We visited 15 restaurants in 72 HOURS (Ghent, Belgium)

We visited 15 restaurants in 72 HOURS (Ghent, Belgium)

We are going to do a 72 hour food tour in Ghent. We’ll visit 15 restaurants, from budget bites to high end plates. And you might not know the city for its food, but trust us, Ghent knows what’s up. In this episode, we’re going to introduce you to personalities that make eating in Ghent worth it. But not just that. We will take you behind the scenes in the kitchens and show you how they create their magic. Our first stop brings us to Lies and Maurits, two pastry chefs bound by their love for both each other and their craft. Together, they create delicious tartlets perfected at minute, ensuring every bite is as fresh and flavorful as it was meant to be. First stop of today, we start with a dessert. Look how beautiful these look! I got the chocolate. This is amazing. The layer after layer after layer of chocolate. There’s a lot of lemon inside, but it’s really perfect. The biscuit is so crunchy, but so airy, so light. Then there’s like a chocolate mousse inside. Just taste it. Go for it. It’s super light. It’s not as heavy as I thought it would be. Wow. These tartlets are the real deal. We continue to the “Kortrijksepoortstraat” where Bruno Lima, straight from Lisbon has found a home. With him, he brought the rich authentic flavors of Portugal. We’ll get a taste of some true classics, starting with the beloved “bifana” pork marinated in “vinha d’alhos”, a mix of red wine, paprika, garlic and bay leaves. Served on a ”bolo do caco”. A traditional bread from the island of Madeira made with flour and sweet potato, pork and mustard. Always a good idea. A high juice to squeeze ratio. I thought it would be very dry. It’s not at all the case. It’s really delicious. The pork steaks in Portugal. They really know what they’re doing. The “bifana” is approved. Onto the next. We start off with onions softened in olive oil, and then we add shredded cod, crisp potato sticks and scrambled eggs. Stir it just enough to bind. Parsley and some black olives to finish. A humble classic called “Bacalhau à Brás”. It’s a really good combination with the crips. So it continues “pastel de Nata”. According to Bruno, is the best in Belgium. Bruno, you just might be right. It is delicious that’s for sure. But I think it’s difficult to compare it to the ones we had in Brussels because they came fresh out of the oven. So I can’t say that this one is the best. We’re going to have to come back. Wow, Bruno what a star! A legend. To celebrate our viral episode in Istanbul. More than 1 million views. We had to honor the “Shirdan joke, Where I told Arno we were going to taste the penis of a lamb. Ahmed Usta, traditional Turkish food. Korkoreç is the small and big intestine of a lamb. Wrapped around fat. Father Ahmet owns a Kokoreç business and supplies Turkish restaurants all over Europe. This one is cooked in the oven and finished off on the grill. “Teşekkürler” I’m not Turkish, but this feels like coming home. It is meaty, but not really. It’s a meaty, fatty flavor bomb. The flavor is so unique it’s hard to compare it to something else. This is “Shirdan”. This is lamb stomach filled with rice and spices. Little bit salt, cumin and some chili pepper. If you wouldn’t know what this was, what would you think it would be? This slurf of a very small elephant. You want the tip or…? I’ve always heard that the that the bag is better. This time I’m going to take a big bite from the first go. It’s less chewy. So much softer. I never thought I would say this, but I want another piece. And all these, parts of the intestines, they all have their own very particular flavor as well. You never forget your first “Shirdan”. “Hoş geldiniz”. “Wagwan” generals, next up “Capsule”. Hong Kong street food in the “Overpoort”. Chef Louis creates his own dishes. This one he calls Titan. Light fried chicken. Mushroom sauce. Compact. We should mix everything together. Whoa! Dig in. Chicken titan. It is a very unique flavor. Traditional Hong Kong fish balls. Whoa! Nice texture on it. Oh! It’s delicious. These fish balls. Look at them fish balls. Siu mai with pork. And a cabbage salad underneath. Oh, yeah. Very good. Whoa. My favorite so far. Yeah. You still have some room for tonight? Not in the bed, but in the stomach. So lonely, but so hungry. Yalla! We will finish our first day with some fine ass dining. One of Ghent’s most iconic chefs, top shelf ingredients and a kitchen that cooks with soul, sweat and serious volume. Bar bask where Jordin, Dennis and Sam create Basque inspired magic. Pure products primal Fire and unapologetic flavor. Sam D’huyvetter will bombard us with some of their signatures. Get ready for a wild night! So welcome to start our Bask broth made from roasted turbot, langoustines, Bresse chicken and pimiento the Padron. It’s to open up your tastebuds before we go. Wow, it’s a bomb of flavor. So next on, from our own farm “Bayeux” pork. We made a chorizo, but not a, an