Souvenirs from Antwerp

Hand-shaped butter biscuits with almonds, created in 1934 after the Brabo legend: the giant's cut-off hand thrown into the Scheldt gave the city its name. Chocolate versions are filled with marzipan, praline or Elixir d'Anvers. The name and shape are protected by the Antwerp bakers' and chocolatiers' association, so buy them from an Antwerp baker or chocolatier rather than a generic souvenir stall.

• 🏷️ Price: Philip's Biscuits tin of Antwerp hands €26.50; Del Rey box of 12 chocolate hands €27.50
• 🛍️ Where to buy it: Philip's Biscuits (Korte Gasthuisstraat 39 and Hoogstraat 2-4) for the biscuits, and chocolatier Del Rey (Appelmansstraat 5, by Central Station) for the chocolate hands.

A sweet, yellow herbal liqueur made since 1863 by the De Beukelaer family distillery, still in its listed building in Antwerp-Zuid. Locals sip it as a digestif or pour it over ice cream. The square bottle with the yellow label is the real thing; there is no cheaper copy worth bringing home.

• 🛍️ Where to buy it: Most Antwerp drinks shops and supermarkets stock it; the distillery (Haantjeslei 132) sells bottles after its booked guided tours.

De Koninck is Antwerp's own amber ale, brewed in the city since 1833; locals order it as a 'bolleke' after its round goblet glass. The glass, printed with the brewery's hand, is the classic Antwerp souvenir for beer drinkers. Pack bottles and glasses in your hold luggage.

• 🛍️ Where to buy it: The gift shop of the De Koninck city brewery (Mechelsesteenweg 291, closed Monday), or bottles in any Antwerp supermarket.

Seef was the cheap, cloudy beer of Antwerp's working-class Seefhoek district until it vanished in the early 20th century. The Antwerpse Brouw Compagnie revived it in 2012 from an old recipe with barley, wheat, oats and buckwheat, and now brews it in the city on the Eilandje. A less obvious beer gift than De Koninck, but just as local.

• 🛍️ Where to buy it: The taproom and shop of the Antwerpse Brouw Compagnie brewery (Indiëstraat 21, Eilandje).

Next to the big Belgian brands, Antwerp has its own chocolatiers: Del Rey makes diamond-shaped pralines, and The Chocolate Line (Dominique Persoone) sells unusual flavours in a palace on the Meir. Many shops around the Grote Markt sell factory brands at tourist prices; a chocolatier who makes the pralines in-house is the better buy. Fresh pralines keep two to three weeks.

• 🏷️ Price: Del Rey Antwerp Diamond Collection from €7 for 4 pieces
• 🛍️ Where to buy it: Del Rey (Appelmansstraat 5, by Central Station) and The Chocolate Line (Paleis op de Meir, Meir 50).

Antwerp has traded and cut diamonds for over five centuries, and its jewellers cluster around Central Station. Buy only a stone with a certificate from a recognised lab (HRD Antwerp, GIA or IGI) stating whether it is natural or lab-grown; a jeweller's own certificate is not valid. The city's 'Antwerp's Most Brilliant' sticker in the window marks an audited jeweller; a deal that looks too good usually is.

• 🛍️ Where to buy it: The diamond district by Central Station (Appelmansstraat, Vestingstraat, Hoveniersstraat); the labelled jewellers are listed on visit.antwerpen.be.

Since the Antwerp Six (Dries Van Noten, Ann Demeulemeester and others) came out of the city's fashion academy in the 1980s, Antwerp has been a fashion capital. Designer pieces are an investment; for a smaller souvenir, the fashion museum MoMu sells Antwerp Six T-shirts, tote bags and fashion books.

• 🏷️ Price: MoMu shop: Antwerp Six T-shirt €59, tote bag €25
• 🛍️ Where to buy it: The MoMu shop (Nationalestraat 28, closed Monday) and the fashion streets around it: Nationalestraat, Kammenstraat and Lombardenvest.

Antwerp is a good city for something old: the Kloosterstraat between the centre and Het Zuid is lined with antique, vintage and interior shops that also open on Sundays. Small items such as old glass, silver, prints or crockery travel best. Ask about age and origin, and get a receipt that describes the piece.

• 🛍️ Where to buy it: The Kloosterstraat (shops open on Sunday), the Sint-Jansvliet antiques market on Sundays and the Friday-morning auction on the Vrijdagmarkt.