gobarbgo

PetrosB3, as much as we love to eat, we're mainly interested in visiting major cities we've never been to (with the exception of Paris, which I could go to every year for the rest of my life!). I love architecture, museums, beautiful views, people-watching and just soaking up the general vibe. Lavandula, I love the pancake idea. We'll definitely check one out while in Amsterdam. Thanks!

christycruz

And the previous rijstaffel recommendation made earlier (for Amsterdam). I don't have the name of the restaurant we went to, but there are some very good Indonesian restaurants there.

PetrosB3

@StCirq Oh yes how could I forgot the Belgian Cuisine, with its top speciality being the damn French Fries... God such a deep Culinary Tradition that country has.

Seriously, don't be ridiculous. Belgian Cuisine is laughable, the only good think in Belgium is its Beer.

And by placing the Greek Cuisine in "realm of mediocre" it only shows how bad taste you have in food, I pardon you because you obviously have not been in Greece, and the only think you know about it is gyros and tzatziki, which in Greece is the equivalent of Hamburgers in USA, cheap junk food. You cannot understand the power of simplicity, the Mediterranean taste, and the Milleniums of Culinary Traditions of the Greek Cuisine. Anyway the Master Chefs consider it a Top Cuisine, never heard one praising the French Fries or the Belgian Cuisine in general, sorry.

Tulips

I agree with StCirq; Belgian people take their food very seriously. Even in simple places the food is good. It's fairly classic though (with some notable exceptions), but always of good quality.

In a place like Brugge you will have the usual tourist traps, as you do anywhere with lots of tourists. Stay away from anywhere that tries to lure you inside and has pictures of the food outside.
Try Bistro de Refter, which is the second restaurant of Michelin starred 'Karmeliet'. And you must order garnaalkroketten - prawn croquettes; for lunch, or as a starter. Go to 'the Chocolate Line' for amazing chocolates.

In Amsterdam; have an indonesian meal. Sama Sebo is popular. Or Kantjil. Order the 'rijsttafel' with a selection of small dishes.

Tulips

Petros; saying Belgian cuisine is only french fries, is the same as saying Greek food is only gyros and tzatziki. Neither are true.

jpie

I think the Belgium cuisine needs to more appreciated. For a few years now Belgium has had more Michelin starred restaurants per capita than France. Here is an interesting article touching on Belgian cuisine

http://www.foodrepublic.com/2013/03/...-things-french

I loved eating in Belgium even though, living part time in France, I think the portions are better sized in France for me. As a friend put it, Belgians cook in a French tradition but serve German sized portions

StCirq

Petros, I have been in Greece several times, and I live part-time in Europe, soon to be full-time. Greek "cuisine" is simplistic, hearty, based on good local produce, and satisfying, but hardly novel or inventive. Belgian cuisine is the best of Europe - obviously, you've never explored it or read about how highly it is rated. It is consistently considered the best food in all of Europe.

jpie

StCirq-where do you decide to settle? I am curious because we are coming back in May to figure out that very same thing

StCirq

Hi, jpie. I've had a home in the Périgord Noir for 21 years, so that will be where we will settle, at least initially. Working on getting my spouse a carte de résidence at the moment. Where are you thinking of moving to? It's hard, isn't it, when there are so many appealing areas. At some point we'll need to find another home, as the current one is remote and large and has land to keep up and a pool, plus steep stairs. I can't see us being really old in that house. We might look into a smaller place in the Lot at some point, or even in some wild place like the Auvergne.

RM67

^It is consistently considered the best food in all of Europe."

By who? American visitors? Because it is meat heavy and comes is big portions? Not everyone would agree that defines a great cuisine. I've eaten well in Belgium and have nothing particularly negative to say about the food but I do not see the variety of ingredients that I see in some other countries that makes, for me, a really great cuisine.

RM67

ps in the interests of being slightly more helpful, I might suggest the following:-

Spain: Stuffed peppers, squid, manchego cheese and membrillo, crème catalan.

Scotland: Squat lobster tails, scallops, Cullen skink, cranachan and tablet.

Belgium. Shrimp croquettes, waffles. I am not however a fan of the chocolate, which I find too cloying. I actually prefer the high cocoa content dark British brands. Flavoured beers with orange, coriander etc.

BigRuss

Spaniards think their pork products are the manna described in Exodus.

As for "street food" - go get a street snack in Spain, fried marcona almonds. Dang, those are good.

Robert2533

Spain: Stuffed piquillo peppers, pochas (of all kinds), pulpo, Calamari, Tudela Artichokes, Asparagus blanco de Navarra, Roncal and Idiazabal cheeses, Cabrales, Quesucos de Liébana, Zamorano, Garrotxa, Torta del Casar, San Simón, and yes manchego with membrillo, and crème catalan. Not to mention Bonito Del Norte.

