Restaurant in Antwerp, Belgium
French technique, bistro prices, OAD-ranked.
Nage is the clearest case for French-contemporary cooking in Antwerp at the €€€ tier — easy to book, consistently recognised by both Michelin (Plate, 2024–2025) and Opinionated About Dining Casual Europe (top 700 in 2025), and a better daily-driver option than the city's full fine-dining bracket. Book lunch on a Monday or Friday for the best experience.
Getting a table at Nage is easier than you might expect for a restaurant with its credentials. Booking is direct, and you rarely need more than a week's notice outside of weekend evenings in high season. For a neo-bistro with a Michelin Plate and consecutive Opinionated About Dining Casual Europe rankings (Recommended in 2023, #633 in 2024, rising to #708 in 2025), that accessibility is part of the appeal. If you are in Antwerp and want French-contemporary cooking at the €€€ tier without the planning overhead of a full fine-dining reservation, Nage is the clearest answer in the city.
Nage operates out of Congresstraat 42 in Antwerp's northern district, a quieter address that keeps the room relaxed rather than performative. The spatial register here is neo-bistro in the truest sense: not a stripped-back canteen, not a formal dining room, but something in between that lets the food lead without the room getting in the way. Seat count is not disclosed, but the format skews intimate. If you are returning after a first visit, it is worth noting that the layout tends to reward counter or small-table positioning for solo and two-leading guests; the room does not feel designed for large groups pushing tables together, so if you are four or more, flag your configuration when booking.
Koen Lenaerts runs the kitchen at Nage, and the cuisine sits at the intersection of French technique and contemporary bistro sensibility. The OAD Casual Europe list is a meaningful benchmark here: it specifically recognises restaurants that deliver quality without the formality or price structure of the starred tier. Being listed three years running, with an improving rank each year, tells you the kitchen is consistent and gaining recognition, not coasting. For context, OAD's European Casual list covers hundreds of restaurants across the continent, so a top-700 placement is a verifiable signal of quality within a competitive field.
Signature dishes are not published, which is typical for a kitchen operating a market-driven or rotating menu format. If you have been once and want to know what to focus on next, the practical answer is to ask the front-of-house what the kitchen is currently building around. That is also where service philosophy matters at Nage: at the €€€ price point, you are not paying for tableside theatre, but you should be getting informed, engaged service that knows the menu cold. A well-run neo-bistro at this tier should feel like eating with someone who can explain every dish without consulting a script. If that is not your experience on a given visit, it is fair to flag — this is where the price-to-service equation either earns its keep or does not.
Nage is open Monday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for both lunch (12–3 pm) and dinner (7 pm–midnight), with Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday closed. That schedule means mid-week visitors are out of luck entirely, but it also means the kitchen is not spread thin across seven service days. For a returning guest, lunch on a weekday-adjacent day (Monday or Friday) is the timing to target. The room will be quieter than a Saturday evening, service tends to be more attentive when covers are lower, and the €€€ pricing at lunch in a neo-bistro format usually means better value per course than dinner. Saturday dinner is the hardest booking and the noisiest service; if conversation matters as much as the food, aim earlier in the week or earlier in the evening.
At €€€, Nage sits above the casual bistro tier but below Antwerp's full fine-dining bracket. That positioning makes it a more useful daily-driver option than a once-a-year occasion restaurant. A 4.5 Google rating across 162 reviews suggests the room is consistently delivering against guest expectations, which at this price point is the right test. The Michelin Plate, held in both 2024 and 2025, does not mean the kitchen is chasing a star — it means Michelin auditors found the cooking worth noting. For €€€ French-contemporary in Antwerp, that combination of third-party recognition and consistent guest satisfaction is a reasonable basis for booking without hesitation.
If you are comparing against the wider Belgian neo-bistro and French-contemporary scene, it is worth knowing that restaurants like Boury in Roeselare, Hof van Cleve in Kruishoutem, and Willem Hiele in Oudenburg operate at higher price tiers and require more planning. Nage offers recognisable quality signals at a tier that most of those cannot match for accessibility. Within Antwerp itself, options like Zilte take the creative register much further but at significantly higher cost and booking friction. For more on the city's full dining options, see our full Antwerp restaurants guide.
Nage is at Congresstraat 42, Antwerp. Open Monday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday , lunch 12–3 pm, dinner 7 pm–midnight. Closed Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Booking is easy; a few days' notice is usually sufficient except Saturday evenings. Price range: €€€. Google: 4.5/5 (162 reviews). Awards: Michelin Plate 2024 and 2025; OAD Casual Europe #633 (2024), #708 (2025). For broader Antwerp planning, see hotels, bars, experiences, and wineries.
Quick reference: Congresstraat 42, Antwerp | €€€ | Mon/Fri/Sat/Sun lunch and dinner | Booking: easy, a few days' notice sufficient.
