Restaurant in Maarkedal, Belgium
Book for the kitchen garden and wine list.
Paul de Pierre in Maarkedal is a garden-to-table destination restaurant with one of Belgium's most consistently recognised wine lists, earning Star Wine List rankings across 14 placements in 2024 and 2025. Chef Fabian Bali builds the menu around a 68-variety organic kitchen garden, making this a strong choice for a special occasion dinner in the Flemish Ardennes. A car is essential; book two to four weeks ahead.
Yes — if you want a restaurant that takes its kitchen garden as seriously as its wine list, Paul de Pierre is one of the more compelling reasons to make the drive into the hills around Maarkedal. The combination of a chef-cultivated organic garden, a wine program that has earned consecutive Star Wine List recognition across 2024 and 2025, and a setting that doubles as an event venue makes this a strong choice for a celebratory meal in the East Flanders countryside. First-timers should know what they are walking into: this is a destination restaurant, not a convenient city stop, and the experience is built around a deliberate, produce-led progression through the menu.
The kitchen at Paul de Pierre is anchored by a 68-variety kitchen garden grown organically on the property. Chef Fabian Bali works directly from that garden, and the menu reflects what is ready to harvest rather than a fixed repertoire. For a first-timer, this means the menu is seasonal by design — what you eat in spring will differ from what arrives in autumn, and that variability is the point. One documented example from the kitchen: hake with buttermilk, asparagus, spinach sprouts, and lemon thyme. That combination is a useful signal for the style , clean, produce-forward, technically composed, with acidity and herbs doing more work than heavy sauces.
The progression through courses at Paul de Pierre follows a logic shaped by the garden: vegetables and aromatics lead, proteins support, and the sourcing chain is short. Produce that is not grown on-site comes from farmers with whom the kitchen has established direct relationships. For a first-time visitor, this means the tasting arc will feel coherent rather than showy , each course exists to make the ingredients legible, not to demonstrate technique for its own sake.
Setting reinforces this. Paul de Pierre sits in Maarkedal, a village in the Flemish Ardennes, and the property includes a garden that is visible from the dining room. The building functions as both a restaurant and an event venue, which means the space is designed to handle a range of group sizes and occasions. Solo diners and couples will find it comfortable; groups booking for a celebration will find the infrastructure already in place.
Wine program is a genuine reason to choose Paul de Pierre over comparable restaurants in the region. Star Wine List has recognised it seven times in 2025 alone (rankings #1 through #7 in the current cycle) and eight times in 2024. That level of repeated recognition across both years suggests a list that is actively maintained and curated, not a static cellar. For a diner pairing wine with a tasting menu, this matters: a strong wine program at a garden-led kitchen typically means the list skews toward bottles with enough acidity and freshness to work alongside vegetable-forward courses. Confirm the pairing menu option when you book.
Reservations: Book directly , this is a destination restaurant in a rural village and walk-ins are unlikely to be viable, particularly for weekend dinners or private events. Booking a few weeks ahead is advisable. Getting there: Maarkedal is in the Flemish Ardennes, roughly between Oudenaarde and Ronse; a car is the most practical way to arrive. Dress: No dress code is published, but the combination of a serious wine list and a destination setting suggests smart-casual at minimum. Group size: The venue handles events as well as a la carte dining, so parties of 4 or more should ask about private arrangements when booking. Occasion fit: Anniversaries, milestone dinners, and corporate events are all supported by the format and the space.
See the comparison section below for how Paul de Pierre sits against other serious Belgian restaurants.
Paul de Pierre earns a clear yes for diners who prioritise provenance, a strong wine list, and a kitchen that builds its menu around what the garden is producing. The Star Wine List track record across 2024 and 2025 is the most verifiable signal of quality available, and it is a meaningful one. If you are already in the Flemish Ardennes or are willing to make the drive from Ghent or Brussels, this is a well-supported choice for a special meal. If you need a restaurant that is easy to reach by public transport, look elsewhere.
For more options in the area, see our full Maarkedal restaurants guide, our Maarkedal hotels guide, and our Maarkedal experiences guide. For serious Belgian restaurant comparisons, Zilte in Antwerp, Willem Hiele in Oudenburg, and Bartholomeus in Heist are all worth knowing about. If you are also considering L'air du temps in Liernu or Bozar Restaurant in Brussels, both represent different points on the Belgian fine-dining spectrum. For international reference points in tasting menu cooking, Le Bernardin in New York and Atomix in New York show what rigorous produce-led and progression-focused menus look like at the global tier.
| Venue | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Paul de Pierre | — | |
| Boury | €€€€ | — |
| Comme chez Soi | €€€€ | — |
| Castor | €€€€ | — |
| Cuchara | €€€€ | — |
| De Jonkman | €€€€ | — |
How Paul de Pierre stacks up against the competition.
Yes — it's one of the stronger cases for a destination dinner in the Flemish Ardennes. The combination of an organically grown 68-variety kitchen garden and a wine list recognised by Star Wine List across seven consecutive rounds in 2025 alone gives it genuine substance beyond the setting. Book well ahead for weekend evenings; this is a rural address where tables are finite and demand is real.
The menu is built around what chef Fabian Bali harvests from the 100% organic, 68-variety kitchen garden on the property, supplemented by closely partnered local farmers. Dishes like hake with buttermilk, asparagus, spinach sprouts, and lemon thyme illustrate the approach: garden produce as the main event, not garnish. Follow the kitchen's current seasonal direction rather than seeking specific dishes by name.
The venue is described as cosy and stylish, set in a rural Flemish Ardennes village at Nederholbeekstraat 135. Smart-casual fits the tone — think well-put-together without being formal. A destination restaurant of this calibre warrants more than jeans and trainers, but a dark suit is unnecessary.
There is no bar seating documented for Paul de Pierre. Given its profile as a restaurant and event venue in a rural village, the format skews toward reserved table dining. check the venue's official channels before assuming any walk-in or bar option is available.
Maarkedal itself has limited comparable options, so the realistic alternatives are regional: De Jonkman in Sint-Martens-Latem and Castor are worth considering for similarly produce-focused cooking in Flanders. For a bigger-city experience with more booking flexibility, Comme chez Soi in Brussels operates in a different tier but answers a different brief entirely.
There is no specific solo counter or bar-seat arrangement documented, which makes it a harder call than a restaurant with counter seating. That said, destination restaurants with strong wine programs often accommodate solo diners well — call ahead, mention you're dining alone, and ask what configuration works best for the kitchen's current format.
Book at least two to three weeks ahead for weekend dinners; this is a destination restaurant in a rural village with no walk-in culture. For special occasions or large groups using the event space, book further out. The address at Nederholbeekstraat 135 in Maarkedal is not somewhere you stumble across — everyone there has planned ahead.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