ordinary chorizo. It’s made with “piment d’espelette”, so it’s more fresh, less spicy, but super intense in flavor. And then anchovy. That’s where the story starts. Pure product sourced very well. That’s crazy flavor. It’s a special selection for us. It’s, always older European cows. they select on fat percentage, color and age of the beef. So it’s first for the milk production and afterwards for meat. It’s super intense in flavor and for me the best meat. Wow okay. This is literally the best food in the world. Beef. That is a knock out of the parc. It’s a “brioche feuilletée” a collaboration with Joost Arys with a little bit of guinea fowl fat on top. And then “piment d’espelette” butter. gives it an extra punch. Well, guys, it’s time for a toast. Next on Norwegian grilled lobster brioche. It’s a bit more expensive, but it’s sweeter in taste. I have never seen bacon with so much fat ratio. It’s, lardo pork belly, seven herbs. It’s dried like charcuterie. Tried to eat it elegant. Yeah, baby. Yeah. I think I’m turning mad. Can I get a hallelujah? Hallelujah. Next., gamberro rosso. Mediterranean red shrimp. We don’t grill it, but we burn it. That it’s still a bit raw. And the head we will grill on the barbecue. A little touch of lemon. Our secret Bask “molé”. Inspired on the Mexican cuisine. A little bit of raw tartare of the gamberro rosso. Gamberro rosse, the best is in the head. We slightly smoke it. I will leave this with you so you can really suck out the brains. The advantages is you get smarter by eating them How many did you eat? A lot. I was born a dumb boy. This is the best of the best. So, first he seasons the scallops. They’re still attached to the shell. So you don’t take them totally out. We put a little bit of our secret vinaigrette on top. It’s our smoked vinaigrette. That we use to season everything. We cool down the coals a little bit and then smoke the scallops on top. Now he’s flipping the scallop. We made a butter that we infused with dried coral of the scallop. We put it back on top. So it’s like a small oven. And then we put it back in the coals, and then we have a raw scallop carpaccio that we put on a crispy toast, some garlic mayonnaise, some scallop oil, and some fresh leaves. Smoked scallops on the barbecue. A little scallop cappuccino with sour cream and coffee. And then a toast. Wow. So, guinea fowl, the guardians of our farm. We have a lot of wild birds flying over. and they try to take the “Bresse” chickens. So to protect them, we put those birds with it. They’re super alert. If they see danger, they go inside. And the chickens, they just follow. So we first cure it for two weeks in smoked hay butter and then slow roast it above the barbecue. A little hit in the oven. Give it a burn on the barbecue and serve it with a triple cooked sauce. You see the grilled bones of the guinea fowl that we use for the sauce. Grandma’s purée. Watch out, it can be addictive. How much butter is the ratio? There is 40% of potato. Okay. And then we have, mushrooms grilled on the barbecue in some garlic oil. And then we put, cold smoked raw egg yolk as sauce. Take some guinea fowl! You want some butter with potato? Yes, please. You know what’s nice about guinea fowls? They’re always in gangs. They’re never alone. But what kind of bird is this? Guinea fowl? It sounds like a guinea pig. You don’t know guinea fowls? No! For all you unlettered gastronomic lovers like I am, this is a guinea fowl. Everything is just so rich. A little nightcap. Jesus Christ. Vanilla ice from sheep milk. Because it’s more herbal and fatty. A vanilla balsamic caramel. Chocolate sauce with smoked butter and apple cider. Just like we deserve. This is really delicious. And again, not too cold. it’s super soft. It just all melts on your tongue. It’s not cheap, but it’s sheep. Mommy cooked fish but I stay here. There is a God. Yesterday was crazy. Sam is a real cool guy. Time for breakfast. Champagne. “De blauwe kiosk” is a true Ghent icon. Whether you’re here for a laid back brunch or slurping oysters and sipping champagne after a two day rave, this place delivers. It’s where weekends begin. With a touch of luxury, incredible food and top tier products. A little indulgence the Ghent way. That’s what I’m talking about. This is really Belgian aristocrats, desperate housewife, weekend brunch. Day 1 is finished. Mission completed. What was your highlight? Already how we started the day with these chocolate tarts. That was very spectacular. What did you think, actually, of the Bacalhau a Bras? I think it’s a good dish, very balanced. Not very special, but I can see it’s a cultural classic. Yeah. The experience with Sam. The bearded legend chef. What did he put on of a show! And it won’t be the only one will experience. Because what follows is perhaps the discovery of the show. A place we stumbled upon that swept this off our feet, tucked away in the “Korte meer there’s an Italian deli called Cammaleri Pastificio. A place for shopping, chatting, eating and