Restaurant in Virelles, Belgium
Michelin-recognised detour in rural Hainaut.
Two consecutive Michelin Plates (2024–2025) and a 4.9 Google score across 417 reviews make Contre-Façon the most credible fine-dining option in the Virelles-Chimay area. Chef Davide Cretoni's Modern French kitchen sits at €€€, a full tier below most of Belgium's recognised restaurants, and booking difficulty is easy — a strong value proposition for serious food travellers making the detour into Hainaut.
Contre-Façon is the right call for food-focused travellers making the detour to Virelles. Two consecutive Michelin Plates (2024 and 2025) from chef Davide Cretoni signal consistent kitchen execution at a €€€ price point that sits meaningfully below Belgium's €€€€ fine-dining tier. If you are planning a serious meal in the Chimay region, this is where to book.
Place de Virelles 18 puts you in a quiet village square on the edge of Lake Virelles, in the Hainaut province of southern Belgium. The setting matters here: the visual experience before you even sit down is pastoral and unhurried, a deliberate contrast to the precision that arrives on the plate. That tension between rural calm and careful modern French cooking is what makes Contre-Façon worth the drive from Brussels or Namur.
Chef Davide Cretoni's approach is rooted in Modern French technique. Without confirmed menu details in the current record, the safe read is that the kitchen's Michelin recognition reflects consistent sourcing discipline and structured progression through courses — the hallmarks of a tasting-format kitchen operating at this level. At €€€, you are looking at a tasting experience that competes on execution rather than on room size or cellar depth. That is a reasonable trade-off for a region where €€€€ alternatives require considerably more spend and, in most cases, a longer booking window.
The Google rating of 4.9 across 417 reviews is a strong signal. At that sample size, a 4.9 is not noise — it reflects a dining room that consistently meets or exceeds what guests expect at this price point. For a venue in a village setting rather than a capital city, sustaining that score over hundreds of reviews suggests the kitchen and service are operating in reliable alignment.
For the explorer travelling through Wallonia with a serious interest in regional cooking, Contre-Façon fits naturally into an itinerary that might include L'air du temps in Liernu or d'Eugénie à Emilie in Baudour , two other Wallonian addresses working at the intersection of French technique and local identity. Contre-Façon is the most accessible of the three in terms of price tier, which makes it a practical anchor for a multi-day route rather than a single splurge destination.
If you are arriving from Brussels, Bozar Restaurant represents the capital's formal French register for comparison. Contre-Façon is quieter, more focused, and notably less expensive , a different kind of meal, but one with comparable kitchen credentials given the Plate recognition. Travellers already familiar with Belgium's Flemish fine-dining circuit, including Hof van Cleve, Boury in Roeselare, or Zilte in Antwerp, will find Contre-Façon a different register: less theatrical, more intimate, and operating in a culinary region that receives far less international attention than the Flemish coast or Ghent.
For those with a specific interest in coastal and produce-forward cooking, Willem Hiele in Oudenburg and Bartholomeus in Heist are worth cross-referencing before committing. Both operate at higher price points and require longer advance booking. Contre-Façon's booking window is comparatively easy, which matters when planning a regional itinerary around multiple restaurants.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Contre-Façon | Modern French | €€€ | Michelin Plate (2025); Michelin Plate (2024) | Easy | — |
| Boury | Modern Frlemish, Creative French | €€€€ | Michelin 3 Star | Unknown | — |
| Comme chez Soi | French - Belgian, Classic Cuisine | €€€€ | Michelin 1 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Castor | Modern European, Modern French | €€€€ | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
| Cuchara | Modern European, Creative | €€€€ | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
| De Jonkman | Modern Flemish, Creative | €€€€ | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
How Contre-Façon stacks up against the competition.
Dress as you would for a €€€ Modern French restaurant that has held two consecutive Michelin Plates. Neat, put-together clothing is appropriate — think collared shirt or equivalent. Virelles is a quiet village setting, so formal black-tie is unnecessary, but visibly casual attire would feel out of place at Davide Cretoni's level of cooking.
Bar seating details are not confirmed in available venue data. Given Contre-Façon's size and Michelin Plate standing, the dining room is the main experience here. check the venue's official channels via Place de Virelles 18, Chimay to confirm seating options before assuming a walk-in bar format is available.
Virelles itself has limited dining alternatives at this tier. For comparable Modern French ambition in Belgium, Boury in Roeselare holds a higher Michelin designation and suits travellers who want to stay in the culinary circuit. Comme chez Soi in Brussels is the benchmark for classical French in the country. Contre-Façon makes sense if you are already in Hainaut or combining it with a trip to the Chimay region.
Book at least two to three weeks out, particularly for weekends. A Michelin Plate restaurant in a small Belgian village draws a loyal regional following, and tables at this price point fill on reputation alone. Weekday bookings may have more flexibility, but contacting the restaurant at Place de Virelles 18 directly is the only confirmed route to a reservation.
Yes, for the right kind of occasion. Two consecutive Michelin Plates (2024 and 2025) under chef Davide Cretoni signal consistent kitchen standards, and the village square setting beside Lake Virelles gives the meal a destination feel rather than a city-restaurant formality. It suits a celebratory dinner for food-focused guests who prefer atmosphere built around place and cooking over urban prestige.
At €€€, Contre-Façon is priced in line with serious French cooking in Belgium, and the back-to-back Michelin Plates confirm the kitchen is operating at a recognised standard. The value case is strongest if you are making the trip specifically for the meal — Virelles is not a casual pass-through. If you want comparable cooking in a more central location, Comme chez Soi in Brussels offers a higher Michelin tier with easier logistics.
Specific menu formats are not confirmed in available venue data, so verify with the restaurant whether a tasting menu is currently offered. What is confirmed: chef Davide Cretoni's Modern French cooking has earned Michelin recognition two years running at the €€€ price point. If a tasting menu is on offer, that track record makes it a reasonable bet for food-focused diners.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
