Belgium restaurants and bars

My favorite meal I had in Ghent was at Pakhuis. It's the one place in the cities you listed that I highly recommend. Great dramatic space, excellent food, and within your price range. I do think it's well known and popular with tourists (I was seated near two other tables with couples that were both in Ghent to start the RS tour there the next day), but I think there were a lot of locals there too.

Ghent is a very popular place for locals attending bars and restaurants. Have to say that it has been a long time ago spending my Saterday evenings there. So a lot has likely changed in the meanwhile. What certainly has remained is the stiff competition among these places, meaning you can find nice places in all kinds off price ranges, but good value for the money. I agree with Pakhuis. Very special is ‘t Velootje, unfortunitly having the reputation for overcharging the drinks, so just have a look or ask prices before drinking. Dulle Griet known for decades offering over 500 different beers.

There are a lot of bars and restaurants to find outside the historic core too like eatery Multatuly, I still want to visit De Walrus along the canal west of the centre. Google maps is very useful for finding the places with reviews as indication or just stroll around and discover.

Brugge: we had a fun, casual meal at het Hof van Rembrandt.

http://www.thofvanrembrandt.be/en

We ate outside on a sunny day but the interior is cozy and very nice as well. Friendly waitstaff, reasonable prices and a decent beer menu. It's right around the corner from the Markt. Their menu is here but it's the winter version so will have some different items in the spring:

http://www.thofvanrembrandt.be/uploads/artikels/winterkaart.pdf

For a local bar, stop into 't Brugs Beertje. It's SMALL, comfortably pub-like, and was crammed with locals and tourists alike so while you won't be surrounded with exclusively locals, it's an interesting mix. It also has 300 beers! We spent a lively hour or two here one late, rainy afternoon.

http://www.brugsbeertje.be/English/history.htm

Lots of photos on TripAdvisor:
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g188671-d1181346-Reviews-or10-T_Brugs_Beertje-Bruges_West_Flanders_Province.html

In Bruges, Tom's Diner has great food--try the Flemish meat loaf. It's off the beaten path, so a little less touristy than may other places.

In Brussels, Pre de Chez Nous has a fabulous prix fix deal for food that is organic and locally sourced. I also had a great meal at Brasserie Royal near Sainte-Catherine, but it may be too pricey for your budget.

Thank you all!

Hi Renee -

We ate dinner twice at Poules Moules. My husband has mussels and I enjoyed Flemish Beef stew. It was very tasty but I can’t honestly remember the price!

Happy Eating!

We really enjoyed Cambrinus in Bruges for beers and a charcuterie platter! It's close to the center, small and cozy. The house beer was EXCELLENT.