The best French cuisine restaurants Belgium

You'll love this gastronomic restaurant with its classic setting, and especially the garden where you can enjoy lunch or dinner when the weather's fine. French and Belgian cuisine are perfectly balanced on a menu of refined seasonal dishes. Each month has its own unique menu. There's also a fine selection of beers and cocktails. Au Beau Jardin also offers a more economical brasserie side with more rustic, local cuisine. You can sample the daily suggestion or choose from a selection of salads and snacks.

Nice address on the heights of the city. Enjoy a meal in a rustic setting with a piano. On sunny days, you can sit out on the terrace overlooking the verdant garden and its portico for adventurous kids. Portions are generous without being too Christian and the menu changes every month, with suggestions focusing on game and meat: civet de biche, terrine de gibier et foie gras, supreme de pintadeau et son jus corsé au porto... The adjoining La Sparsa brewery produces a pleasant amber ale of the same name, Spa's only beer.

Le Cantil is a restaurant, wine bar and delicatessen all in one. This winning trio owes its success to two associates: one with a passion for wine, the other for good products that come together. Daily specials and local tapas are always fresh and often surprising. The ideal place to take a breather after a hard day's work, or simply to meet up with friends. The products on offer are predominantly regional: the establishment's policy is to favor the short circuit. All this is accompanied by expert advice.

Full of love for their mothers, once upon a time there were Nico, Audrey, Laurent and Julien. But above all, it is their cuisine that is targeted! The restaurant is dedicated to them. The concept is nostalgic of the 1980's: casserole of the day, cheeseburger of the sons, music of the 1980's, decoration linked to the characters and people of the time..., one would almost be afraid to be caught with an elbow on the table or not to finish one's plate! Let us also note the piece of beef of the day, the rib of beef on board and the brunches of Sunday.

Odette-en-Ville uses an ultra-contemporary urban decor... without going overboard. The lounge-library has a beautiful effect. The wall-mirror, helped by the glass roof, does everything it can to help guests be seen. This trendy boutique hotel also caters for gourmets. The perfect egg, green asparagus, grey shrimp and mousseline is perfect; so is the salmon back with teriyaki sauce! For dessert, Odette's rice pudding, tasted during a previous visit, is a reminder that there are other sweets on the menu that Proust would not have disparaged!

Over the bridge... here it is! La Ferme du Moulin à Eau enjoys a bucolic country setting, just a few kilometres from Waterloo. It also benefits from a pretty terrace in the summer and an open fire in a rustic old barn in the winter. The menu reveals a French and traditional cuisine, whether for a good piece of meat or fish. Eggs are provided by the house and local cooked products are used whenever possible. The duck breast with Northern cherries was quite original and tasty.

This is the most casual of the Botanic Sanctuary restaurants. Its location in the building's orangery with its terrace overlooking the interior garden already sets the tone for the cuisine: natural and fresh. And that's exactly what you'll find on chef Wouter Van Tichelen's plates. The star product is the fish. We enjoy a turbot grilled to perfection with, in season at the time of writing, green beans with almonds, apricots, lovage, mushrooms and a superb sauce of green tomatoes in Madeira. It is fine, racy and the service is impeccable.

Wine bar and caviste at the front, high-flying restaurant at the back, Sans Cravate invites you into its chic country-style dining room. Both classic and inventive, it's clear to see that chef Henk Van Oudenhove is having fun in the kitchen with a champagne sauerkraut garnished with mortadella and confit pork cheek. How original! He's also a king of sauces (watercress with garlic cream to accompany white fish, for example). A real treat, of course, with a superb wine list and Véronique's warm welcome.

Jean-Baptiste and his team manage this magnificent old country house (^18th-century stonework). In a green setting in Soiron, one of the twenty most beautiful villages in Wallonia. Having worked for some of the world's top chefs, the chef now offers a new take on traditional, seasonal cuisine. The menu includes homemade croquettes, crispy sweetbreads with 5-spice caramel, grilled Holstein rib steak and pan-fried prawns with fresh herbs. For dessert, don't miss the authentic Liège coffee with Walloon peket.

