Hof van Cleve ranked world’s 25th best restaurant

Hof van Cleve, the highest-rated restaurant in Belgium, is ranked 25th in the annual World’s 50 Best Restaurants list – a climb of 17 places. The ranking sees the restaurant, in Kruishoutem, East Flanders, placed higher than, among others, The Fat Duck in the UK (33rd), the Netherlands’ Oud Sluis (35th) and California’s The French Laundry (47th). “Chef Peter Goossens is out to prove there’s more to Belgian cuisine than stoemp, waffles and mayonnaise-drenched frites, but still champions its produce,” the judges wrote. “The kitchen’s handling of traditional ingredients in a sophisticated, creative manner is at the very core of its approach, although Goossens is willing to look further afield for inspiration. With his wife, Lieve, running the elegant dining room, the pair make Hof Van Cleve Belgium’s best restaurant.” The World’s Best Restaurant accolade went to Spain’s El Celler de Can Roca, run by the Roca brothers. A further two Belgian restaurants feature in the top 100: In de Wulf in Dranouter, West Flanders (72nd) and Hertog Jan in Bruges (78th).