Nearly everyone I know abroad who visited Belgium tells me they only went to Bruges… Such a shame! I usually exclaim because Ghent is just as beautiful! Don’t get me wrong, I love Bruges but Ghent is Bruges rock’n’roll sister, the badass of the family, full of subcultures, underground music scenes and home to ‘Vooruit’ one of the most incredible music halls located in an old socialist arts centre – the place where I saw my first show at 16. On top of that, Ghent has all Bruges has to offer architecture-wise minus the annoying hordes of tourists and unimaginative souvenirs shops selling lace from anywhere but Flanders.
Ghent is constantly reinventing itself, people are friendly and the atmosphere is relaxed. You can have a good glass of Belgian beer on nearly every street corner but the last few years exciting new places have been opening all over the town. Ghent has been reputed being the vegetarian capital of Europe and that is something I had to be told by a friend who is vegan and visited Ghent a few months ago.
Ghent has been our nearest town for the last 12 years and with our move a few months ago we hardly ever visited because life has just been to busy and we no longer live a 20 minute drive away. But I find I look at Ghent with different eyes now when we do manage to carve out some time to travel there. We no longer pop over for lunch at our favourite Italian (Trattoria Della Mamma), but venture further into the city to try other things, stay longer to have dessert or afternoon tea (Huset), or an ice cold glass of Belgian style.
If shopping is what you are after, Ghent has it all. You have your highstreet chains in de Veldstraat but if small independent shops is your thing – it sure is for me – you have an array of little shops dotted around town.
If you saved all your pennies for the train fare and have not much extra to spend, fear not. On a budget Ghent is still as appealing as if you’ve got an envelope of cash in your purse. Walks around town are of course free and beautiful and a traditional meal of Flemish fries in a paper cone is romantic as well as cheap. Ghent has something for everyone.
Let me share with you my favourite addresses to make your trip the best it can be. And if you’re visiting around this time, Ghent has a shopping on sunday (shops are usually closed on sundays) and next week there is a folk festival in the Patershol quarter (Patershol feesten). This borough is called ‘Coté Culture’ this summer and there are great restaurants, traditional, ethnical and hipster. I love the shops here like Louise & Madeleine for gifts, jewellery and pottery, Maaike kleedt for fashion and an old fashioned wallpaper shop you just have to go and see to be transported back in time.
These shops are all situated on or just off the Kraanlei, a beautiful street by the water where you just have to have a walk even if you don’t feel like shopping. There are plenty of places to keep you watered from tea (Julie’s House), coffee (Jetje) to the more stronger stuff.
Huset, Hoogstraat
Het Lepelblad, Onderbergen
Simon Says
Organic cheese made by Hinkelspel
Cuberdon sweet seller
- For shopping (excluding highstreet chains)
I love shops where you can find unique or home made things, these are shops selling those things and if you have prop shopping in mind, some of these will be great for you.
Dille & Kamille (baskets, crockery and props, a larger chain but I still love the fact they sell smaller brands like Doves farm organic products, and did I tell you about the baskets??)
Hoornstraat
Louise & Madeleine
Kraanlei (a very nice street by the water with a few nice places to have a drink and eat)
Maaike Kleedt (fashion)
Kraanlei
Confiserie Temmerman (old fashioned sweet shop, great facade)
Kraanlei
Behangwinkel Priem (vintage wallpaper, this store has been here for decades)
Zuivelbrugstraat
Piet Moodshop
Sint Pieternieuwstraat
Seventy One (Vintage revival shopping)
Brabantdam
Het Paard van Troye (large selection of cookbooks and a café)
Kouter
- Food shopping:
Mokabon (old fashioned retro coffee place from the 1930’s)
Donkersteeg
Tierenteyn -Verlent Mustard shop (mustard, pickles and other delicious preserves, a must visit for the old shop interior)
Groentenmarkt
Himschoot Bakery (where you can find traditional local pastries like mastel breads and mattetaart)
Groentenmarkt
Tratoria Della Mamma (Italian take-away)
Sint Pieternieuwstraat
Traditional Cuberdon sweets (purple cones, tastes like violet)
At various stalls in the town
- Cheese
Cheese shop
Donkersteeg
Cheese Mekka
Koestraat
Hinkelspel (Organic cheese maker, love the fenugreek one)
Ferdinand Lousbergskaai 33
- Restaurants:
Het Lepelblad (sustainable food, great place, great wine and beer)
Onderbergen
De parkiet
Kraanlei
Boon (Vegetarian)
Veerleplein
Komkommertijd (Vegetarian)
Reep
Le petit Botanique (all produce from city farms in Ghent)
Kammerstraat
Eetkaffee De Lieve (Old fashioned Belgian)
Sint-Margrietstraat
Aroy Aroy (Fusion)
Lang Steenstraat
Trattoria Della Mamma (Traditional Italian, just for lunch)
Sint Pieternieuwstraat 36
Huset (breakfast, afternoon tea, coffee and cake, beautiful location)
Hoogstraat
Eat Love Pizza (organic, made with love!)
