Speculoos is a signature dish of Belgium; we have verified places to eat it in Bruges and Brussels.
Speculoos · Bruges
Belgium's spiced caramelised biscuit: a thin crisp cookie made with brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg, traditionally pressed in carved wooden moulds depicting saints, windmills or scenes from the harvest.
Speculoos originated in the Low Countries in the medieval period as a Saint Nicholas Day biscuit (December 5 and 6), pressed in elaborate wooden moulds called speculaasplanken. The Dutch sister biscuit speculaas became the international name, but the Belgian Bruges and Antwerp versions developed a distinct caramel-forward profile with darker browning. The 19th century saw Maison Dandoy in Brussels (founded 1829) industrialise the form, and Lotus Bakeries in Lembeke commercialised the global biscoff version in 1932. In Bruges the biscuit is sold by Chocolaterie Sukerbuyc and Dumon Chocolatier.
Where to eat in Bruges:
- Chocolaterie Sukerbuyc
- Dumon Chocolatier
- The Old Chocolate House
- Diksmuids Boterhuis
Where to eat Speculoos in Bruges: the editor picks
Speculoos · Brussels
Crisp Belgian brown-sugar biscuit spiced with cinnamon, cloves, ginger and nutmeg. Eaten with coffee, used as a spoon for ice cream, ground into the city's signature spread.
Jean-Baptiste Dandoy opened a small biscuit shop on Rue du Marche aux Herbes in Brussels in 1829, baking speculoos from a recipe of brown sugar, butter and warming spice. The family business moved to Rue au Beurre in 1858, where it remains today. Speculoos became the canonical Belgian biscuit through the 19th century, spreading across Flemish and Walloon households and eventually inspiring the global biscoff spread in the 1980s.
Where to eat in Brussels:
- Maison Dandoy
- Maison Dandoy Rue au Beurre
- Wittamer
Where to eat Speculoos in Brussels: the editor picks