A few days is usually enough for lunch or a weekday slot. Saturday dinner is the exception , book that a week to ten days out to be safe. Nage's OAD Casual Europe ranking and Michelin Plate give it genuine recognition, but the open four-day schedule keeps demand manageable. If your dates are fixed, booking the moment you know is always the right call.
Lunch is the stronger recommendation for returning guests. The room is quieter, service tends to be more focused, and the €€€ tier at a neo-bistro lunch format usually delivers better value per course. Dinner on Saturday has the energy if that is what you want, but for the food itself, Monday or Friday lunch is the timing to target. Nage is open for both services on all four operating days.
Without confirmed menu structure in the public record, it is not possible to give a specific verdict on tasting menu format or pricing. What the awards data does confirm: the kitchen has earned consistent Michelin and OAD recognition at the €€€ tier, which means the cooking justifies the price bracket. Ask the team when booking what the current format is , that is a reasonable question to put to any well-run neo-bistro.
Signature dishes are not published, which points to a market-driven kitchen that rotates with supply. For a returning guest, the practical move is to ask front-of-house what the kitchen is currently focusing on. Chef Koen Lenaerts works within a French-contemporary framework, so the cooking tends to follow seasonal produce and classic technique. At a restaurant with three consecutive years of OAD Casual Europe recognition, the kitchen is not phoning it in , trust the menu of the day.
Yes, and probably more so than for large groups. The neo-bistro format and intimate spatial register at Congresstraat 42 suit solo or two-leading guests well. At €€€ in Antwerp, solo dining at Nage is a reasonable way to eat well without the occasion-dining weight of somewhere like Hertog Jan at Botanic or Zilte. Lunch on a quieter day is the right format for a solo visit.
The intimate format is not ideal for large groups. If you are planning for four or more, call ahead (a phone number is not currently listed publicly, so contact via their booking channel) and confirm whether the layout can accommodate your configuration. Pushing tables together in a neo-bistro room rarely works as well as a dedicated private dining setup. For a group occasion dinner in Antwerp, 't Fornuis or Bistrot du Nord may offer more flexibility.
Bar seating availability is not confirmed in the public record for Nage. The neo-bistro format sometimes includes counter or bar seating, but without confirmed layout details it would be speculative to say either way. If bar dining is important to you, check directly with the restaurant when booking. In Antwerp more broadly, see our full Antwerp bars guide for counter-friendly options.
| Venue | Price | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nage | €€€ | Easy | — |
| Hertog Jan at Botanic | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| 't Fornuis | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Bistrot du Nord | €€€ | Unknown | — |
| DIM Dining | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Dôme | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
Comparing your options in Antwerp for this tier.
Nage can likely seat small groups, but its neo-bistro format at Congresstraat 42 points to a compact room that suits tables of two to four more comfortably than large parties. If you have six or more, check the venue's official channels before booking — the Monday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday schedule also limits your window for group nights. For larger Antwerp gatherings, 't Fornuis offers a more traditional dining room with broader group flexibility.
One to two weeks ahead is a reasonable lead time for most dates, given Nage's four-day-a-week schedule and OAD Casual Europe ranking (#708 in 2025). The limited opening days — closed Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday — concentrate demand on weekends, so Friday and Saturday dinner slots fill faster. Book further out for Saturday evening or if you have a fixed date in mind.
Yes, the neo-bistro format and relaxed room at Congresstraat 42 make solo dining practical rather than awkward. Lunch service (12–3 pm on open days) is the lower-pressure option if you want to eat without the full dinner commitment. The €€€ price point is easier to absorb solo at lunch than at a full tasting-menu restaurant like Hertog Jan at Botanic.
At €€€, Nage sits above the standard bistro tier without reaching full fine-dining territory, which is where its OAD Casual Europe recognition matters: it signals cooking worth paying for without the ceremony of a starred room. Whether a tasting menu format is on offer is not confirmed in available data, so check directly with the restaurant when booking. If a set menu structure is your priority, Dôme is an Antwerp alternative with a longer track record in that format.
Lunch is the better entry point if you want to assess the kitchen at a lower cost and lower stakes. Dinner (7 pm–midnight) suits the full neo-bistro experience with more time at the table. Both services run on the same four days — Monday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday — so neither is harder to book than the other. Lunch is the practical call for a first visit.
Specific menu items are not available in our current data, so ordering recommendations would be speculative. What is confirmed is that Koen Lenaerts works in a French contemporary register with bistro sensibility — meaning the cooking leans on technique without being precious about format. Check the current menu on arrival or ask the team what the kitchen is focused on that week.
Bar seating is not confirmed in available venue data for Nage. The neo-bistro format at Congresstraat 42 does not rule it out, but it would be worth confirming when you book. If counter or bar dining specifically is your preference in Antwerp, DIM Dining is worth comparing on that format.
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