If any non-Belgian readers ever feel like visiting my small but complicated country, I would like to clarify that chips, as eaten in the UK, are very different from 'frieten / frites' in Belgium. 'Frieten' are also not to be confused with 'French fries'. To complicate matters even further, in Dutch, 'chips' are actually crisps. To explain:

1. Chips
(Eng.) As in 'fish and chips, are thick wedges of peeled potatoes, soft and soggy. They are traditionally accompanied by deep fried fish in batter and mushy peas and served from 'chippies' (chip vans) in a piece of paper. The whole is topped with salt and vinegar.

Oh, and it tastes absolutely vile.

2. French fries
(Am.) Have been developed by fast food places and are thin and long pieces of potato, usually served in a cardboard container with a ridiculously small serving of ketchup.

If you are extremely lucky, they may even be lukewarm.

3. Petat
(Dutch) This is what the Dutch consider to be chips. I think we can all agree, the less said about this, the better.

4. Frieten / frites
(Bel.) Like chips, they are thick wedges of potatoes. They have been fried once for a few minutes, and very briefly for a second time, making them crisp and crunchy. They are often said to have the colour of gold.

You can traditionally buy them at a 'frituur' (see picture). It is a common misconception that they are served in pointy bags. This is to distinguish the tourists from the real Belgians, who eat theirs from a cardboard container with a small plastic fork (or with their hands).

Popular dressings and added dishes are:
- mayonnaise (until frieten are no longer visible and you need to dig them out from underneath)
- mussels (a big pot all for yourself. My personal favourite: eat one mussel and use the shell to eat your frieten)
- steak (mad cow disease has affected this once popular choice somewhat)
- tartar plus meat sauce (as with mayonnaise, frieten need to be soaked in it to the point where the cardboard container spontaneously disintegrates.)

So now you are able to tell your frieten from your chips. Smakelijk / Bon appétit!