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If you still need a gift for that one person on your shopping list who doesn’t eat chocolate, head to one of the many Maison Dandoy cookie shops dotted around Brussels. Dandoy is a Belgian institution and they have been making cookies in Brussels since 1829. The cookies are from 100% natural ingredients and some of the recipes are 180 years old. Try the traditional Belgian speculoos, a spicy biscuit a bit like gingerbread, or Pain a la Greque, a Brussels favourite. There is even an Earl Grey cookie with tealeaves – delicious. Not only do Dandoy cookies taste wonderful, but their packaging is lovely, making them the perfect gift. Choose from the newly designed Maison Dandoy boxes or a variety of tin boxes, perfect for travelling.

The Belgian Royal Palace sits proudly in front of Parc Royal in Brussels. You can’t stop by for tea with the royals here unfortunately. They live at the Royal Residence in Laeken. However, you can have a look inside the Royal Palace during the summer months and wander through the rooms where official royal business is conducted. Throughout August, the palace is open to the public and can be visited free of charge. You can see the hall of mirrors (a downscaled version of Versailles) with a very quirky ceiling. The ceiling is actually an artwork, by Jan Fabre, called “Heaven of Delight” and is made up of the shiny wings of 1.4 million Thai jewel beetles and took three months to create.

There are a few great options for dining on Place St. Catherine, in Brussels. However, when people ask me where to go for great seafood in Brussels, Jaloa, and their more casual Jaloa Brasserie, are first on the list. Jaloa itself is elegant fine dining and a wonderful experience if you are looking to splurge. (Don’t miss the fresh oyster bar.) The restaurant only seats 25 people and features tasting menus of four, six or nine courses. The Jaloa Brasserie is more cosy and affordable but with the same high level of quality. The menu is a la carte with the exception of a monthly tasting menu. Both the restaurant and brasserie feature seasonal, local ingredients and have hidden terraces you can enjoy, during the warmer months.

The food truck revolution is coming to Brussels and a great introduction is Keep On Toasting. Keep On Toasting travels around Brussels, serving up gourmet toasties, toasted sandwiches inspired by the traditional croque monsieur. These are far from your Mom’s grilled cheese sandwiches though. Owner and chef, Jean Baptiste Nyssen, creates four new sandwiches a week. He hand picks the best local and organic ingredients he can find. Pictured here is his Croq-British - A perfect breakfast sandwich, containing chopped up boiled egg, lardons (bacon), green beans and Stilton cheese. His veggie goat-cheese and lentil sandwich blew my mind and with inspirations from the Alps to India, there is sure to be a sandwich for you.

The Grand Place in Brussels is the magnificent main square in Brussels. The square is the main tourist attraction in Brussels and is surrounded by numerous cafes and shops. Most of the buildings were constructed in the late 17th century, although market activity in the square dates back to the 12th Century. It’s a great place to hang out, grab a coffee or a liege waffle, and people watch.

Built between 1840 and 1845 by Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, an extremely influential royal family in Europe, the Palais Coburg is a bright and spacious bit of luxury. Opened in 2003 after extensive restoration, the palais has suites (and only suites) that are clean and classy, sometimes even grandiose with antique furniture and vibrantly lit chandeliers. Many suites are named in honor of important members of the family such as Queen Victoria and Albert of England, and King Leopold I of Belgium, so guests will get a lesson in the history of Europe’s intermarried royal families.

Outside is a quiet garden with a water basin, shade trees, and magnolias. The outdoor café provides sanctuary from the city and is a great place to enjoy breakfast. In addition to two marvelous restaurants, Palais Coburg has an excuisite wine cellar with some 60,000 from four different centuries.

Brussels’ parks are all beautiful in the autumn (when it’s not raining, that is), but I have a particular affinity for Park Royale or Brussels Park (also called Parc de Bruxelles in French and Warandepark in Dutch). Nothing signals autumn in Brussels like crunching through the leaves and kicking fallen chestnuts in Brussels Park. This small park sits between the Royal Palace and the Belgian Parliament buildings and is a favourite of office workers at lunchtime. Joggers circle the park’s perimeter and dog-walkers stroll the shady pathways. The park was built in the late 1700s, where the gardens of the former Palace of Coudenberg once stood. Dotted around the park are various statues and fountains and a beautiful cast iron bandstand. Park Royale is also home to concerts and art installations throughout the year.

If you’re searching for the best gourmet offerings from Europe’s forests and fields, don’t miss the Champigros shop near Place Saint Catherine, in Brussels. The shop’s name comes from a combination of the French words “champignons grossiste,” or mushroom wholesaler. If you are a friend of the fungus, this is your shop. Step inside to discover the best truffles, morelles, girolles, chanterelles and more. Even if you aren’t a mushroom fanatic, there are still foodie delights to tempt you. Champigros also sells beautiful fresh produce and delicatessen treats that are easier to pack in your suitcase than a kilo of Cêpes. The shop is fantastic year round but it is particularly wonderful in autumn when the majority of the wild forest mushrooms are in their peak season.

