All posts tagged: ‘t Zand

#109 Small lunch at Nomad, Bruges

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restaurant review #109 – Nomad is a new place in the city center of Bruges. It is located at ‘t Zand, near the Noordzandstraat (hence, on the north side of the square). NOMAD stands for No Ordinary Meals And Drinks, and the vegetables they use come from their organic farm just outside of Bruges. I had inquired a couple of months ago whether they have vegan options, and got a positive reply (the vegetarian burger was said to be vegan, but not the bun). I telephoned to make a reservation for lunch and checked again to be sure we could have something vegan. No problem. We were seated at the back of the restaurant, near the toilets, on a small table next to a demi wall, seperating the restaurant from the kitchen. We were there for lunch on a Friday and the place was fully packed (this was shortly after New Year and there seemed to be a large table with a group of colleagues having a New Year’s lunch). Accoustics were very bad and the noise was loud! We …

#92 – All vegan evening at traditional restaurant Guillaume, Bruges

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Restaurant review #92 – Guillaume is a traditional restaurant in the city center of Bruges. It is just a 5 minute walk from ‘t Zand. I had contacted Guillaume several times over the years to ask whether we could dine there (vegan menu), but always received a negative (albeit very polite and friendly) response. So I was quite surprised to see the anouncement last Summer of a ‘no meat no fish’ dinner evening announced. I asked whether the evening was vegan, and quickly got confirmation. Exciting! It was a lovely Summer evening and we choose to be seated on the terrace in the back. It was quite a relaxed atmosphere, the restaurant cat came to check in on the terrace wall (although unfortunately she wasn’t allowed on the terrace itself). When it went dark one big umbrella covered the the whole terrace and brought a nice glow of reflecting light on the ceiling. Cosy. As we were outside all evening, we didn’t really get a feeling of the atmosphere inside, but it seemed quite charming as well. This was our …

#31 Restaurant Buddhasia, Bruges **

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Restaurant review #31 – Buddhasia is a new Vietnamese restaurant in the city center of Bruges (opened Fall 2014). It is located at the back of the Sint-Salvator Cathedral and near the main shopping street (a 5 min walk from ‘t Zand). NOTE: see update below.  Thai or Vietnamese restaurants often have a selection of vegetarian dishes that seem to be vegan (sometimes seperately listed as vegetarian or vegetable dishes on the menu), But restaurant Buddhasia takes it up to the next level and has a seperate vegan category on their menu card! Yeah! The vegan section lists five main dishes, ranging from 9€ to 14€. Upon ordering, we got an appetizer with noodles and bean sprouts (taugé). Our drinks followed quickly: a mango juice (4€) and a freshly squeezed orange juice (4,5€). We asked whether they also could suggest us some vegan entrees, and were suggested the Pho – noodlesoup (9€) (unfortunately no other vegan entrees possible). As a main dish, I asked the tofu with morning glory (water spinach) and garlic 14€) and my partner went for the noodles with vegetables …

#10 Bistro Pastis, Bruges ***

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Restaurant review #10 – Bistro Pastis is one of the few places in Bruges which standardly has vegan main dishes available. We received this tip from vegan friends who had already been here for dinner. There are four vegetarian main dishes standardly available on their menu, of which two are without dairy and eggs. We had previously mailed with the question if we could get a vegan menu, explicitating what we do and don’t eat, and we got an affirmative reply. We went there on a friday evening, some months ago (November 2013). Remarkably, there were hardly any tourists, but a lot of locals. Although Pastis is very close to ‘t Zand, there seems to be little tourist traffic in the Speelmansrei. That night it was very quiet on the street. But the restaurant soon packed. So we do advise you to make a reservation. Tables are spaciously situated, which gives it a calm and more restaurant atmosphere than a bistro impression (at least downstairs, we don’t know about upstairs). Appetizer There’s nothing vegan to choose from on …

De Olijfboom (The Olive Tree), shop Bruges

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Shop review #4 – De Olijfboom (The Olive Tree) is a small shop close to ‘t Zand. The place is packed with spices, chutneys, salts, a selection of Japanese products, vanille (from many different countries), a wide variety of olive oils and more. And not the regular brands that are available in other shops, but rare and exclusive specialities. At least, we think they are rare, because we haven’t seen any of their products available anywhere else and the owner gave us information on the exclusiveness of some of the brands. It’s not an all vegan shop (eg some of the Japanese products contain fish), but a lot of the products are commonly used in vegan cooking. The owner told us the majority of De Olijfboom’s clientele are restaurants and catering businesses, and there is a selection of their business cards stalled inside the shop. Among which Michelin star restaurants like Hof van Cleve*** (Kruishoutem, 53km from Bruges). There’s a wide selection of olive oils available, bottled, but also tapped: We bought two different types …

#6 Restaurant Chang Thong Thai, Bruges **

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Restaurant review #6 – Chang Thong Thai is a Thai restaurant in a small alley next to ‘t Zand. Their online menu card lists several vegetarian/vegan dishes seperately. We’ve already heard some experiences from other vegans and vegetarians about this place, so we decided to go check it out ourselves! It was a good thing we made a reservation for dinner, because shortly after we arrived, the place was packed (on a weeknight). Although it is in the city center, we hardly saw any tourists probably because it’s not in a main street. There’s a small area upstairs with some tables as well, but since the toilets were located there we decided to take place at one of the tables downstairs. Tables are stashed pretty close next to each other, which made us a bit uncomfortable (hearing every word of the conversation of the couple next to you, willingly or not, is not really enjoyable). Comfy arm chairs though. This is dining in a traditional Asian style setting (well, you know, Western Asian style), with buddhas statues …

Zaboer Asian Food, shop Bruges

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Shop review #1 – After our restaurant visit to restaurant Chang Ton Thai (review will follow) we accidentally stumbled upon this Asian shop just around the corner, next to ‘t Zand: Zaboer Asian Food. Quite a surprise, also because it was still open at 21:30 (which is quite unusual for shops in Belgium, most close at about 6 or 7 pm). UPDATE: see below! It’s not very big, but has some specialities which are not so common to find, and may interest vegans: a wide variety of dried beans and lentils, some brands of coconutmilk that I’ve never seen before, and a good collection of spices and herbs (eg, I saw different kinds of kardemon pods, which are not so commonly available in regular shops around here). A bit messy and untidy place though, not all items were clearly labelled. Also noticed some items which were past their expiry date, eg a tiny flacon of coconut extract (yeah! never found this before!) which was a bit overdue, and as such I got it for free, thanks! …