vibing. This is Fabio, the star of the show and a future TV personality. His screams passion for Italian food and his focaccia is the purest expression of that love. This is a focaccia, 90% water hydration with “biga naturalé” and 72 hours of total prep time. We’re going to cut the mortadella from Bologna, but with the pistachio from Bronte. They’re from Sicily. So now I put stracciatella it’s the heart of the burrata. Paste of Funghi, and we put all the mortadella. Braised artichokes. Then we finish with some spinach. So, guys. This is the Popolo. Like the Pope. It’s so light, so nice. If you see it like this, it’s like a ‘bomboclat’ sandwich. So this is the porchetta. It’s made by Italian friends in Genk. It’s like slow roasted pork filled with Italian herbs. Like sage, a little bit of pepperoncini. But then the focaccia is already the superstar by itself. Oh, so this is, bomba, a chili paste from Calabria. Pepperoncini a little bit of aubergines. We have the porchetta. A bit of zucchini, some dried tomatoes, also some spinach. It’s nice and spicy. So I have ravioli. It’s called plin it’s from Piemonte. Filled with fresh winter truffle inside. This is a ‘burro soresina”. It’s a really nice butter. A little bit of salt, a little bit of pepper. Then we’re going to boil the ravioli. With pasta with truffel, we always need wine. Barbaresco from Piemonte “Cascina Baricchi” Natale, the winemaker, is a really good friend of me, top, top winemaker. We will drink this together guys. The ravioli is ready. A little bit of parmigiano cheese. Cream is coming. Now we put the “biancetti” truffel from Piemonte, Alba. The best in the world. When the people come here to eat pasta with truffle, we give a lot of truffle. Like they say in Italy, Rastafari. The setting here is amazing. This is what a shop should be like. The love Fabio treasures for his focaccia is nothing compared to the love for his partner Ineke. Together they form a well olive oil machine. I’m going to show you how to make the real fresh Sicilian cannoli with ricotta cheese. I top them with pistachio from Bronte And with Modica chocolate from Sicily. Guys are you ready? I think the dopest experience in Ghent so far. Guys, not so fast! You forgot your antipasto! Day two begins just right With full hearts we head to our next delight. Babu is a creation from our dear friend and Michelin starred chef Gert De Mangeleer. But this isn’t about burgers. It’s all about “bunners”. The bunner is a mix of a bao bun and an English muffin, a delicate, rich, buttery flavor with a sweet coconut touch to it. Co-created with Jeff Poppe The former sous-chef of Hertog Jan. Babu draws inspiration from beloved dishes across the globe. Thai style fried chicken, kimchi, pickles. Really good. Chicken is also super crunchy. You can really taste that a high level chef created this because the balance is very good. If you enjoy spicy, you’re going to love this crispy chicken. This one really tastes like a Big Mac. Flavor wise, it comes close, no? I wonder what y’all think. I’ll probably be a little controversial. Gert, this one is my least favorite. Does it feel like a burger? It’s a burger that tastes like a “merguez” sausage. But in a sausage you always have the “snap”. I don’t dislike this one. Actually, I think it grows on you the more you eat it. Yeah, it’s a grower. It’s a grower. Next up, CurryChiwa. A Flemish family business with roots in Japan. Father Michael, once an expat in Tokyo, fell in love with Japanese curry. His son, Jun was even born there. Years later, back in Belgium, they turned that love into a restaurant. We have the “yokozuna”, which is the Black Angus beef curry, based on the Flemish stew infused with our Japanese curry powder. On the other side, you have the ikigai, which is our famous chicken katsu curry. Itadakimasu. This is very feel-good. We end day two by going back to the essence pure flavor, right by “Gent-Sint-Pieters”, Happy Thai cooks authentic Thai food. The real thing with no compromise. Owner Miguel claims his chef and partner is the best Thai chef in Europe. The first dish is a salmon salad. I see lots of ginger, shallots, onions and cashew. Already some spice to it. Yeah, so it begins. You taste it immediately, this is a real Thai food. So much flavor. Still super tender and juicy. Is this chicken thigh? No this is the wing. Is a drumstick the wing? In the wing you have a drum and a flat. The big drumstick is from the leg. So it’s not the chicken thigh, but it’s Thai chicken. Classic Thai beef salad. I see a lot of cucumbers, onions, chili. That’s quality beef mixed up with a lot of freshness and wow this is spicy! Pineapple? But that’s also good for something else. And of course we couldn’t leave without the tom yum and pad kra pao. This is such a beautiful basil. Yeah, it looks like something I would want to smoke. Crack? A true gem from the land of smiles. Or as they say in Thai, Rastafari. The food is hot, but the hospitality even hotter. A sweaty happy end to our