't Dreupelkot is a bar in Groentenmarkt, Ghent.
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.
Must 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.
Address: Groentenmarkt 12, 9000 Gent, Ghent
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.
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.
Rococo is Betty's candlelit bar on the Patershol cobblestones. The single room is lit entirely by candles; the atmosphere is intimate and the conversation.
Order: Whatever is on draught: the focus here is atmosphere, not the beer list.
Tip: Opens after 21:00; arrives late and stay late. Betty runs the bar at her own pace.
Dok Brewing Company occupies a converted metal workshop at Dok Noord with 30 taps: their own house brews plus guest taps from Belgian craft breweries. Long.
Order: Dok house pale ale on draught: the cleanest expression of the house brewing style, always fresh.
Tip: Open Thursday to Saturday until 01:00; this is one of the few places in Dok Noord that works as a late-night destination.
Gruut is Ghent's city brewery using a medieval herb recipe with no hops: five beers (white, blonde, amber, brown and Inferno) brewed and served on site.
Order: Gruut Inferno: the strongest and most complex of the five house beers, amber with a herbal bitterness.
Tip: Brewery tours run on Saturdays; the tasting includes all five house beers. Book ahead in summer.
