Het Spijker is a bar in City Centre, Ghent.
Het Spijker is a local pub set in a former granary, with a lounge on the second floor and two terraces: one facing the city centre, the other on the Leie waterside.
Must order: Ghent draft beer on the back terrace overlooking the Leie at dusk: the canal view is the reason locals keep coming back.
Tip: Opens from 10:00 and closes when the last visitor leaves, often well past 02:00. The back terrace is best on warm afternoons.
Address: Pensmarkt 3, 9000 Gent, Ghent
Jigger's is a subterranean cocktail bar in the Patershol, listed on the World's 50 Best Discovery list. The cellar bar uses seasonal produce and locally.
Order: The house seasonal cocktail: the team rotates the signature list every few months based on what is growing.
Tip: Open from 17:00 Tuesday through Sunday; the back terrace on warm evenings is one of the most atmospheric drinking spots in Ghent.
De Dulle Griet has over 500 Belgian beers and one famous ritual: surrender a shoe to the bar when ordering the Max, a 1-litre glass of Delirium Tremens.
Order: Max beer (Delirium Tremens in the 1-litre glass): one shoe goes in the basket, one stays on your foot.
Tip: Open from noon Tuesday to Saturday and noon Sunday; the shoe ritual is enforced. Arrive early on Friday evenings for a seat on the square.
Pol's tiny jenever bar on the Groentenmarkt serves more than 200 jenevers, including around 50 made in-house. The low-ceilinged brown bar has barely changed.
Order: A flight of three house-made jenevers: ask Pol to choose them. The homemade range is the reason to come.
Tip: Open from 16:00 daily; cash only, the room holds around 25 people and fills fast.
Waterhuis aan de Bierkant is a canal-side brown pub on the Groentenmarkt with 170 Belgian beers, 14 on draught and a packed waterside terrace.
Order: Gruut Amber on draught: the city herb-beer is always on the tap list here.
Tip: Open from 11:00 daily; the terrace fills by 15:00 on sunny days. The canal views are best on evening visits before 21:00.
Hotsy Totsy has been injecting Ghent with blues and jazz since the 1970s. The Claus brothers' bar hosts live music most evenings from September to June.
Order: A cold Belgian beer and a seat near the stage on a live jazz night: the room holds fewer than 50 people.
Tip: Open Tuesday to Saturday from 18:15; closed Sunday and Monday. Summers are lighter programming; September to June is the season.
Missy Sippy opened in 2015 as a contemporary juke joint next to Sint-Niklaaskerk, with vintage New Orleans decor and live blues and roots music nightly.
Order: A local craft beer at the bar before the live set starts: the sound quality in this room is unusually good.
Tip: Check their Facebook for the weekly concert calendar; live nights fill up so arrive 30 minutes before.
