Today we’re coming to you from Belgium’s capital city, Brussels! Bindi is back with us for this trip, and we’re all excited to explore this vibrant city. Get ready for a city filled with amazing architecture, delicious food, famous quirky landmarks, and enough sweets to make your dentist cry. And of course, Bindi’s take on how dog friendly Brussels is!

We arrived in Brussels a bit late and a bit hangry, after fighting through a lot of traffic and some parking difficulties. But hey, it’s nothing a couple of burgers and a beer can’t fix! So, we headed to a place called Huggys for dinner.

Huggys is a popular burger chain in Belgium and they make some seriously good burgers. Huggys prides themselves on bringing the best of US burger culture to Belgium and adding a Belgian touch.  I had the cheeseburger with bacon and Mehmet had the Raclette burger with a huge slab of cheese.

These were not your average burgers, imagine juicy patties stacked high with fresh toppings all nested in perfectly soft buns. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say these were some of the best burgers we’ve ever had in Europe.

Huggy’s also suggests a Belgian beer for each burger on the menu. So to wash our burgers down, I had a fruity beer called Rosita that was sweet and tangy. While Mehmet had the Shiva which is an IPA that was a bit citrusy with a hoppy bitter bite. Our meal at Huggys was the best way to start off our time in Brussels. 

Now, on to some sightseeing.

Brussels has some iconic architecture and one of the most remarkable places to take in the city’s mesmerizing buildings is the center square known as the Grand Place in French, or the Grote Markt in Flemish. This square houses some of the most historic buildings in Brussels. I mean, look at these buildings, they’re seriously magnificent. Just don’t ask Bindi to stay still long enough to admire them!

Interestingly, most of these buildings were destroyed during the French bombardment in 1695 and then quickly rebuilt as a show of the city’s strength, talk about a comeback! These buildings are truly mesmerizing to look at. They’re gilded with gold and covered with intricate details. You could easily spend hours studying them and learning about the symbolism and history of this square.  

A walk around Brussels will treat you to many other architectural marvels. Some of our favorites included the Royal Palace, the Church of St Nicholas and the stunning view from the Mont Des Arts. 

But Brussels has a quirky side too. You can’t tour Brussels without seeing what is arguably one of the most famous sights in the town, behold, the Manneken Pis. This statue is a bit of an enigma, as we know it has been there since 1619, but no one truly knows why. It’s actually quite crazy to see what a large crowd this very small statue attracts. What we found most interesting was how much joy the city takes in dressing up the statue, he actually has a museum which houses over 1000 of his outfits!  

After walking around to view all of these beautiful buildings, there’s no doubt you’ll be ready for a snack, and the best snack to get in Belgium is definitely frites, Mehmet’s favorite! A local friend told us that the best frites to try in the city center are from Fritland. And let me tell you waiting in line for these was totally worth it! These golden beauties were so crispy on the outside and flaky on the inside, talk about the perfect salty snack to fuel the rest of our day.

As with most cities, the best things lie outside of the city center, and that is true for Belgian frites. About a 20 minute walk outside of the city center, is a place called Maison Antoine. Dubbed the best frites in the world by a number of people and publications, there isn’t much to dislike about these fries. We sat and enjoyed ours on a bench nearby, while Bindi waited not so patiently for us to drop one. They were crisp, fluffy, and perfectly salted! Carb coma achieved. 

When you think of Belgium, I’m sure one of the first things that comes to your mind are waffles and Brussels takes waffles very seriously. However, to be honest, we were a bit disappointed with the waffles from the popular places in the toursit center. So, once again, we ventured outside of the touristy areas to find a hidden gem, a place called Gaston in the Sainte Catherine neighborhood. 

Here, you can get either Liege waffles which are light and crispy or Brussels waffles which are a bit sweeter.  We opted for one of each, and while it’s not considered traditional to get any toppings on your waffles, we couldn’t resist and went with what we felt like were pretty forgivable toppings of chocolate sauce and strawberries and cream.  Forget about those touristy spots, this is definitely the place to come to get your waffle fix!