second day? Last day today in Ghent. Why do all good things come to an end? What was your highlight of yesterday? It’s got to be “Happy Thai”. My first experience with authentic Thai cuisine. It really reaffirms my longing to go there. To Pattaya? Of course Fabio already a legend of the show. Yeah. It would have been even better if we took him to “Happy Thai”. Exactly, exactly. I know we will meet again for sure. Meeting people who live for their craft. That’s what drives us. And it’s what this show is all about. Our first stop on the final day brings us to someone who truly gets that. Nick Hofman loves ramen. And that obsession took him to Japan, where he trained at the official ramen school to learn the craft properly. And once he mastered it, he thought, why not open a place of my own? Welcome to “Zuru Zuru Ramen”. Nick will prepare two bowls with each a different “taré”. It’s our homemade soy sauce “taré”. It takes two days to make, then it takes three weeks to age to get the balance of the flavors right. This is our homemade miso paste has over 50 It has over 50 ingredients and over two weeks aging. Taré is the seasoning, sauce or paste. And one of the five elements of ramen. The other four are aroma oil, noodles, broth and toppings. Oh wow, it smells phenomenal. Wow. Nick is a craftsman “pur sang” and his ramen is the result of obsession and continuous improvement. Hats off brother. Day three started excellent. We make a quick stop to “Pureto”. “Wagwan” bosses. Nice to meet you. Well, good. Very good. Can we have a taste? Yeah. Of course. Brothers Gil and Gaetan went viral selling purée bowls. They opened their first official restaurant in Ghent, honoring their grandmother’s food. Cheers to that. Like Gil and Gaetan always say Rastafari. With all the diversity that Ghent offers in terms of food, let’s not forget the traditional local delicacies. Confisserie Temmerman is an artisanal candy store that’s been around since 1904. A specialty from Ghent in this old school candy store. It’s called a snowball, a cloud of vanilla wrapped in a delicate layer of dark chocolate. Whoa, What’s going on? That is really delicious! Dude! What is this?! It really melts on your tongue. Yeah. Damn delicious. The end is near, only two stops to go. We’re going back to the city famous for “Shirdan”. But this time we’re at “Aboov Adanaci”. A family owned business with roots in Adana, a city in the south of Turkey. And they do what Adana does best! Charcoal grillings. Peppers, kebab, lamb, chicken. Simple, but so so good. Thank you brother Ferhat. Super delicious. So flavorful. Even the bread with the fat back on the grill. It’s the simple things. And this place is open every day? Every day from 5 p.m. to 3 a.m.. So there’s no excuse not to go. Ferhat introduces us to another specialty from Adana. “Şalgam suyu”, A fermented drink from the south of Turkey. Especially popular in Adana. Made from black carrot, turnip juice, bulgur, salt and spices. it’s tangy, salty and sometimes spicy. Turkey always delivers. And now it’s time for the grand finale. Of to “Tush”. Dirty burgers, honest farmers and local partners. Burgers so rich, Connor Rousseau wants to tax them. These are our barbecue wings. We top them with pomegranate seeds and parsley. Lots of sauce. very spicy aromatic but not spicy thingy. These are our oyster mushrooms. We coat them in our homemade gochujang sauce and we top them with pickled mustard seeds For the vegan brothers and sisters out there. This is a mushroom they use a lot for replicating meat flavor. These are our Chicken bao with our “cracku” sauce. It’s like kind of a soy sauce on crack. On the bottom we have a fried shiso leaf. Asian pickles. Now we top it with sesame seeds and spring onion. Wow. The bun. This is not serious. Oh, yeah. Nice pickle. Can I shout out the amazing music going on? Never heard G-Unit pumping in restaurants. We’re going to need some more napkins in here. So the saga continues. This is where it ends. I’m going to smash you. Break you. Send him two, three years Dagestan and forget. If you want to get down and dirty, this is your place to be. Double smash, caramelized onions. Stop! This chicken is the best one for me. It’s a chocolate brownie cookie hybrid. Very cool. Like a sheep’s milk ice cream. Toasted pecans with brown butter and smoky salt. Like they say in “Ninove” “Pekaan”. Can I get a hallelujah? Hallelujah. Can I get an amen? Amen. Can I get a Rastafari?

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Camera operator: Felix Van Den Brempt
Editor: Brent Wauters

a RAUW MEDIA PRODUCTION https://www.rauwmedia.com/
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TIME CODE
0:00 – Intro
0:24 – Tartelette
1:23 – A Lisboeta
3:20 – Ahmet Usta
5:17 – Capsule
6:29 – Bar Bask
14:14 – De Blauwe Kiosk
15:34 – Cammaleri Pastificio
20:20 – Babu
21:37 – CurryChiwa
22:14 – Happy Thai
24:03 – Baba Jacquet
24:44 – Zuru Zuru Ramen
25:56 – Puréto
26:20 – Confisserie Temmerman
27:07 – Aboov Adanaci
28:39 – Tush