In this local bistro, the setting of the old bowling alley has been preserved. It's a warm, family atmosphere for a meal with friends who appreciate a fine selection of beers, especially local, and wines. Irène knows her job in the kitchen, and without showing off, comes up with a few dishes in which she puts her heart and soul. She even comes to the dining room to check on the customer's satisfaction! As with this Orval beef steak, served with real French fries! While Philippe, the owner, serves bistro-style. It's not expensive, and you're satisfied and full when you leave.

Alexandru Sapco, of Moldavian origin, officiates at the stoves of this gourmet pearl nestled in the Marolles. First, you enter this old house with its cozy atmosphere (lots of wood, bricks, subdued light) before being taken in charge by the young team of the restaurant. At noon, you choose the lunch menu or you can pick from a narrow menu (2 options per service). In the evening, we happily let ourselves be submitted to the menu. Alexandru's cuisine is lively and creative, like the superb candied quince, baba and lime ice cream. Moldavian wines on the menu.

Chef Alexandre Ciriello is on a roll: awarded the title of Young Walloon Chef of the Year by a famous culinary guide at the end of 2022, he opened L'Horizon in a building with large windows in the Brabant countryside, with his parents by his side. The menu is divided into "universes" (cold savoury, hot savoury, sweet, cheeses) and you can choose your menu according to the formula you have chosen. Don't miss the tarte de Chaumont-Gistoux, a house specialty featuring crab, caviar and sea urchin. Fine, precise cuisine with Asian touches.

Nestled in a beautiful old manor house, Le Pavot offers a range of flavors as seductive to the eye as they are to the taste buds. The chef's inspirations are French, with dishes such as a poached egg flavored with morel mushrooms, rack of pork on curried carrot mousseline and hazelnut crumble, smoked fresh trout aspic with sweet-and-sour vinaigrette and horseradish cream, and beer-braised cabbage stuffed with poultry and buckwheat. A fine cuisine to be enjoyed in a convivial setting, with a seasonal menu.

Ivresse is a wine shop, a caterer, but also one of the most exciting restaurants in the south of the capital. You enter via the wine shop side and its wall of bottles before entering the room which is rather in the industrial/recup spirit. In the kitchen, the chef Benjamin Rauwels proposes a restricted menu but whose products have been carefully selected (local, seasonal, organic). It is impossible to know in advance what you will eat, but vegetables have a large place, without forgetting fish and meat. And let's not talk about the accompanying wines, as a wine merchant is obliged to do!

With its location opposite the Manneken, you'd think this café was just another tourist trap. Not so! On the first floor, it looks like a good old café with an updated look. The beer list isn't too bad, and there's plenty of room for nibbles. The secret is upstairs, where you'll find the restaurant, which opens on weekends. And there, yum! The menu is very Belgian-Brussels, with white pudding in puff pastry, one of the best carbonnades we've had in a long time, and a mandarin, honey curd, lemon thyme and crumble. A real pearl!

The restaurant of Bob Delvigne, the friendly boss, is more than ever decorated with paintings and objects referring to Hergé's characters. The kitchen, for its part, continues a formula that works: simple, pleasant (in comics, it seems that the chef is a fan of the clear line!) and allowing you to eat as much as you want at a reasonable price. We just wonder when we'll find - at last - "Syldavian" specialities on the menu! Some of the salads are named after a "haddockian" swear word. Only 150 metres from its former address, we must remind you...

The brasserie setting, with its white tiles and dark mirrored banquettes, sets the tone. Olivier's grandfather was a beer merchant and wine taster before becoming a member of the sommeliers' guild... The menu is evolving, with French gastronomy with a local accent, some of which is offered orally. The autograph menu is already an invitation to a moment of quality! The service is professional, the plate is meticulous and the wine list boasts three hundred labels.

Luxury boutique upstairs, bistronomic restaurant downstairs, the Graanmarkt is a perfect marriage of aesthetics and pleasure. In the restaurant space, everything is beautiful, from the crockery to the lighting fixtures, and well highlighted by the white of the walls. The menu is also raw: 3 starters, 3 main courses, 2 desserts (or cheeses). On the plate, it's the vegetables that are sublimated (the restaurant was voted best vegetable restaurant in Flanders), such as this (deceptively simple) feast of beans, thyme beans and shiitake that accompanied a Frisian entrecôte.

