Last month, I had the pleasure of spending a few days in Ghent. It is, so I read, known for being the most veggie friendly city in Belgium. We certainly ate well - here's a few of the places we tried.
The first stop on the vegan tour is Oh Ma, a restaurant devoted to nostalgic Belgian flavours. I didn't know much about traditional Belgian cuisine, but I was definitely willing to learn.
We went to Oh Ma on a beautiful summer day in Ghent, and got a spot outside on the terrace. It's a good location for a spot of people watching, if that's your thing, but mostly I was doing a bit of dinner watching as I set my eyes and stomach on trying the Oh!MA'tje - a boatload of fries, covered with 'beefy' stew, mayo, "a mix of meaty snacks" (chunks of different types of sausages, as it turned out), as well as crunchy onions and red onion.
Obviously it was great - what's not to love about a bowlful of fries topped with all manner of goodness? The only mistake I made here was not choosing just a bowlful of the stew, because it was the most glorious part - just made of the sort of flavours that warm your soul. Beer, thyme, bay, a little sweetness cutting through the wintery vibe.
The restaurant has one of those QR code ordering online set ups (though they did offer us a paper menu if we needed one). I'm not normally a fan, but it did have handy options like 'bring everything out all at once' or 'starters first, then mains'. You can also order dessert ahead of time, which means I don't have to pretend to be thinking about whether or not I need something sweet after tea, because there is always room for dessert. I will fight anyone who disagrees with me on this most important matter.
Oh! Ma
https://www.oh-ma.eu/
Gebroeders Vandeveldestraat 6, 9000 Gent, Belgium
+32 9 273 50 59
info@oh-ma.eu
One of the joys of visiting the continent for me is tracking down the best vegan bakeries patisseries.
When I visited Way, the outside tables were filled with people drinking coffee, catching up with friends, doing a bit of remote work, or reading a book, enjoying pastries in the good weather. I like to pretend when I win the lottery, this is exactly the life I plan for myself - just relaxing, eating good food, passing time in the best company - be that people or pages.
I got to sit outside of Way, drink my coffee, eat an almond croissant, and chat to my partner, living my best pretend lottery winner life.
And until I win the lottery, I can at least eat all the pastries. And Way has good vegan pastries in abundance - homemade croissants of every stripe and the sort of cakes that you want to point to any time one of your non-vegan friends says they feel sorry for how much you've had to give up.
Next time you're in Ghent, go to Way, and know being vegan means giving up absolutely nothing.
Way Plantbased Bakehouse
Jakobijnenstraat 7, 9000 Gent
The thing about being on holiday is that you tend to indulge all your holiday impulses - eat too much, drink too much, laze around all day or try and cram in seeing as many sites as you can. You can end up a bit frazzled at the end of it (just me?) and in need of a recharge of your batteries.
Having filled ourselves up on fries, beer and pastries, at the end of my Ghent visit, I found myself craving vegetables, brown rice, seeds and all the whole foods plant based goodness I could find. Luckily, Le Botaniste had my back.
It's a place that's taken all those old school sandal-wearing, knit-your-own-hemp vegan stereotypes of vegan good and refashioned them into something more up to date and still light of heart (and stomach).
You order your food at the counter: there's some starters, soups, bowls and desserts if you're in need of something sweet (see above). I chose the Tibetan mama - brown rice, coconut peanut butter curry sauce, steamed greens, and kimchi. It was mildly spiced, creamy with the kimchi as a foil to lighten things up, and just what my vegetable and fibre craving self. Not sure what the link to Tibet is, but an enjoyable dish all the same.
Mr Flickingthevs got a chilli bowl. I know what you're thinking - 'a chill bowl? Everywhere has a chilli bowl. It's the default vegan option. Who cares?' But, my friends, this was actually really good - one of the best vegan chillis I've had in a while. I'm not saying there's a lot on Le Botaniste's menu that you won't have seen before, if you're a restaurant and you're going to sell dishes everyone has had a million times before, you need to make sure you're doing them well - and Le Botaniste really does.
Le Botaniste
Hoornstraat 13, 9000 Gent, Belgium
+32 9 233 45 35
I'd love to spend all my time on holiday in restaurants and bakeries - who wouldn't? - but sometimes I have to do a bit of tourism too. And when the weather's good (it was between 25 and 30°C when we were there) we spent a lot of our time seeing the sights and then having lunch in a nearby park. That means picnics!
If you're looking to pick up some stuff for al fresco dining in Ghent, Albert Heijn seemed to be the best supermarket chain for vegans - they had lots of vegan options for grab-and-go food, all clearly marked.
I managed to find this vegan 'bacon and egg' wrap, which was much better than any supermarket sandwich has a right to be.
Albert Heijn
locations across Ghent/Belgium
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