REPORT — Friet Museum turns Belgian fries into a Brussels adventure
The BXL Positive team visited the only Brussels museum entirely dedicated to the potato and Belgian fries.
Our team visited the museum. Here is the journey, one chapter at a time.
Verified practical information
- Address: Rue de l’Étuve 26-28, 1000 Brussels — steps away from Manneken Pis.
- Opening hours: open 7 days a week, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (last entry 5 p.m.).
- Tickets: €14 adults, €12 seniors/students, €8 children.
- Visit length: around 1 hour 30, audio guide included in 11 languages.
- The museum: 900 m², three floors, more than 1,600 objects, opened in late April 2025 by collector Eddy Van Belle.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Friet Museum Brussels? Rue de l’Étuve 26-28, 1000 Brussels, less than 100 metres from Manneken Pis.
How much is a ticket? €14 for adults, €12 for seniors and students, €8 for children.
How long does the visit take? About 1 hour 30 with the audio guide, available in 11 languages.
Is it suitable for children? Yes: interactive games, a giant pinball machine, a frying demonstration and a fries tasting at the end.
Is the fries museum open on Sunday? Yes, it is open 7 days a week, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
THE POTATO FAIRY TALE · A BXL Positive report
Once upon a time, steps from Manneken Pis, there stood a magic house of 900 m² where a tiny potato turned into a golden star. Settle in: here is the whole story, picture by picture, told the way you would tell it at bedtime — with a little hunger on the side.
01CHAPTER ONE
The little potato born in the clouds
High up in the Andes of Peru lived a small, round potato. She has grown there for more than 8,000 years, the museum’s scholars say. The Incas loved her so much they gave her a goddess of her own: Axomama, daughter of Pachamama, goddess of the earth. The sun warmed her, the rain tickled her, and nobody, nobody at all, knew she would one day become the most famous Belgian of them all.
02CHAPTER TWO
Bintje, princess of the kingdom
One day a cousin of the family was given a lovely name: Bintje. There are around 4,000 varieties of potato in the world — no other cultivated plant has as many. Yet Belgian fry masters choose the Bintje, simply because she tastes the best. Here she rests in the light like a princess in a glass castle. “One day I shall be crispy!” she said. And the whole museum smiled.
03CHAPTER THREE
The great journey across the centuries
Bintje crossed the oceans in the bellies of Spanish explorers’ ships in the 16th century. At first nobody in Europe wanted to eat her: she looked strange, people were suspicious, they fed her to the pigs! Then the hungry tasted her, and loved her, and never let her go. In this great red hall, old farming tools, paintings and yellowed books still whisper that journey. Lean in and you will hear them.
04CHAPTER FOUR
The magic voices in the yellow headset
In this castle you are handed an enchanted audio guide, included in your ticket. Put it on and it speaks to you in eleven languages! Better still: it is the key. Hold it up to the terminals and the games wake up — the pinball machine, the shooting game against the bugs that eat the fields, the Fry Ninja. The visit lasts about an hour and a half, yet time simply disappears.
05CHAPTER FIVE
The spell of the two hot baths
Here comes the great secret, hush! To become a true Belgian fry, Bintje is cut into sticks of 8 to 12 millimetres and dipped twice into the cauldron. A first bath of 6 to 8 minutes at 130-140 °C to turn tender inside. Ten minutes of rest. Then a very short second bath at 170 °C to turn golden and crisp. Abracadabra: crisp outside, fluffy inside. The museum’s artists even painted the whole ritual.
06CHAPTER SIX
The land of games, right at the top
Further along, the museum becomes a playground: you climb onto a tractor like a real farmer, step inside a fritkot, sing in the fries cabaret, and must pick a side — team ketchup or team mayonnaise? Here you learn a great deal without even noticing, exactly as in the very best stories.
The tale continues, picture by picture
Turn the pages with us: every photo is a scene from the story, and every scene hides a secret.
07THE TALE CONTINUES
“Welcome to our kingdom!”
Barely through the door, two characters greet you: the Potato and the Fry, standing on their stage beneath the museum sign. They are the heroes of this tale. They say nothing, but their big eyes call out: “Follow us, we are climbing three floors together.”
