EDIT: Since I first wrote this blog post quite a few very helpful readers have made some corrections about my impressions of what is and isn't vegan. So make sure you check out the comments section!
Every vegan knows that one of the most difficult things about being a vegan is finding places to eat in a foreign country, especially if the language is not your mother tongue. Happy Cow is my go-to place to find places to eat but it's not always possible and, sometimes, when you do rock up at a restaurant listed as vegan-friendly, you can find yourself lost looking for a restaurant that hasn't existed since 1998 or in front of a waiter who has never heard the word vegan in his/her life.
Luckily my recent trip to Brussels was pretty successful on the food side of things. There's a great vegan restaurant open for lunch right in the centre of the city and a couple of other vegan-friendly hotspots littered around town. Also, Belgium is the chocolate capital of the world so you can get some really great, high-quality, milk/butter-free chocolate. But you need to be careful where you shop.
To start my little guide to vegan Brussels I'll give some hints about where to find good chocolate that is suitable for vegans.
The wikitravel website recommends Neuhaus and Leonidas on the cheaper but still good quality end of Belgian chocolate but I'm not sure I'd recommend either. Both seem to use butter instead of cocoa butter in most of their dark chocolates. You can get dark chocolate on a stick in Neuhaus that is vegan but that's about it. We also went to two separate stores and the service was friendly but pretty hopeless. Leonidas was very similar but the chocolate was even cheaper so I couldn't find any vegan-friendly options at all.
I did find vegan friendly options in the local express supermarkets like Carrefour and GB. My particular favourite was Galler whose Noisettes chocolate (hazelnuts in cocoa butter and surrounded by dark chocolate) was absolutely delicious. It's definitely more expensive than chocolate you'd buy in the supermarket at home but it's still a lot cheaper than what was being sold in the 'boutiques'. I also saw Galler chocolate being sold in many of the chocolate shops that have a mix of brands. Just be careful to check out the ingredients (helpfully in English as well as Dutch and French) because some of the dark chocolates have cream in their centres.
Rue des Chartreux 66, Brussels
Open: Mon-Sat 12pm-12pm
This is Brussels only vegan restaurant and is, unfortunately, only open for lunch Mon-Sat 12pm-2pm. The menu is very simple but this means the food comes out very quickly but is beautifully presented, fresh and very tasty!
There are two soups available (a miso or a vegetable soup) as a starter and then you choose one of four options for your main. These options are actually all very similar with only slight additions as they go up in price. Dish A is a brown rice and vegetable dish (it sounds basic but it tastes brilliant!) for 9 euros. Dish B is Dish A plus a croquette of brown rice, quinoa, potato and herbs (11 euros). Dish B is Dish A plus seitan (11 euros). Dish D is Dish A with the croquette and the seitan (13 euros). There is then also a selection of cakes (not on a menu but rather delicately laid out on a cake dish and brought to you for your selection) and herbal teas, if you are still hungry.
Even though the dish looks very simple it is packed with individual flavours and is really quite filling. We both had Dish B and were surprisingly full after the meal despite the fact that we were ravenous before.
The only complaint I'd have is that we were not offered any water and the food is quite salty. It's also not easy to find the restaurant (it's upstairs to an organic food store; just head through the wooden door as soon as you walk in to the shop's front door). However, the waitress was lovely (and spoke Dutch, French and English) and the food was really delicious so I would highly recommend a visit!
53 Bd Lemonnier, Brussels
Open: Daily 12pm-midnight
Mr Falafel is a very tiny falafel snackbar between the two exits of the Anneessens tram/metro stop or about a 10 minute slow stroll from the Grand Place so it's very convenient to get to. It's not exactly in the most spectacular part of Brussels (there seem to be no women on the streets after 8pm at all) but it's one of the only places in town that is 100% vegetarian and it's extremely cheap. It's 3 euros for a pita with hummus and 4 falafels and you then help yourself to quite a big range of salad and sauces to stuff your pita with. Not all of the salads are vegan but I just avoided the ones that looked like they had cream in them (I'm not sure if the lovely lady behind the counter speaks French or English because our total transaction was done with smiles and gestures so I didn't get to ask about the salads so just took the ones without sauces).
There are a few tables and chairs in the tiny space but you might end up sharing a table because it's a popular spot! If you are after yummy, cheap vegetarian food then this is the place to go!
Several locations, see website for map.
Le Pain Quotidien is actually a chain of bakeries found all around the world, including Australia and the UK, but the majority are in Belgium, where the chain started. It is quite a pricey bakery/cafe/restaurant but their goods are quite yummy and the service is quite pleasant. We visited the same store (Rue des Sablons 11) twice because it was situated across from the very beautiful Notre Dame du Sablon and about 200 metres from the the Magritte Museum, Fine Arts Museum and the palaces.
