Strawberry pastries, sun and nature – the better things in life!

When spring just arrived and the sun came out to play, we decided to celebrate this in style by going back to nature and witness the start of blooming plants and trees. And of course, to eat some delicious strawberries!

So, we headed to Belgium (just across the Dutch border) to hike in the nature park Kalmthoutse Heide and to enjoy the cakes and lunch at the infamous Manus patisserie and bistro. Want to know my verdict? I will tell you all about it!

At a glance

• Type of cuisine: French
• Location: Kapellen (Belgium)
• Price: from 4 euro for a pastry (patisserie) and approx. 15 euro for a lunch main course.

Manus Patisserie and Bistro

Manus is an artisanal patisserie that is specialised in pastries, cakes, chocolates and bread. Manus has several patisseries in Belgium, but we choose the unique location that also has a bistro. So, we can have lunch and dessert. 😉

 

 

As a vegetarian there were not many options (for vegans even less), but I have to say that the available options were deliciously made. I had the cheese croquets with a side of fries (and of course mayonnaise, always). The bread was so tasty, fresh and soft – dipped in some olive oil.

The staff ladies were really friendly and positive.

Now, let’s get to the main act, the pastries!

 

Everything looked absolutely stunning – like little pieces of art. There a lot of different kinds of pastries and chocolates. I wanted to try – everything. After glancing at all of them, we picked a couple.

But first, let’s explore the beautiful nature of Kalmthoutse Heide.

The landscape reminded me of an African safari park, but also the Dutch Veluwe. We were lucky to have great weather and walked all afternoon. The sun felt so good. We took a break and couldn’t wait to try the Manus pastries (yes – we walked with them for a long time haha).

My friends had the lemon curd and chocolate pastries. I had the strawberry one.

We loved it, the fruit was fresh, the flavours were full, the cream was airy and it was not overly sweet. As you see you could have guessed, I was a very happy camper. We already regretted that we didn’t buy more haha. Next time!

Final verdict

Rating bistro: 7/10. The food is good, but the options for a vegetarian was limited (even more so for vegans).

Rating pastries 9/10. The pastries were an absolute dream. The price is on the higher end, but the pastries are of high quality, there is lots of variety and the flavours are great. Next time I will def buy more. Especially the strawberry and chocolate are highly recommended.

Information

Address: Dorpsstraat 78, Kapellen, Belgium

Website: https://patisseriemanus.be/

Instagram: @patisserie_manus

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