If pancakes are more your thing, then we suggest heading to Kaffei, for some mouthwatering souffle pancakes! These pancakes are super thick and fluffy, with the . softest, airiest insideIt seriously felt like we were eating delicious little clouds. Our pancakes were topped with a slightly sweet matcha cream and some strawberries, this is the type of breakfast that definitely puts a smile on your face.

And for those who crave savory options for breakfast, they have those too! I had a mushroom benedict that satisfied my need for some veggies. And we can’t forget, they also serve some great coffee!

After breakfast, take some time to explore the Sainte Catherine neighborhood. It’s a charming area with lots of boutique shops and plenty of great looking and smelling restaurants. It’s also home to the famous Nordzee seafood market.

I had my heart set on some mussels, but after the carb and sugar filled breakfast my stomach just couldn’t handle more food. What a rookie mistake! I figured I would go back the next day, without realizing that Nordzee, just like many other places in Brussels, are closed on Mondays. I guess that’s a good excuse to make another trip here.

Of course, no Belgium adventure is complete without some of the famous Belgian beers to wash down your frites and waffles. There’s no shortage of local bars serving up traditional and craft Belgian beers in Brussels, but we opted for the famous Delirium Village.

Delirium is an iconic Belgian brew, popular all over the world and here in Belgium they have an entire complex of bars dedicated to the vast variety of Belgian beers and other spirits.  This place is a haven for beer lovers! It’s massive and filled with vintage beer related paraphernalia. In fact, it actually holds the Guiness Book of World Records title for having the most beers of any bar in the world, over 2000 beers actually! For 30 euros, you can get a sampler of 10 beers to taste, which showcase how much variety there is in their flavors. This sample covered everything from very dark beers, to fruity beers to even this bright green one that tasted like a melted lime popsicle, cheers to trying new types of beer!  

To finish up your day with a traditional meal, we recommend heading to 9 et Voisins, a bustling restaurant known for its Belgian classics. I went with the endives stuffed with meat, endives are actually a bitter green vegetable, but trust me, this dish is anything but bitter. This was paired with a sauce and creamy mashed potatoes for a very filling meal. Mehmet had the carbonnade, a warm, comforting Belgian stew, brimming with tender meat. This stew is exactly what you’ll be craving after a day of exploring Brussles in Belgium’s less than stellar weather. 

Another neighborhood with excellent food is the Louise neighborhood. We stopped in Pizzeria La Regina one night for an freshly prepared pizza.

We had walked by this place a couple of times and each time it smelled so good, that eventually we couldn’t walk by without stopping in. Our pizzas were expertly cooked, just crispy enough that you can pick up the slices, but still very thin. The staff here were super friendly and so nice to Bindi, even treating her to a little treat of ham. And just like her parents, food is the way to Bindi’s heart!

If you’re up for a nightcap, the Tarzan wine bar across the street has an excellent selection of natural wines, and is a great place to finish up your night.

Last but definitely not least, we can’t wrap up a trip to Brussels without eating some Belgian chocolate! There are so many chocolate shops all over Brussels, each filled with amazing looking chocolate creations. We indulged in some decadent bonbons at Mary, the country’s first female chocolatier.

We also stopped in to the very fancy Pierre Marcolini which had me wondering if I had accidentally stumbled into a high end department store instead of a chocolate shop. While their chocolates looked great, I noticed that they were freshly churning some ice cream, and given my weakness for ice cream, I opted for that instead.

I went with the mango yuzu flavor topped with a circle of their signature chocolate, the best of both worlds.

As usual, Bindi accompanied us on this trip and we found Brussels to be very dog friendly. The Brussels park is a lovely large park for a nice dog walk, and pretty much every restaurant, bar and cafe allowed Bindi in with open arms, most even gave her water or a small treat. Public transport here does allow dogs. Technically they are supposed to be wearing a muzzle, but let’s just say the rules seem flexible as we did notice plenty of dogs riding the tram without one. And Bindi’s review is in, and she gives Bindi Brussels a pawsitive five star rating for dog-friendliness!