Hof van Cleve - Floris Van Der Veken

Farmland, Flemish Tradition, and a Kitchen in Transition

The drive to Kruisem through the Flemish Ardennes sets expectations that the address then confirms: a working farmhouse setting, low-slung and grounded in the agricultural land that surrounds it, with none of the urban theatre that defines haute cuisine in Ghent or Antwerp. Belgium's most celebrated fine-dining addresses have historically clustered in cities, but Hof van Cleve has operated against that pattern for decades, drawing international visitors to a village in East Flanders where the dominant currency is farmland, not footfall. It is the kind of place that requires a decision to visit, and that decision has been rewarded with consistent placement in the our full Kruishoutem restaurants guide and among the country's most referenced fine-dining destinations.

The restaurant's trajectory over the past two decades is a useful map of where Belgian haute cuisine has been. Hof van Cleve appeared in the World's 50 Best Restaurants as early as 2006, reaching number 14 in 2007 and remaining a fixture through to 2023, when it held the 52nd position. That longevity across a ranking that rewards novelty is a more meaningful signal than any single-year placement: it points to a kitchen that has maintained technical and conceptual relevance through several shifts in global dining priorities. For context, comparable Belgian addresses operating in the same €€€€ price tier — Boury in Roeselare and Zilte in Antwerp — have built strong regional reputations, but neither carries the same depth of international ranking history.

The Chef's Direction and What It Signals

Chef Floris Van Der Veken inherited the kitchen from Peter Goossens, who spent decades building Hof van Cleve into one of northern Europe's most recognised fine-dining institutions. The handover represents a particular kind of challenge in fine dining: maintaining the trust of a loyal, discerning audience while establishing a distinct culinary identity. Van Der Veken's response has been a decisive shift toward plant-forward cooking, a move that runs counter to the assumptions many guests bring to a farmhouse restaurant in rural Flanders.

The We're Smart Green Guide, which evaluates restaurants on their commitment to vegetable-centred cooking, awarded Hof van Cleve five Radishes with high distinction , its highest tier , and placed the restaurant within reach of its TOP100. The guide's assessors noted that the Pure Plant menu was conceived and presented with conviction, and that individual dishes were executed without the hedging that often characterises fine-dining vegetable courses. Vegetables are frequently deployed as accompaniment in this price tier; at Hof van Cleve under Van Der Veken, they are the architecture of the menu. That is a different proposition, and one that places the kitchen in a peer set that includes plant-forward addresses internationally rather than only traditional Franco-Belgian houses.

The Opinionated About Dining guide, which draws on a large international pool of experienced diners, ranked the restaurant 15th in Europe in its Classical category for 2025, up from 19th in 2024 and 20th in 2023. That upward movement in a ranking that is notoriously resistant to rapid climbs suggests the kitchen's current direction is being received well by the audience most likely to compare it against the broadest possible European field. For reference, Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen and Enrico Bartolini in Milan operate in the same creative fine-dining register across different national traditions, which contextualises where Hof van Cleve sits within European fine dining more broadly.

Awards as Accumulated Evidence

Two Michelin stars in both 2024 and 2025 anchor the restaurant's formal recognition, but the fuller picture requires reading the award record over time. A La Liste score of 96.5 points in 2025, dropping to 93 points in 2026, sits within the upper band of that ranking's European classical tier. Membership in Les Grandes Tables du Monde, awarded in 2025, aligns Hof van Cleve with a peer set that includes some of the most formally recognised houses in France and Italy, a network that rewards consistency and front-of-house standard as much as kitchen output.

The Google review average of 4.7 across 713 responses is a different kind of signal: broader, less filtered, and reflective of a dining public that includes first-time visitors alongside those who have been following the kitchen for years. That alignment between specialist critical consensus and general diner satisfaction at this price point is not automatic; it suggests the restaurant communicates its direction clearly enough that guests arrive with calibrated expectations.

Belgium's fine-dining scene beyond Hof van Cleve includes addresses operating across a range of regional traditions: Willem Hiele in Oudenburg works within a coastal and fermentation-led idiom, Bartholomeus in Heist draws on North Sea produce, and addresses like d'Eugénie à Emilie in Baudour and L'Eau Vive in Arbre anchor the Wallonian fine-dining tradition. Hof van Cleve's positioning within this field is distinctive precisely because it operates in Flemish agricultural countryside while reaching toward a plant-forward agenda that is more commonly associated with urban fine dining.

The Rural Fine-Dining Model

Restaurants at this price tier in rural settings face a structural question that urban addresses avoid: the destination visit places heavier weight on every element of the experience, because the journey itself becomes part of the decision. Guests travelling from Ghent (roughly 25 kilometres) or from Brussels or Antwerp are committing time and logistics, which raises the bar for what the meal needs to deliver. The model that works in this context , and the one Hof van Cleve has operated within for two decades , is comprehensive investment in both kitchen and environment, so that the setting becomes an asset rather than a concession.

The Flemish Ardennes' agricultural character directly informs the produce-led, plant-forward direction that Van Der Veken has taken the kitchen. The region's rolling farmland and market garden tradition provide a logical foundation for a menu that gives vegetables structural prominence, which in turn gives the restaurant's rural location a culinary logic rather than merely a scenic one. Comparable rural fine-dining models elsewhere in Belgium, such as Ralf Berendsen in Neerharen or Slagmolen in Opglabbeek, face the same destination-visit logic, each anchoring their menu identity to the specifics of their regional setting.

Planning a Visit

Hof van Cleve is located at Riemegemstraat 1 in Kruisem, East Flanders, accessible by car from Ghent and within reach of Brussels for those willing to make the drive a deliberate part of the day. At the €€€€ price tier, the expectation is a full tasting menu format running several hours, which makes an overnight stay worth considering; our full Kruishoutem hotels guide covers nearby accommodation options. The restaurant's award standing and the transition to a new kitchen direction under Van Der Veken make forward planning advisable; tables at addresses with this profile of critical recognition tend to fill well in advance, particularly for weekend services. Those building a broader itinerary around the visit might also consult our Kruishoutem bars guide, our Kruishoutem wineries guide, and our Kruishoutem experiences guide for context on what the wider area offers. For those using the meal as an anchor for a longer Belgian fine-dining itinerary, Bozar Restaurant in Brussels, La Durée in Izegem, and Sir Kwinten in Sint-Kwintens-Lennik represent other addresses in the same formal register worth sequencing into the trip.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Hof van Cleve suitable for children?

At the €€€€ price tier in Kruishoutem, Hof van Cleve is a formal tasting-menu destination that is not structured around younger diners.

How would you describe the vibe at Hof van Cleve?

The setting is a farmhouse in rural East Flanders, which produces an atmosphere that is quieter and more deliberately unhurried than city-centre fine dining in Belgium. For a restaurant carrying two Michelin stars, a La Liste score of 96.5, and membership in Les Grandes Tables du Monde, the tone is serious without being austere , the kind of environment where the meal is the entire evening rather than one part of it. At the €€€€ price point, Kruishoutem operates as a destination rather than a neighbourhood choice, and the atmosphere reflects that commitment.

What should I order at Hof van Cleve?

Given Chef Floris Van Der Veken's direction and the recognition from We're Smart's five Radishes with high distinction, the Pure Plant menu is the most direct expression of where the kitchen is now. That said, the Opinionated About Dining ranking of 15th in Europe for Classical cuisine in 2025 suggests the full tasting menu format is where the kitchen's range shows most completely. At a creative fine-dining address with this award profile, the tasting menu rather than à la carte is the appropriate vehicle for understanding what the kitchen is doing.