Boury keeps top Gault&Millau spot with 19/20, Gert De Mangeleer named chef of the year

Top of the ranking

Boury in Roeselare is the only restaurant to score 19 out of 20 in the Gault&Millau 2027 guide, and it now stands alone at the top after sharing first place with L'Air du Temps last year. L'Air du Temps in Eghezée, run by Sang-Hoon Degeimbre, dropped half a point to 18.5, leaving it in a shared second place with Sir Kwinten in Lennik, The Jane in Antwerp and Zilte, the last of which is also in Ghent. Sources describe Boury as a restaurant that stands among the greatest tables in the country, and Gault&Millau says it is worthy of competing with the best restaurants in the world.

Chef of the year and young chefs

Gert De Mangeleer of Hertog Jan in Antwerp was named Chef of the Year 2027, succeeding Karen Torosyan of Bozar Restaurant in Brussels. The guide praised him as a "gedreven vakman" whose appetite for knowledge and exceptional eye for detail made him a versatile chef of international level. Anthony Stoop of Komaf in Wommelgem was named young chef of the year for Flanders, Mathieu Vande Velde of Le Roannay in Stavelot for Wallonia, and Ruben Christiaens of La Villa Lorraine for the Brussels region. Vande Velde had already received a Michelin young chef distinction three years earlier, according to La Libre's coverage.

“Elegance, pronounced taste and depth form the common thread.”

Newcomers and risers

Of the 132 newcomers, the guide singled out Fuzz in Antwerp with chef Tom Loockx at 15 out of 20 and three toques for Flanders, OM in Embourg with chef Olivier Massart at 14.5 for Wallonia, and Cosmos in Ixelles with chef Kevin Perlot at 14 out of 20 for Brussels. Sir Kwinten rose from 17.5 last year to 18.5 this year, making it the most striking climber in the top five. Bozar Restaurant entered the top ten with a score of 18.

Regional standouts

In Wallonia, Arabelle Meirlaen in Marchin scored 18 out of 20, and Le Coq aux Champs in Tinlot and L'Eau Vive in Arbre both reached 17.5. In Brussels, Eliane rose to 17.5 under chef Kobe Desramaults, and Eliane placed 86th in the 50 Best ranking, a recent addition to the list of the 100 best restaurants in the world. Six Brussels restaurants were highlighted in the guide, including Comme chez Soi, which kept its score.

H!P awards

The H!P selection of trendy restaurants, where concept and atmosphere matter as much as the food, named Shibuya in Bruges for Flanders, Ôngbà in Ixelles for Brussels and Chez Rouge in Namur for Wallonia as its 2027 winners. The guide's Brussels section includes more than sixty H!P restaurants, nine of which are new to the list.

Boury (Roeselare)19

L'Air du Temps (Eghezée)18.5

Bozar Restaurant (Brussels)18

Arabelle Meirlaen (Marchin)18

Boury (Roeselare)

19 /20

L'Air du Temps (Eghezée)

18.5 /20

Bozar Restaurant (Brussels)

18 /20

Arabelle Meirlaen (Marchin)

18 /20

Data from the article text