Thomas Gellynck is still 23 but has the maturity and the cooking skills of a more experienced chef. Together with his partner Lara De Vliegher, they manage a pop-up restaurant which will cause a commotion when it closes in November 2019 because it has become the talk of the town in the Belgian city of Ghent. The pop-up restaurant is called Commotie (translated into commotion in … [Read more...]
Q&A with Maarten Van Steen (Villa Bardon)
Maarten Van Steen, chef of restaurant Villa Bardon in Sluizeken, Gent serves Maltese-style cuisine in his restaurant. It couldn't be different given his wife Anna comes from Malta and he spent two years cooking on the Mediterranean island where he learned all about Maltese food and Mediterranean culture. Maarten is constantly experimenting making liquors like limoncello and … [Read more...]
The Belgian chef giving a Maltese twist to his restaurant in Gent
A Maltese restaurant outside Maltese shores is not a common sight. And there is a reason. The island is small and few Maltese chefs have ventured out of Malta to cook Maltese-style cuisine in their own restaurants. Many Maltese chefs have gone abroad to train but most return to work on the island. It is even more unusual when that cuisine is replicated by a Belgian chef but … [Read more...]
De Vitrine (Gent): Much more than just a bistro
There is something special about going to a restaurant and not having to worry about choosing what to eat. When we went to De Vitrine in Gent last Saturday we sort of knew there was no a la carte menu. Until a few years ago, this would have been a veritable nightmare with my phobia of cheese, but now that this has been overcome, it is to a certain extent a breath of fresh air. … [Read more...]
De Superette (Gent): The bakery with a difference
I still remember the days when I was a child and I used to go with my father to buy bread at a bakery close to our house in Malta. The baker would be visible in the background, all white and covered with flour. At times, it was he who would serve his clients. The oven used to be at the back of the bakery, visible to clients and one could get a whiff of the bread … [Read more...]
