Belgian cuisine
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Belgium is a nation of Gourmands rather than Gourmets which translates into big cuisine rather than fine cuisine. In reality this means that along with big portions, you get pretty good quality and a kind of unpretentiousness. The word Gourmandise originally meant gluttony, but like in France it has taken over the above meaning. It is often said Belgium serves food with the quantity of Germany and the quality of France.
Typical dishes include Lapin à la Gueuze or Konijn in Gueuze (rabbit in Gueuze, which is a spontaneously fermented beer from the area around Brussels), Stoemp (a dish based on potatoes, carrots and onion sauce with regional variations), Salade Liégeoise (a salad with green beans, lard, onions and vinegar), Flemish Carbonades (Vlaams stoofvlees) (similar to the French Beef Bourguignon but made with beer instead of red wine), waterzooi (especially the one from Ghent), Chicon Gratin/Gegratineerd witloof and Moules Frites/Mosselen-Friet (mussels and chips). Dishes often use typical Belgian beers.
French fries, called frieten (Dutch) or frites (French) are very popular. The best place to enjoy Belgian frites is at a friture (frituur or informally frietkot in Dutch) which is a temporary construction usually strategically placed in busy squares.
Another Belgian speciality is beer. Although a comparatively small country, there are a large number of beers available in a range of different styles. Almost every different beer has its own unique drinking vessel, usually a glass of some description. Belgium is also well known for its chocolate and its pralines (filled chocolates) in particular.