You'll be amazed by this terrible liner that appears to be moored against the Jambes lock. In fact, it's a new building complex on the ground floor of which the brasserie has taken up residence. The terraces are crowded with people in fine weather, and the superb dining room, with its tables arranged according to mood, is bustling with people. The menu is rich and varied, featuring classic brasserie dishes that have been (re)visited. A special mention goes to the vol-au-vent and its sweetbreads. The fish is beautifully prepared. The wine bible includes some fine Belgian parishes, and the sommelier has mastered his subject.

Les potes are two young enthusiasts, François and Damien, who embarked on this adventure in February 2020. Their menu offers freshness and seasonality in two starters (mushrooms in 3 ways or roasted scallops), two main courses (Belgian game meat or catch of the day) and as many desserts. The restaurant is highly recommended, both for its contemporary setting overlooking the river and for its contemporary gourmet cuisine. Also noteworthy is the cheerful service: François and Damien come to your table to present their dishes.

Just a stone's throw from the sea wall, this is one of the most charming addresses on the coast! Open from breakfast to aperitif, t'Koethuis is famous for its waffles (they're always among the best on the coast), but its brasserie menu doesn't leave you indifferent either. You can enjoy pasta, salad or solettes. While the interior is warm and inviting in winter, it's the courtyard - all decked out in flowers and lit up at night - that steals the show. Little do we know that the restaurant's rather banal façade conceals this marvel.

An institution in De Panne! This quality brasserie offers its sunny terrace or a cosy interior. You can enjoy traditional dishes, improved tapas, accompanied by delicious cocktails or a beer from the large variety offered. The planks of assorted tapas, but also the salads with generous and copious compositions, the meats cooked to perfection. Add to this a smiling team, good advice and low prices, which makes it a very popular address. It is better to reserve.

Cheese lovers are in for a treat: in addition to French specialties and gourmet burgers, La Vache à carreaux offers such delights as camembert with caramel, dried onions and Calvados, creamy roasted goat's cheese with apricot, honey and almonds, and comté chicken with chorizo and mozzarella... all of which can be washed down with a fine wine. which can be washed down with a good wine. The burgers are far from ordinary, like the Burger des Moines with Belgian Maredsous cheese topped with a homemade cocktail sauce. There are also a number of equally appetizing salads and delicious desserts. Bon appétit!

World's wine list

13 different salads

Tourtière specialties

Every Saturday, DJ in the restaurant

Dance parties are regularly organized in the strongroom

Vegetarian dishes

Comptoir 17 is a trendy place to choose from a dozen meat, fish or vegetarian burgers, in a wholemeal bun and with fresh, quality produce. Like the Royal: pure beef, smoked duck breast, pan-fried foie gras, fig confit, caramelized onions and cherry tomatoes, or the Blue Cheese (pure beef, Fourme d'Ambert cheese, caramelized onions, salad, port sauce). Wraps, great salads and regional beers are also on the menu. Rough brickwork and exposed beams, small terrace in front and back.

It is at the Château Blanc de Jurbise, an 18th century castle-farm, that your host Raffaele, known as the Marquis de Beaulieu, welcomes his guests amidst beautiful antique objects from the Age of Enlightenment. In one of its wings, the castle houses candlelit tables. A princely room with a meticulous decoration. A very refined French cuisine is served, with names linked to this golden period of the French aristocracy: the Gourmandises champêtres de la Reine, the Petit Couvert au Trianon, the Festival des Astres solaires...

Annual closure from mid-June to mid-July Reduction of 20 % to take away Restaurant since 51 years Traditional cooking, service and kitchen of quality American prepared in room, mussels re-elected in season, meats of 1st choice Old dishes still à la carte: eel, calf's head to the green and calf brain

An institution in Evere for three decades, the Lion Belge owes its good reputation to its numerous wood-fired grills and its well-stocked brasserie dishes. Dimitri, the owner, mixes in his menu the classics of the French-Belgian, Italian and Greek cuisine. In addition to the menu, there are weekly suggestions that change with the seasons, without forgetting the mussels. For starters, the mezze are particularly recommended. Bar and terrace for the occasional sunbeam. Pleasant piano bar on weekends. Reservation recommended.

