Day-by-day eating plans for Ghent. weekend classics, family routes, vegan plans, on-a-budget editions.

Day-by-day plans

Ghent coffee and bakery day ★ 4.4

Coffee and pastry enthusiast, one day1 day

Ghent built a small but serious specialty coffee scene around Or Coffee Roasters, Full Circle, Peaberry and IzyCoffee. The bakery culture runs alongside at Joost Arijs, Madam Bakster and Pain Perdu. This single-day plan strings the canonical roasters and bakeries from morning to late espresso.

  1. Day 1: Day 1: morning bakery, lunch coffee, late espresso

    Morning
    Open at The Bakery Joost Arijs from 08:00 for the signature butter croissant and a flat white. Walk Patershol and stop at Or Coffee Roasters Sint-Pieters for the second pour-over.
    Afternoon
    Lunch at Peaberry Coffeebar for a seasonal sandwich and an espresso. Walk Dok-Noord and stop at IzyCoffee for the third roaster.
    Evening
    Wind down at Full Circle Coffee for the late espresso ritual, then close at Coffee Roasters Ghent Vandekerckhove for the last pour of the day.

Ghent vegetarian capital day ★ 4.6

Vegetarian and plant-curious traveller, one day1 day

Ghent declared itself Europe's vegetarian capital in 2009 with weekly Thursday Veggie Day. The plant-based scene runs from Soul Kitchen to Greenway and Epiphany's Kitchen. This single-day plan covers a vegan brunch, a plant-led lunch and a vegetarian dinner across the city.

  1. Day 1: Day 1: vegan brunch, plant lunch, vegetarian dinner

    Morning
    Open at Greenway in the city centre from 09:00 for the vegan brunch board. The kitchen runs the longest-standing plant-only programme in Belgium.
    Afternoon
    Lunch at Lekker GEC Vegetarian for the daily plant-led plate. Stop at the Dok Noord Saturday Market for plant-led stalls and the Boon Vegetarian counter.
    Evening
    Dinner at Soul Kitchen for the modern plant tasting menu; the wine pairing leans on natural skin-contact whites from Edelrot Natural Wine. Close with a glass at Hey Frankie.

Ghent weekend: the classics done right ★ 4.7

First-time visitor, two days2 days

A two-day Ghent food weekend built around the city's signature dishes, the Patershol restaurant district, the Dok Noord waterfront and two beer bars that define the Ghent drinking culture.

  1. Day 1: Saturday: waterzooi, brasserie dinner, jenever to close

    Morning
    Start at Himschoot Bakery on the Groentenmarkt at 08:30 for suikerbrood and a coffee. Walk to the cuberdon stalls opposite for the city's most iconic street sweet. Stop at Tierenteyn-Verlent mustard shop on Groentenmarkt 3 to taste the house Ghent mustard.
    Afternoon
    Lunch at 't Klokhuys on Corduwaniersstraat at 12:30: waterzooi van vis and the stoverij met frites, the two dishes that define Ghent's brasserie kitchen. Walk through the Patershol lanes after lunch. Stop at WAY Coffee Roasters at Dok Noord at 15:00 for a single-origin filter coffee and explore the Hal 16 food hall.
    Evening
    Dinner at Pakhuis on Schuurkenstraat at 19:30: a converted warehouse brasserie that serves the Ghent classics with daily oysters and moules frites, and one of the surest Saturday-night tables in the centre. End the evening with jenever at 't Dreupelkot on Groentenmarkt 12.

  2. Day 2: Sunday: brunch, Vrijdagmarkt market, canal-side beer

    Morning
    Brunch at Et Alors on Jan Breydelstraat at 10:00: a crepe and bistro brunch spot near the canal quays. Walk the Graslei and Korenlei canal quays. Head to the Sint-Jacobs flea market, whose Sunday food stalls sell Flemish honey, jam and artisan bread, then on to the Kouter Sunday flower and food market on the way back.
    Afternoon
    Sunday lunch at 't Klokhuys on Corduwaniersstraat from 12:00: the Patershol brasserie serves waterzooi and stoverij every day of the week, the surest Sunday table for the Ghent classics. Walk to De Dulle Griet on Vrijdagmarkt 50 at 15:00 for a Belgian beer in the Max glass: surrender your shoe, drink the 1-litre Delirium, reclaim your shoe.
    Evening
    Early dinner at Amadeus Gent 1 on Plotersgracht in the Patershol at 18:30. The all-you-can-eat spare rib formula is a Ghent institution and open Sunday evening. End with a cocktail at Jigger's on Oudburg 16 in the Patershol, arriving by 20:30 to guarantee a seat.