The vegan options are clearly labelled VEGAN on the menu (if you are eating in) or the price list (if you take away). The take away prices are much less than the eat-in prices, even for the same items. On both occassions I had the organic vegan muffin (one was blueberry and the other apple). The cafe has a pleasant, shared oval table as well as some more formal, smaller restaurant-like tables in the back but I would recommend skipping the extra costs involved with dining in, grabbing your muffin and taking it to the Place du Petit Sablon, across the road, to eat it in the park.
If you happen to take a day trip to Bruges (which I would highly recommend, but pack a raincoat!) there is also a store there.
Every vegan knows that one of the most difficult things about being a vegan is finding places to eat in a foreign country, especially if the language is not your mother tongue. Happy Cow is my go-to place to find places to eat but it's not always possible and, sometimes, when you do rock up at a restaurant listed as vegan-friendly, you can find yourself lost looking for a restaurant that hasn't existed since 1998 or in front of a waiter who has never heard the word vegan in his/her life.
Luckily my recent trip to Brussels was pretty successful on the food side of things. There's a great vegan restaurant open for lunch right in the centre of the city and a couple of other vegan-friendly hotspots littered around town. Also, Belgium is the chocolate capital of the world so you can get some really great, high-quality, milk/butter-free chocolate. But you need to be careful where you shop.
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ChocolateTo start my little guide to vegan Brussels I'll give some hints about where to find good chocolate that is suitable for vegans.
The wikitravel website recommends Neuhaus and Leonidas on the cheaper but still good quality end of Belgian chocolate but I'm not sure I'd recommend either. Both seem to use butter instead of cocoa butter in most of their dark chocolates. You can get dark chocolate on a stick in Neuhaus that is vegan but that's about it. We also went to two separate stores and the service was friendly but pretty hopeless. Leonidas was very similar but the chocolate was even cheaper so I couldn't find any vegan-friendly options at all.
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| Galler Chocolatier chocolates can be found in most supermarkets. It's great quality chocolate but a bit cheaper than the chocolate found in boutiques (but not lesser quality!). |
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Den Teepot
Frites
The frites (fries/fried potato chips) in Belgium are supposed to be the best. The secret, apparently, is that they double fry them so the chips are crispy and golden. There are many places to pick them up around the city (you can see Wikitravel's recommendations here) but you shouldn't pay any more than about 3 euros for a large cone including a sauce.
One of the great things about the frites in Belgium is the huge range of sauces available for them. Unfortunately, most are not vegan so you might just have to stick with ketchup or, like me, without any sauce at all. You also need to be careful that the store you go to uses vegetable fat to fry the chips in. A quick Google search should help you out.
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Rue des Chartreux 66, Brussels
Open: Mon-Sat 12pm-12pm
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| Den Teepot is the only vegan restaurant in Brussels. |
There are two soups available (a miso or a vegetable soup) as a starter and then you choose one of four options for your main. These options are actually all very similar with only slight additions as they go up in price. Dish A is a brown rice and vegetable dish (it sounds basic but it tastes brilliant!) for 9 euros. Dish B is Dish A plus a croquette of brown rice, quinoa, potato and herbs (11 euros). Dish B is Dish A plus seitan (11 euros). Dish D is Dish A with the croquette and the seitan (13 euros). There is then also a selection of cakes (not on a menu but rather delicately laid out on a cake dish and brought to you for your selection) and herbal teas, if you are still hungry.
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| The vegetable, brown rice and croquette dish (Dish B) at Den Teepot. The flavours and textures on the plate are magnificent! |
The only complaint I'd have is that we were not offered any water and the food is quite salty. It's also not easy to find the restaurant (it's upstairs to an organic food store; just head through the wooden door as soon as you walk in to the shop's front door). However, the waitress was lovely (and spoke Dutch, French and English) and the food was really delicious so I would highly recommend a visit!
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Mr Falafel 53 Bd Lemonnier, Brussels
Open: Daily 12pm-midnight
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| The very petite Mr Falafel has tasty and inexpensive vegetarian food. |
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| A falafel from Mr Falafel: pita filled with hummus and falafel that you then stuff with your own choice of salad from the salad bar. |
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Le Pain QuotidienSeveral locations, see website for map.
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| Le Pain Quotidien, Rue des Sablon |
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| The organic (bio) muffin at Le Pain Quotidien is vegan and delicious! |
If you happen to take a day trip to Bruges (which I would highly recommend, but pack a raincoat!) there is also a store there.
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| Take your vegan muffin across to the lovely Place du Petit Sablon. |