IMDonehere

We are headed for Belgium and Netherlands at the end of April and look forward to tasting the Belgian cuisine.

The most under appreciated cuisine we have encountered is Turkish. Their dishes range from subtle to complex and have a sensational variety especially in fish and vegetables.

jpie

Hi StCirq So glad to know what you are thinking. We have a family home in St Palais sur Mer and we are headed there at first. We just finished Peace Corps service in Mexico so it has been 3 years since we were back in France. Luckily we are dual nationals so don't have the residency worries at this point. We are considering University towns-Nantes, Toulouse and Montpellier are on the short list but we may even go back to Paris for a bit although that seems unrealistic for retirement both for $$ and lifestyle. I would love to stay in touch with you as you guys decide as well-my email is on my profile.

OP sorry for highjacking the thread-but I wanted to see what St.Cirq had decided

PetrosB3

@RM67 I absolutely agree... How can someone even compare the Belgian Cuisine to Italian Cuisine..? It's infuriating. And in the end of the day, if Belgian Cuisine was good, you would see Belgian Restaurants all over the World, as you do with Italian, Chinese, Indian and Greek Restaurants. It's a Fact.

But lets don't destroy this Topic anymore, we must help our friend eat his way through Europe! He will go to Belgium for just a night, big deal.

•Amsterdam
~The "Restaurant d'Vijff Vlieghen" (Five Flies Restaurant) is the most Iconic Restaurant of this city. Many Hollywood Stars been here, Politicians and generally famous people been coming here for decades. The food is Gourmet, and expensive, but the Atmosphere is Great, takes you back to the 17th century, it is an original. This restaurant is almost a landmark.
~"Kartika" is one of the best Indonesian restaurants in this city. When visiting a major European Capital, I always try restaurants focusing in a particular cuisine of a former colony of the country. In London you eat Indian, in Paris Vietnamese, in Berlin Turkish and in Amsterdam Indonesian.

IMDonehere

One reason there are Italian, Chinese, and Indian restaurants around the world is immigration, not the quality of the cuisine.

Italian-American cooking is much different than the regional Italian cooking. I would venture a guess that 75% of Italian-Americans are from Naples south.

sandralist

IMDonehere,

Your guess would only be true of some areas of America. A great many northern Italians from Livorno to Genoa and areas around Lombardy emigrated to the US and mainly settled on the West coast of the US. In addition, Italians emigres from northern Italy went to Boston and Rhode Island in large numbers. Italians from the Adriatic settled heavily in Chicago and Milwaukee (and on up into Canada).

Somehow people have managed to learn that it is nonsense to talk about "Italian food" because what Italians eat and cook depends on where they live in Italy. Regional differences are very strong.

But people persist in talking about "Spanish food" and "German food" and even "Belgian food" as if there were no difference between the sea coasts and the interiors or the mountains and the cities when it comes to what the locals are eating. Mussels in Belgium are "heavy"? Asparagus in Barvaria is dull? People worship ham in Galicia?

When you ask an American which restaurants in America have the greatest American food, most Americans will be happy to explain to you that there is no one kind of food that is American. Not everybody eats barbecue or lobster or cajun or California nouvelle. Hard to find a good bagel in South Dakota or a good burrito in West Virginia.

If you want to eat well when you travel then it is more important to learn what is growing in season where you will be going and what the local terrain supports and favors -- whether that is grazing animals, or migrating fowl, sea creatures, or foragers like chicken and pigs. Learn something about how people historically preserved their foods (pickling or salting or air drying) and how the poor survived (snails, soups, breads and fats). If you are traveling mainly to cities, go the markets and gourmet food shops and check out the street food before you head to the restaurants.

sandralist

Also, it is a particular bias to associate "variety" with "greatness" in a cuisine. There are some very wonderful, delicious, inventive and heath-sustaining food traditions that do not depend on any more "variety" than what the seasons offer and the local terrain yields up. Year in and year out there is not a lot of "variety" in the daily eating but the food and the understanding of food is fabulous. The glorification of "variety" as typified by the modern supermarket and the modern Michelin restaurant with meals consisting of a parade of taste varieties is just one fleeting measure of good eating and great food tradition.

IMDonehere

Here some information. This from Mt Holyoke College

Between 1900 and 1915, 3 million Italians immigrated to America, which was the largest nationality of “new immigrants.” These immigrants, mostly artisans and peasants, represented all regions of Italy, but mainly came from the mezzogiorno, Southern Italy. Between 1876 and 1930, out of the 5 million immigrants who came to the United States, 4/5 were from the South, representing such regions as Calabria, Campania, Abruzzi, Molise, and Sicily.

http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~molna22a/c...anhistory.html

This is from UC Berkeley

While approximately 80% of Italian migrants to the United States are from southern provinces, 80% of the Italians in California are from the northern regions.

http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/collect...migration.html