Mokabon has roasted coffee on Donkersteeg since 1937, when Erminio Mazzaro arrived from Italy. The narrow vintage room still serves espresso to a steady flow of locals.
Order: Single espresso of the house blend with a Belgian speculaas: the unchanged 1937 recipe is the reason regulars still queue at the bar.
Tip: Open Monday to Saturday 09:00 to 18:30, closed Sunday. The standing bar at the front turns over fastest; tables in back take longer.
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.
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.
Frituur Tartaar is a city-centre friterie between the monuments and shopping streets, serving Ghent stoverij stew on hand-cut frites with a homemade tartar sauce.
Order: Frites with stoverij and the house tartar sauce: under €6 for a full cone that doubles as a meal.
Tip: The vegetarian and vegan snacks are signposted on the menu, which is unusual for a friterie. Lunch queues are heaviest 12:30 to 13:30.
Cafe Damberd is an 18th-century pub on the Korenmarkt that has run as a jazz and world-music cafe for over thirty years, with live sets from jazz to funk and reggae.
Order: Belgian draft beer over a Wednesday or Thursday jazz set: the small room makes the band feel inches away.
Tip: Open until midnight every night; Wednesday to Sunday from 11:00 means it works for a long afternoon-into-night stretch.