.

Scarlett, we will have that mini GTG this time! If only to see the Z-man again. ;)

In Brugge, for the BEER and FOOD, DO NOT MISS this bar:

http://www.cambrinus.eu/

Extremely reasonable in price and 400 Belgian Beers to choose from! My husband and I were in Heaven...He even said it was the &quot;best bar in the World&quot;...And if you knew my hubby and his love of Belgian Beer...says it all!

I second the vote for Dumon. It's great stuff! We stayed at Absolute Verhulst and there was a shop nearby that they recommened called I think 'sweet moments' They sold chocolates from Dumon and other manufacturers, and had a great selection. My daughter bought a kilo box and didn't like the pistachio ones that she picked out and I loved them. I'm still craving them!

My sons girlfriend is allergic to nuts and at Dumon, they were really great about giving me only nut free chocolates for her.