Ghent beer and food: the Flemish ale deep dive ★ 4.6

Beer enthusiast, two days2 days

A two-day Ghent plan for the beer-focused traveller: Gruut herbal beer, the De Dulle Griet 500-Belgian-beer list, the Dok Brewing Company tap room and a day trip to Oudenaarde for Liefmans oud bruin.

  1. Day 1: Friday: Gruut brewery, brown cafe circuit, beer-food dinner

    Morning
    Arrive in Ghent and check in. Walk to the Gruut Stadsbrouwerij on Rembert Dodoensdreef for the brewery tour at 11:00. Taste the Gruut Inferno, Wit, Amber and Blond in the tasting room. Walk back through the Patershol lanes.
    Afternoon
    Lunch at 't Klokhuys on Corduwaniersstraat at 13:00: stoverij met frites braised in Gruut amber. Walk to the Vrijdagmarkt at 15:00 and buy a bag of cuberdons from the stalls. Spend an hour at De Hopduvel on Coupure Links for a specialist beer-shop tasting and to plan the evening route.
    Evening
    Dinner at Amadeus Gent 1 on Plotersgracht at 19:00: the all-you-can-eat spare rib formula with Belgian beer pairings. Walk to Het Waterhuis aan de Bierkant on Groentenmarkt 9 at 21:30 for a Gruut Amber on the canal-side terrace. End at De Dulle Griet on Vrijdagmarkt 50 for the Max glass shoe ritual.

  2. Day 2: Saturday: Dok Noord craft beer, Oudenaarde day trip

    Morning
    Brunch at Full Circle Coffee Bar on Zuidstationstraat at 09:30: the plant-based brunch plates and single-origin coffee before a day trip. Take the train to Oudenaarde (25 minutes) for the Liefmans Brewery visit at 11:30.
    Afternoon
    Tour Liefmans Brewery in Oudenaarde and taste the Goudenband oud bruin and cherry Kriek. Return to Ghent by 14:30. Walk to Dok Noord and spend the afternoon at Dok Brewing Company in Hal 16: 30 taps of craft beer in the industrial warehouse setting.
    Evening
    Dinner at Balls and Glory on Vrijdagmarkt at 19:00: the best-value ballenfee formula with Flemish beef. End with late drinks at Stroom Brouwers taproom on Dampoortstraat for small-batch Ghent craft beer until closing.

Ghent veggie capital: plant-based food day ★ 4.6

Vegetarian and vegan traveller, one day1 day

A one-day Ghent plant-based food plan showing why the city earned its global reputation as Europe's most plant-forward food destination: from vegan coffee bars to a Michelin-starred vegetarian tasting menu.

  1. Day 1: Thursday: Veggie Day, plant-based circuit

    Morning
    Start on a Thursday (Veggie Day) at Full Circle Coffee Bar on Zuidstationstraat at 08:30 for the vegan brunch. The plant-based kitchen is the city's most consistent. Walk to Greenway on Nederkouter for a mid-morning plant-based snack if still hungry.
    Afternoon
    Lunch at Soul Kitchen on Godshuizenlaan at 12:30: the most ambitious vegan restaurant in Ghent. Order the changing seasonal tasting plate. Walk to Epiphany's Kitchen on Burgstraat for a look at the gluten-free and vegan lunch menu at 14:00. Stop at De Frietketel on Papegaaistraat for vegan frites at 16:00.
    Evening
    Dinner at Vrijmoed on Vlaanderenstraat at 19:00. Book the Purs vegetarian tasting menu in advance: this is the most technically accomplished plant-based cooking in Ghent at the two-star kitchen. The most memorable meal on a Ghent plant-based trip.
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