LOF Restaurant — Restaurant in Ghent

Went here last weekend on my own, because I was in Ghent on my own and I really love good food. I actually wanted to go to a Michelin-star restaurant but they were fully booked, so I was happy that I could go to LOF. One other thing that made me very happy in advance, was the complete VEGAN menu. I'm a vegetarian, but in my experience it is always a bit complicated to get a vegetarian menu in fine-dining restaurants. I was so excited to eat this vegan menu!

I had a wonderful evening at LOF. It's a beautiful restaurant, the personnel is super nice but most important: the food! I loved it so much. I don't know whether it's already Michelin-worthy, but it's not far away. I would recommend to everyone: take the wine-pairing menu. I didn't do it, because I'm not drinking a lot and I didn't want a hangover for the next day ( I mean: six wines .. it's too much for me). I ordered one paired wine with one course and it was amazing! It really gives an extra dimension to the food. If you go, and you're used to drink: do it!

For me, the courses went from very good (amuses, first two courses) to exceptional (the last two courses and definitely the treats with the coffee). I'm normally not a real Seitan lover, but wow, this seitan is mouth-watering good. I'm still thinking about the food and the tastes. I won't forget this experience :-).

Another good thing: the value for money is super good! I had amuses, bread two times, 6 courses, 2 wines, a coffee and the treats for a little bit more than 100 euro. Yes of course, it is a lot of money. But to place this in perspective: the next day I went to a pub, I ate a burger with fries and a beer, and I paid more than 20 euro. That's 1/5 of...

Nothing about our visit is worth remembering: Staff: lots of them. If you'd ever seen the Energizer Bunny commercials then you are nearest to their description. Unbelievably smothering and overbearing, very pushy at times (trying to convince you with a 5 minute salespitch to buy their 10USD/microteaspoon of caviar). You get to see all of them at your table while dining. Background music: not much background, losts of loud nervous jazz music Food: we choose the only actual/practical option available, the main 6-course serving (€71, and the whole table has to have the same). We received glamorous names for basically mayonaise-ridden little servings. The "american fillet" was a hollowed-out onion filled with greasy machine-minced meat with lots of mayonaise. The "king-crab" was a bundle of unrecognisable content without a trace of kingcrab and a covering of orange-coloured tasteless mayonaise passing for lobster bisque. The sweetbread was a 3x2x0.5cm piece of meat whose delicate taste was drowned in a pungent sauce and distasting accompaniements. The "spare rib" was 2 pieces of boneless meat (5x4x1cm) covered in a very sugary red "sauce", accompanied by some grated raw carrot. Surroundings: large accoustically dreadfull refectory-style main "room". Furniture: plastic uncovered tabletops, refectory-style lighting. Service: see 1, and what stuck as a sore eye: we had a bottle of wine, and when asking for a refill per glass from the menu the wine was poured in our used glasses.

Expensive to boot, within a 500m radius there are lots of better...

Excellent restaurant which I had booked before realizing it was actually in the hotel I was staying at! The food was definitely at a Michelin * level. Service was also attentive and highly professional. I especially liked the thoughtful wine pairings with the tasting menu (including the use of sake on the opening course).

Presentation was lovely, though a bit less fussy than at other Michelin starred restaurants on my trip - not a complaint by any means, as the lack of fussiness and pretense makes the restaurant just a bit more relaxed than some other Michelin-starred establishments. Was very popular (even mid-week) and would suggest booking a table, certainly on weekends and in the summer holiday season.

My only quibble was with the pre-restaurant cocktail I tried to order from the 'bar' directly outside the restaurant's entrance (still in the hotel, and I'd consider to be part of the overall experience). That was a disappointment - the 'bartender' didn't know what a French 75 was, couldn't find any lemon juice, and struggled to locate his simple syrup. I don't know if it was his first night on the job or what, but I'd advice skipping cocktails at LOF and jumping straight to the food (and...