SUGCON Europe 2025 - Belgian Fries

A visit to SUGCON Europe in Antwerp will not be complete without eating some Belgian fries! Let me take you on a short journey so you are fully prepared to order your Belgian fries.

Belgian Fries ?? Aren't they called French Fries...

One possible explanation for the association could have been formed in the First World War, when American soldiers were introduced to ‘fried potatoes’ in Belgium, but thought they were in France because that was the language spoken in that region. Whether you call them Flemish or Belgian, our delicious fries are made from bintje potatoes per tradition, and are the tastiest you’ll find anywhere on the planet.
Source: https://www.visitflanders.com/en/discover-flanders/culinary-treats-and-belgian-beer/fries

For our Dutchies reading this, please don't say "Patat"... it is FRIETEN.

Order fries with...

You have to taste our fries with a side of mayonnaise.
But first decide on the portion size of your fries:

• Mini = Not really hungry / children
• Klein = Small
• Middel = Medium
• Groot = Large
• Family = 3 adults or more

Sauce overview

Fries without some kind of sauce... nah better order something to dip your salty fries in!

• Mayonnaise
  • Color: white/yellowish
  • the classic choice, oily

• Ketchup
  • Color: red
  • neutral tomato taste with some spices

• Curry ketchup
  • Color: darker red
  • Additional curry makes it more spicy
• Andalouse
  • Color: orange
  • Different from ketchup and spicier than curry ketchup.
    Enriched sauce with toasted onion and paprika

• Samurai
  • Color: light orange
  • Spiciest sause: mayonnaise mixed with sambal oelek

• Joppie
  • Color: yellow
  • Sweeter, creamy with a mild curry taste

Snacks overview

Want a snack to go with it? Every place will have an overwhelming amount of options. And everything is fried off course.

Consider one of the snacks in this list:

• Curryworst / Frikandel
  • In Antwerp this is called a curryworst. Other parts of Belgium often call this frikandel.
  • Meat formed in a long shape. Will contain chicken / pork / beef meat and brought up to taste with several spices.

• Saté with or without spices
  • Tender meat on a stick separated by some onion
  • Ask for spices to give it more of a kick

• Boulet
  • A big ball of meat - parted in 4 or more pieces and fried
• Bitterballen
  • Tender beef with a crispy crust

• Bicky Burger / Bicky Cheese Burger
  • Hamburger with some special sauses, fried onions and a few pickles
  • Ask for a Bicky Cheese to add a slice of ... well yeah, cheddar cheese.

• Twijfelaar
  • A perfect choice for one who can't decide. A twijfelaar are small portions of different kinds of snacks.

Oh, addition tip: add 'speciaal' to any order. This will transform your order to a pimped edition and will automatically add mayonnaise, ketchup (or curry ketchup) and freshly chopped white onion to your snack or fries!

Where to buy

Belgian fries, you buy at a "frituur". Also called a frietkot, friterie, friethuis.

2 good places in Antwerp are:

• Frituur Max - Groenplaats 12, Antwerpen
  • Directions
  • Website
  • Has places to sit outside
• Frituur No 1 - Hoogstraat 1, Antwerpen
  • Directions
  • Inside seating

Most pictures used are taken from https://www.defrietbooster.be/ who I found out offered the best quality in what I wanted to show in this blog.