Restaurant Vrijmoed — Restaurant in Ghent

Since this is one of the highest rated restaurants in Ghent, maybe I expected too much?

One thing that stood out to me is how beautiful the restaurant is. I appreciated the wall art, the interior design in general. I think this place has one of the nicest logos I've seen for a restaurant, and even such a small thing signals the owners have a solid vision for their business.

But, the service was a bit uneven. Half the staff was impeccable, but then some seemed undertrained and it was distracting. All of the dishes looked stunning, but one of them completely lacked in flavour. The flavour wasn't bad, it was flavourless. I ate it thoughtfully, thinking maybe it was a really subtle dish and I just didn't grasp it. But after I finished, it felt like a hollow experience.

On top of that, nothing else really stood out to me. Except the dessert. It featured an unusual flavour combination, I had a great time with it and I was still thinking about it in the days following. So the evening did end on a high note.

I usually adore the whole fine dining experience, I enjoy looking at and tasting each course and admiring the artistry of the chef and their team. But here, overall, it felt a bit artificial. My feeling, in the end, was that the evening suffered from flair over substance.

Maybe it was just an off evening and I should give this place another chance, but I was disappointed enough that I haven't gone back since. It's tough to give a restaurant a second chance when they're in this price range, you really want to be mesmerised the first time around.

Still, four stars, because I don't think there was a lack of effort, and I have a lot of respect for this team's hard work. Other people do really enjoy it here, so don't let my experience keep you from trying Vrijmoed...

I just returned from a culinary adventure through Belgium and, of the 7 Michelin stars I racked up on the journey, the 2* Restaurant Vrijmoed was my favorite!

First, I loved the setting. It's like dining in someone's elegant, historical European home, with individual rooms, spacious seating and interesting artwork on the walls.

Second, the service. Such a professional, well-trained group operating as a team. The group is attentive without being overbearing. The chef even made the rounds in the dining room, and spent several minutes at each table.

Third, the wine pairings. I had no idea that the sommelier had won the award for Best Sommelier in the World (Gault Millau) until one of the waiters told me in passing. The accolade demonstrates itself on the creative, perfectly paired (to the food) wine selections. I especially loved the sherry-like Jura and riff on Rioja with the unoaked La Mancha.

Lastly, the food. It was absolutely out of this world. Each course was visually appealing, texturally interesting and exceptional on the palette. But what perhaps stood out to me was the aroma of each dish, as I was greeted with scents of the forest or the seashore even before I had a chance to sample the offering. Truly outstanding!

One of the best restaurants I've ever dined at! I'd make a special detour to Ghent just to dine here again. HIGHLY...

Extremely bad restaurant!!! This restaurant didn’t get her stars because of the quality of the food that’s for sure. We had dinner there last night. I was actually shocked how bad the food was. The worst value for money u can get! Slappy dishes, re use of the same material again and again in different dishes (sweet potatoes chips everywhere, yuzo and yuzo) not balanced flavors (pickled paprika that completely took over a meat dish), low quality of ingredient (unless u see soup powder, that its super strong typical flavor felt in a mushroom dish, as quality), cocktails that were good if they didn’t contained 80% ice. Even the coffee in the end was gross! We left 530€ there, while sitting on the entrance door, First 40 min this door opened and closed non stop and the guy took the ppl coats basically on our head.

Do...