The 5 best places for ice cream and waffles in Bruges

Sabine and Gino run this Italian ice-cream salon founded back in 1922. It’s a bright, friendly place with a selection of 24 flavours made using authentic recipes, along with perfect espresso coffee. It has a few small tables where locals sit with their favourite scoops while old songs play in the background.

Sylvia launched an authentic Italian gelateria in the heart of Bruges in 1995. She offers more than 40 different flavours including several new creations each season. The staff who work here are the friendliest people in town, even on a busy summer day.

Mathieu Eyckmans studied at the Gelato University in Italy before opening this smart ice-cream salon. He makes 28 varieties of ice cream fresh every day, including some quite odd creations. He also sells frozen yoghurt and Brussels waffles.

Frederik Van Isacker started selling ice cream in Knokke in 1989 in a shop mysteriously called Australian Home Made Ice Cream. It’s now a chain with branches across Europe. His son recently opened a shop in Bruges called Fred’s, where he sells 36 different flavours of ice cream made using fresh milk and eggs.

The owner of the Torture Museum decided in 2018 to open a waffle restaurant in the building next door. Don’t ask why. You can choose a soft rectangular Brussels waffle, or a sweet sticky Liège version. They are freshly made on robust black waffle irons dipping with dough. Customers can then add strawberries, banana, cheese or anything else they fancy.