08THE TALE CONTINUES
The two guardians of the tale
A little further on, two seated figures watch politely over the scenery. They look as though they have been swapping potato jokes for hours. In this museum you are allowed to laugh: fries are serious, but never too serious.
09THE TALE CONTINUES
The enchanted pinball machine
Here the potato bounces, blinks and goes “ding!”. Hold your audio guide to the terminal and the machine lights up as if by magic. Nearby, more games await: shooting the bugs that devour the fields, or slicing fries like a ninja.
10THE TALE CONTINUES
Magic wands made of cast iron
Before electric machines, potatoes were cut with these cast iron contraptions and their big levers. The museum’s collector drove for miles to track down such rare pieces. One push on the handle and out come perfectly even sticks.
11THE TALE CONTINUES
The rainbow of sauces
From the top of the stairs a whole wall appears: américaine, andalouse, tartare, cocktail, ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard… Each sauce has its own story and its own case. The kingdom’s great question remains unanswered: which one is best?
12THE TALE CONTINUES
The cone with the thumbs up
This smiling cone is every child’s favourite friend. He gives a thumbs up as if to say: “Coming? The next page is this way!” It is also the best spot in the museum for a family photo.
13THE TALE CONTINUES
A thousand shakers in one cupboard
Dozens upon dozens of collectible salt and pepper shakers live in this case, gathered from all over. Each one once stood on a real table, in a real fry shop. A pinch of salt, a pinch of memories.
14THE TALE CONTINUES
The fry stall of long ago
This is the fritkot of your great-grandparents’ day, striped awning and all. On the village square it was where everyone met, young and old, after school or after the match. In Belgium the fry shop is a little like the whole neighbourhood’s living room.
15THE TALE CONTINUES
The sauce cavern
In the middle of the room stands a bright red giant vat, like a wizard’s cauldron. You learn where Belgian sauces come from and why there are so many. Don’t fall in: you would come out bright red!
16THE TALE CONTINUES
The table that speaks every language
In the Taverne decor, a big table tells the story of fries to visitors from all over the world. Eleven languages in your ears, one single passion on the table. Even Japanese tourists leave saying “frietjes”.
17THE TALE CONTINUES
The tastiest moment
At Chez Julien, at the very end of the route, the little cone is finally handed over. That is the reward of the story: hot fries cooked in front of you, in beef fat or vegetable oil — your choice.
18THE TALE CONTINUES
The fryer that gives away the recipe
The sign says it all: 4 steps, of which 2 are cooking stages. The fry master explains, the fryer sings, the steam rises. And you learn a funny figure: cooked properly, a fry only absorbs about 11 % fat, and a good portion weighs roughly 300 grams.
19THE TALE CONTINUES
Taps crowned with Manneken Pis
Look closely at the top of the sauce taps: each wears a tiny Manneken Pis as a crown. It is the museum’s Brussels wink, fifty metres from the real fountain. Nowhere else in the world does that.
20THE TALE CONTINUES
Bij Julienske, the yellow carriage
This sunshine-yellow stall shines like a carriage in the middle of the museum. You can step inside, stand behind the counter and play fry-shop owner. Careful: the customer is waiting, and he is very hungry.
21THE TALE CONTINUES
“See you soon!”
In front of the museum sign, Manneken Pis gives one last wink. Outside, the real one waits around the corner, and the whole city smells of fries. This is where our tale ends… but yours is just beginning.
And they stayed crispy ever after
That is how a tiny mountain potato from Peru became the golden star of Brussels. The museum was dreamed up by a passionate collector, Eddy Van Belle — the same man behind the chocolate museum right across the street and the Frietmuseum in Bruges — and it opened at the end of April 2025. A true story dressed as a fairy tale, to share as a family, at child height. The end… or rather: time to eat!
Plan your visit
28 Rue de l’Étuve · 1000 Brussels
Open 7 days a week · 10am–6pm · visit ± 1h30
Last admission 5pm · €14 adult, €12 student/65+, €8 child (3-11)
11 languages
Photos supplied to BXL Positive · © Friet Museum Brussels
🔗 Sources & verifiable links
BXL Positive
Report by the BXL Positive team
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