This establishment offers three types of menu, depending on market availability: the Cadre menu (three courses), the Culinaire menu (four or five courses) and the lunch menu. The menu features the rich variety of French-style cuisine, with a twist: meat, fish and dessert are all inspired by experience in Alsace, Corsica and Saint-Barth, as well as by Chef Grégory's travels (with a nod to Italian, Asian and Mexican cuisine). The chef's plus: a specialization as a pastry-chocolate maker. His "turbiné minute" ice creams are a delight.

In July 2022, after 29 years at the helm of the restaurant, Duche (Christophe) handed over to his chef de salle, the young Joris Meurant. While the team has remained the same, the restaurant has undergone a facelift, with a new decor that is modern, warm and elegant. The setting is changing, but the cuisine is still succulent and well-presented, with seasonal variations, including local products (meatballs and rata) and French dishes. Very attentive and professional service. Don't forget to book before you go.

This restaurant-brasserie, with its contemporary furnishings, is housed in a perfectly renovated former grain market. The premises are pleasant, bordering the Sambre and overlooking the Citadelle, and popular with tourists in fine weather, especially on the terrace. The menu features regional and local cuisine in a busy atmosphere. A tempting selection: shrimp croquettes, veal bread à la namuroise, braised sweetbreads, salmon au gratin or linguine with scampi. Sauces are plentiful, so ask for them on the side.

L'Ami Roger is known for its great Burgundian and Savoyard fondues. And almost as much for its fried mussels (the Belgian favourite in jumbo format). Alongside this, there are suggestions such as these tasty meats from Uruguay and Australia. The marinated prawns are a little marvel cooked on a plancha. Gian-Carlo has been at the helm of the establishment since spring 2019. He has transformed the garden terrace into a remarkable place. Note the owner's Italian roots, and link to his excellent risottos.

At the Mess, you can eat chic and healthy at the same time. You can drink a fresh juice as an aperitif: the kefir excites your taste buds. We follow with a full vegetable lasagna, but we're eyeing some plump carrot gnocchi. We finish in freewheel with a lobster of first choice! The more "scoundrel" dishes are also there for the amateurs: croquettes with grey shrimps or the cuckoo of Malines... The menu varies with the seasons. Two small lounges allow you to isolate yourself and the terrace is the ideal place to fill up on vitamin D.

At Brasseries Georges, they know how to turn sauerkraut into a moment of pure bliss. And their seafood platters are second to none, as are their traditional dishes in general, which, without being creative, are beyond reproach. What's more, the fries are old-fashioned, and their shrimp croquettes have been voted the best in Brussels. What else? A veritable institution that continues to attract a new clientele of well-born gourmets, as much as it retains the loyalty of Ucluse's fine pedigree. A fine traditional address!

Belgium has very few "bouchons lyonnais" (traffic jams) but the city has its own, and you get a whiff of pleasure with each visit! The decoration sets the tone: red and white tiles, Guignol at the window, Gnafron on the menu... it is Lyon that chef Jean Dubois wanted to reproduce with happiness in the centre of Nivelles! We tasted a snout salad with vinaigrette, artichoke and chorizo in their broth, the inseparable Morteau and lentils, grilled marrow bone, pike quenelle, crayfish ravioli and asparagus, sweetbreads and calf's head... Lyonnais, we tell you!

In Brusseleer, Schieve lavabo means "crooked sink". Burgers, pasta dishes, salads, etc. are all (r)-safe preparations such as parmesan fondues, dumplings in tomato sauce, vol-au-vent and suggestions that change all the time. Not forgetting the famous Schievelavabolo, which is an ogre in its XL version! As in all the other "Schieve" (Altitude 100, Place Jourdan, Uccle, Auderghem and La Hulpe), the brocante decoration (woodwork, numerous enamelled plates...) is inimitable! What more could you ask for?

The idea, original, is no longer new as this sign is now part of the local landscape. But a restaurant specialising in mushrooms is not something you find in the streets. In this little culinary theatre where trumpet, agaric, morel or lentin play the main role, tapas, sausages and other mushroom delicacies are cooked before your eyes with fresh products, from the starter to the dessert. And what's more, they are always served with one of the many wines on the menu. Organic or biodynamic, these wines are also off the beaten track. Again, please!