Ajuinlei
Superette (sourdough bread and pizzas, modern cuisine)
Guldensporenstraat
Simon Says (Great lunch spot)
Sluizeken
San (Bowl food, very elegant)
Brabantdam
- Patershol:
Roots (imaginative cuisine)
Karel De Stoute (upmarket cuisine)
Bocca Di Lupo (Italian)
- Drinking:
De Brouwbar (Brewbar)
Oudburg
Gruut City Brewery (brewery with pub and guided tour)
Rembert Dodoensdreef
Jazz cafe Otis
Oudburg
Jiggers’ cocktail bar (for perfect cocktails)
Oudburg
Dulle Griet (beer café)
Vrijdagmarkt
Het Waterhuis aan de Bierkant (beer café)
Groentenmarkt
Dreupelkot (Jenever)
Groentenmarkt
Trapistenhuis (beer)
Brabantdam
Het Véloke (as seen in my book Belgian Café Culture, a very-very unique place run by hoarder Lieven, go there at your own risk, you’ll see what I mean)
- Coffee and cake, or just coffee or tea or afternoon tea
Mokabon (old fashioned coffee place from the 1930’s, a must go even if you don’t drink coffee)
Donkersteeg
Huset (beautiful location, great cakes!)
Hoogstraat
Simon Says
Sluizeken
Julie’s House (afternoon tea, tea and coffee)
Kraanlei
Jetje
Kraanlei
Madame Bakster
Brabantdam
- Museums:
Sint-Baafskathedraal (cathedral with exhibition)
http://www.sintbaafskathedraal.be/
Gravensteen (Ghent’s beautiful castle in the middle of town)
https://gravensteen.stad.gent/en
S.M.A.K (museum for temporary art)
Jan Hoetplein
- Markets (until noon)
Weekly market on Friday
Vrijdagmarkt
Organic market on Friday
Groentenmarkt
Organic market on Sunday
Sint-Pieters Railway station
Regula Ysewijn is a food writer, stylist and photographer, with a particular interest in historical recipes. he is a Great Taste Awards judge and a member of The Guild of Food Writers, as well as one of the two judges on 'Bake Off Vlaanderen', the Belgian version of 'The Great British Bake-Off'. A self-confessed Anglophile, she collects old British cookbooks and culinary equipment in order to help with her research. She is the author of 5 books: Pride and Pudding the history of British puddings savoury and sweet, Belgian Café Culture, the National Trust Book of Puddings, Brits Bakboek and Oats in the North, Wheat from the South. 
Als rasechte Brugse, die haar studententijd doorbracht in het mooie Gent, zou ik bovenstaande post toch even willen nuanceren. Beide steden hebben veel gemeen, ze zijn cultuurhistorisch van groot belang, ze zijn aangenaam om in te vertoeven maar ze hebben beiden ook een groot aantal mensen die er niet constant wonen. Brugge heeft haar toeristen, Gent haar studenten. Dit zorgt ervoor dat beide steden inderdaad ook een aanbod hebben van handelszaken waar de Bruggeling of de Gentenaar niet echt warm van wordt. Zo heeft Gent haar nachtwinkels en Brugge haar chocoladewinkels. (De laatste jaren zijn de kantwinkels in Brugge zo goed als allemaal verdwenen en vervangen door chocoladewinkels. Tot mijn eigen vreugde zitten er daar ook enkele hele goeie bij).