If you love the top fashion brands but your budget doesn’t, visit one of the many Dod stores in Brussels. These shops carry fashion brands from around North America and Europe and range from Valentino ball gowns to Esprit t-shirts. The fashions are end of line clearance items for 30-75% off the regular ticket price. You can find some great deals on beautiful garments. Dod has separate stores for men’s, women’s and children’s clothing, as well as shoes, luggage and handbags, sporting goods and household items. There are stores scattered around Brussels but my favourite is the original Woman’s Dod on Chaussée de Louvain. It’s 5 levels of bargain goodness with a whole floor of shoes in the basement. Best of all, prices are marked down even more during the bi-annual sales in August and January; just be prepared to stand in long lines at the registers.

The Contemporary Art scene in Brussels is thriving, but it can also be intimidating to newcomers. Many galleries can feel cold or stuffy, and visitors can be put off by the high prices of the works on display. Maison Particulière is a different kind of gallery. Here, nothing is for sale and the space is warm and inviting. Visitors are encouraged to relax on comfortable furniture and enjoy the art as if it was in their own homes. The art on display is on loan from private collectors, passionate about sharing their art with the public. They choose which of their works to include, based on a particular theme. Each room, in this beautiful gallery, reflects the personality of the individual collector, and stepping inside is like taking a peek into their own private world. Maison Particulière makes contemporary art feel accessible and demonstrates how you can live with art in a non-confrontational way.

Britxos opened its doors in the summer of 2012 to great fanfare among Brussels expat foodie community. We were already familiar with the team, from catering company La Britannique, for their incredible food and warm, friendly service. Britxos is a cozy little bar in the St. Gilles neighbourhood of Brussels. It is filed with light from the huge windows and colour, from the chalkboard walls, filled with menu items and comments from past visitors. The name is a play on British (chef and owner Alex’s nationality) and Pintxos (the Basque word for tapas). Inspiration is taken from Alex’s love of food and travel and each dish is named for the city that inspired it. Every Monday night there is live jazz. Friday nights are the popular gourmet night,s with a 4 course fixed-price menu, and Sunday is the un-missable Britxos Brunch. You’ll hear every language found in Brussels being spoken here, while enjoying a fantastic and affordable meal.

Step inside the unique and beautiful House of Wunders to discover how you can bring the beauty of the natural world to your home. The home decor items in this unique shop come straight from nature and range from crystals and fossils to furniture from recycled wood. Imagine waking up each morning to the sun sparkling through the crystals in a quartz geode or storing your favorite tomes on a bookcase made from a recycled fishing boat. But even if you don’t have room in your luggage for half of a retired dhow boat, there are plenty of suitcase-friendly gifts to choose from: beautiful gemstone jewelry, tiny trilobite fossils, palm-sized selenite hearts, and collections of shark’s teeth. Some of the shop’s most stunning items are the bowls, plates, sink basins and tables made from polished marble pulled from the Moroccan dessert and filled with fossils. Imagine the conversations started by your very own 550 million year old fossil bowl. Unique, beautiful and straight from nature.

Brussels’ BOZAR museum is well worth visiting for its excellent art exhibitions, concerts, and events, like TEDex Brussels. But it’s also worth visiting for its gastronomic restaurant, the BOZAR Brasserie, headed by chef David Martin. The menu changes each month and includes Belgian favourites with a fresh, modern twist. Ingredients are organic and sourced locally when possible, with dashes of international flavours like Basque pork and Anjou pigeon. The prices aren’t for the budget conscious, ranging from 20-40 Euro for a main dish. However, the set lunch menus from Tuesday to Friday make a more wallet-friendly option. Even if you don’t spring for a whole meal here, stop in for a coffee and dessert. Pictured here is the specialty of the chef: a dark chocolate ‘bomb’, filled with creamy, rich praline and accompanied with homemade passion fruit sorbet. The sweet/tart combination is heavenly. The BOZAR Brasserie doesn’t take reservations so go early and be prepared to wait. It’s worth it.

First thing when we got out from the underground parking was to be hit by the smell and sight of street food, in the harbor area. They only take cash so I could not wait to find an ATM to get some of the delicious looking food. I have never had sea snails so they were the obvious choice for me and boy was I right to make that choice. They are delicious. Large and a bit chewy cooked like a soup with lots of vegetables. A bit salty and spicy, nothing crazy, just enough to give it a good kick, really yummy. I love trying new things and it looked like everybody was going for them too. There are two options of cooked snails, natur - in a clear soup - and in a tomato soup. The ingredients look the same and the spice is in both options. The only thing is, make sure the seagulls keep a safe distance, they are extremely bold and will come close enough to take it from your bowl, yes, from your bowl.

Brussels’ largest gourmet supermarket, Rob, is well worth the trip outside the city centre for dedicated foodies. This market is filled with all of the finest grocery items from around Europe. This is where locals go to buy hard-to-find ingredients and where expats go to find their favourite tastes of home. There are vast meat, seafood, cheese and deli counters and the bakery is a pastry-lover’s dream. Rob stocks chocolate from all of Brussels’ top chocolatiers for the ultimate in one-stop Belgian chocolate shopping. The wine selection here is beyond compare. Everyday wines and spirits can be found in the main shop but if you’re looking for something really special, descend into the basement. Here you will find a dedicated wine cellar with sommeliers on hand to help you choose the perfect bottle. If your tastes run to high-end whiskeys, vodkas, cognacs and the like, there is also a dedicated shop just for you. It’s kept under lock and key and if you have to ask the prices, it’s best to move along. Visit on a Saturday when the shop demonstrators are active and you can taste your way around Europe.