After flight delays, painful contortions on the plane that resulted in no sleep, and being told that my hotel room in Brussels wouldn’t be ready for 3 more hours, I dropped my bags in the lobby and headed straight to the Grand Place where I knew I’d find the only solace I needed: a waffle.
Since this was my second trip to Brussels, I knew just where to get the best one: Dandoy’s.
It costs a little more than the other waffle stands you pass every few storefronts, but I liked Dandoy’s best. Not that any of them are bad, especially compared to what we get back in the U.S. The Belgian waffles there bear no resemblance to real Belgian waffles or Liege waffles, which I much prefer.
Liege waffles are denser, sweeter, with the sugar mixed into the batter. You can get them sprinkled with powdered sugar on top, but there’s no need. They are perfect plain; warm and delectable with a little bit of caramelized sugar that makes them a darker brown than the rectangular shaped Belgian waffles we’re more familiar with back home.
You can get those at the same stands. They’re usually topped with chocolate or strawberries and whipped cream. Actually, there are all sorts of toppings you can get on either type of waffle, but I always skip right over them. I just want a nice, plain, warm waffle in my hand that I can pull apart as I stroll through the Grand Place marvelling that I’m in Brussels…again.
Dude, you HAVE to go to Taste of Belgium -- there's a small shopfront in Findlay Market, or a restaurant in OTR. They sell the Liege waffles (or a variety of them) and they are CRACKTASTIC. I'm now craving one, in fact, just after having thought about them briefly...
ReplyDelete(The restaurant has other Belgium-inspired offerings, such as mussels, etc.)
I know, I know. I have that on my list of places to go. Soon! I'll be jones-ing for waffles when I get back, that's for sure!
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