Er zijn naast chocoladewinkels ook heel wat leuke boetieks bijgekomen en aan toffe eetadresjes is er al helemaal geen gebrek. Mocht je nog eens het kanaal oversteken kom dan gerust ook eens naar Brugge en breng een bezoekje aan de vele leuke boetiekjes zoals Twee Meisjes en Ruth of ga iets eten op het mooie terras van De Republiek (een beetje De Vooruit van Brugge). Zo zal je zien dat Brugge ook heel rock and roll kan zijn en niet enkel bestaat uit kantwinkels en toeristen.
Kom je met de auto parkeer dan aan het station. Brugge is net als Gent gestart met het autoluw maken van de historische binnenstad.
Mail me gerust als je nog hulp nodig hebt bij het plannen van je bezoek 😉
Groetjes Jess
Het blijft mij verbazen waarom Belgen alles als een aanval beschouwen! 🙂 Dit artikel is om buitenlandse mensen eens naar Gent te lokken in plaats van het voor de hand liggende Brugge – Brugge een stad die ik overigens PRACHTIG vind. Heel lief dat ik je mag contacteren voor tips voor Brugge, want een “local” weet altijd de beste adresjes!
The “borough”known for centuries as: Patershol now has a different name: “This borough is called ‘Coté Culture’ ” by who exactly?? Also, look up the definition of borough please.
Dille & Kamille isn’t a high street chain?! Well, with just over 30 shops I guess they’re pretty small.
And of all the amazing places to buy a coffee in Ghent you suggest Mokabon??!
Bizarre.
From an employee of a Ghent Radio station I didn’t expect such a rude comment.
Google Coté Culture and you’ll find this is an initiative from the City of Ghent to call this quarter this way – every quarter has a different name to create “sfeergebieden”: https://stad.gent/puur-gent/sfeergebieden-beeld/c%C3%B4t%C3%A9-culture
If you don’t like Dille & Kamille that is a personal issue you have, they have many stores but still sell small brands and for a foreign visitor to Belgium this store is always a big hit.
The same is for Mokabon… you don’t like this beautiful coffee place from the 1930’s? That is your personal preference and I find all the foreign visitors I take there, LOVE it. It’s a great change from modern coffee bars.
It’s a shame you didn’t feel like sharing your favourite places but chose to troll all over my post which took me time to write in an incredibly busy time for me. It’s so easy to be negative.
Thankyou for sharing Ragula
All you mentioned I would love to visit anything with history and story. Well written and all sounds fun. I’m now going to do a little research and look see where these all are I would love to visit Ghent
I hope when you visit you will have an amazing time! All these places are in walking distance so you can’t miss them!
Thank you for all these precious tips ! I hope I will travel to Ghent sometime soon !
Thanks, I hope you get to visit soon!!
Beautiful photos, was there only 2 weeks ago
Ah then this post came a little too late for you, hope you can come back soon!
Totally loved Ghent, felt like I could live there. I know quite a few people have gone as a result of me raving about it.
Dille & kamille – spent a small fortune there.
Thanks for this post.
My previous posts: http://www.msmarmitelover.com/2017/10/veggie-thursdays-in-ghent.html?m=1
Of course it was you I was talking about in my post! I added the link to your post there too, which I meant to do but then failed to do! Thanks!
This is so wonderful. For a long time I’ve been planning to go to Ghent after seeing some photos and just falling in love with it. This post is the final push. Loved reading about it, the addresses, the photos… I’m going even if by myself. 🙂
I hope you will enjoy it lots!!
Ghent is one of my favourite places in Belgium. I was there for the first time about 30 years ago for a Dutch Summer Course (Ik spreek een beetje Nederlands). Beautiful city and great for food lovers, too!