Restaurant in Zele, Belgium
Two Michelin years. Book before Zele gets discovered.
Fleur de Lin in Zele holds a Michelin star for both 2024 and 2025, making it the strongest case for a special occasion dinner in East Flanders at the €€€ price tier. Chef Jonas Mikkelsen runs a consistent Modern Cuisine kitchen that punches above its quiet location. Book four to six weeks out for weekends — the star draws national attention and tables go fast.
At the €€€ price tier, Fleur de Lin is the kind of restaurant that justifies a deliberate trip to Zele rather than being a by-accident discovery. Chef Jonas Mikkelsen has held a Michelin star for two consecutive years — 2024 and 2025 — which, at this price point, puts it in the strongest value position among starred Modern Cuisine tables in the East Flanders region. If you are planning a special occasion dinner and want serious cooking without the €€€€ outlay of Ghent or Roeselare, this is where to look first.
Zele is a quiet Flemish municipality along the N70 corridor between Ghent and Sint-Niklaas, not a destination most diners would put on their radar without a specific reason. Fleur de Lin gives you that reason. The restaurant sits at Lokerenbaan 100, on the edge of town, which means it functions less as a neighbourhood drop-in and more as an anchor: the kind of address that quietly defines what dining in the area can be. For locals, it is the benchmark. For visitors arriving from Ghent, Antwerp, or Brussels, it is a detour that pays off.
Two back-to-back Michelin stars tell you something specific: the kitchen is consistent. A single star awarded once can reflect a strong year or a fortunate inspection cycle. Earning it again in 2025 confirms that Mikkelsen's team is not coasting. Modern Cuisine at this level in Belgium typically means precise technique applied to seasonal product, with enough creative intent to distinguish the plate from classical French-Belgian cooking. The flavour direction leans toward refinement over maximalism , this is cooking built around clarity and restraint rather than richness and volume, which makes it particularly well-suited to a long tasting-format meal.
For a special occasion, the framing matters: Fleur de Lin is a restaurant where the occasion itself is taken seriously. The Google rating of 4.7 across 487 reviews is a useful signal , that sample size is large enough to represent consistent experience rather than a handful of enthusiastic early visitors. It suggests the front-of-house is holding its standard across regular service, not just on inspection nights.
If you are planning a birthday dinner, an anniversary, or a business meal where the environment needs to carry weight, the Michelin credential does that work for you. It signals to guests that the choice was considered. At €€€ rather than €€€€, it also means you are spending purposefully without overreaching , an important distinction when you are hosting rather than being hosted.
Book hard and book early. A two-star Michelin run (2024 and 2025) at a single restaurant in a small Flemish town means the reservation window is competitive. Realistically, you should be planning four to six weeks out for weekend covers, and at minimum two to three weeks for a midweek table. Do not assume that being outside a major city makes this easier to book , the star is the draw, and the draw is national. Diners from across Belgium, and from the Netherlands and northern France, will be in the same queue.
Zele sits roughly between Ghent and Sint-Niklaas on the E17/N70 axis, making it accessible by car from either city in under 30 minutes. If you are coming from Brussels, budget around an hour. There is no indication of valet or dedicated transport service in the available data, so driving is the practical default. If you are combining this with a broader East Flanders trip, see our full Zele restaurants guide, Zele hotels guide, and Zele bars guide for context on what else to build around the meal.
Phone and website details are not confirmed in the current data, so the most reliable booking path is to search directly for Fleur de Lin Zele and use their official reservation system. Do not attempt to walk in for a special occasion dinner , this is not that kind of restaurant.
For context on what two Michelin stars in Belgium means competitively, consider that Hof van Cleve in Kruishoutem and Zilte in Antwerp both operate at higher price tiers with more formal dining environments. Boury in Roeselare and Vrijmoed in Gent sit in the €€€€ bracket with strong creative reputations. Fleur de Lin's position at €€€ with a confirmed star in both 2024 and 2025 makes it one of the more accessible entry points into starred Modern Cuisine in Flanders , not a compromise option, but a deliberate value play for diners who know what they are doing. Further afield, Willem Hiele in Oudenburg and Le Chalet de la Forêt in Uccle offer comparable starred-dining experiences at different price points and in different settings.
If you want to extend your research into comparable Modern Cuisine at the international level, Frantzén in Stockholm and Maison Lameloise in Chagny give a useful benchmark for what serious modern cooking looks like at the leading of the format. Fleur de Lin is not operating at that scale, but the consistency of its star retention puts it in a respectable position within the regional tier.
Specific dietary accommodation policies are not confirmed in the available data. At Michelin-starred Modern Cuisine restaurants in Belgium, it is standard practice to notify the kitchen of dietary requirements at the time of booking. Call or email ahead , do not leave this to arrival. If your restrictions are complex, confirm directly with the restaurant that they can accommodate before finalising your reservation.
Come expecting a structured, tasting-format experience rather than a casual à la carte evening. At €€€ with two consecutive Michelin stars, the kitchen is working to a specific standard: precise, seasonal Modern Cuisine that rewards attention. Zele is a small town, so plan transport in advance. If you are driving from Ghent or Sint-Niklaas, the journey is under 30 minutes. This is not a drop-in restaurant , book ahead, dress appropriately for a Michelin-level room, and give the meal the time it deserves.
Four to six weeks out for weekends is the safe target. Two to three weeks minimum for midweek. A two-year Michelin star run in a small Flemish town generates national-level interest , do not assume that being outside Ghent or Antwerp makes the table easier to get. It does not. If you have a fixed date for a special occasion, lock in the reservation before you finalise any other plans around it.
At €€€ with back-to-back Michelin stars in 2024 and 2025, yes , the value case is strong. You are getting confirmed, consistent starred cooking at a price tier below most comparable Flemish tables. For a special occasion where the format fits (a long, structured meal with a focused kitchen), this is a clear yes. If you prefer flexibility or are not committed to a full tasting experience, the format may not suit you , but on pure value grounds, Fleur de Lin delivers more per euro than most alternatives in the region.
Zele itself has limited fine dining alternatives at this level, which is partly what makes Fleur de Lin significant for the area. If you want to compare starred options in the wider East Flanders and Flemish region, Vrijmoed in Gent is the nearest high-profile creative table, operating at €€€€. Boury in Roeselare is worth the drive west for Modern Flemish-French at the leading of the regional tier. For a broader look at what Zele has to offer beyond fine dining, see our Zele experiences guide and Zele wineries guide.
At €€€ with a Michelin star held across two consecutive years, the answer is yes , with one condition: you need to want the format. This is a deliberate, structured dining experience, not a flexible evening out. If Modern Cuisine tasting menus are your preference and you are looking for a special occasion table that does not require a €€€€ budget, Fleur de Lin is the strongest case in East Flanders right now. Compare it against La Durée or Cuchara if you want to spend more and get a different creative direction , but on value, Fleur de Lin has the edge.
| Venue | Cuisine | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fleur de Lin | Modern Cuisine | Michelin 1 Star (2025); Michelin 1 Star (2024) | Hard | — |
| Boury | Modern Frlemish, Creative French | Michelin 3 Star | Unknown | — |
| Comme chez Soi | French - Belgian, Classic Cuisine | Michelin 1 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Vrijmoed | Modern Flemish, Creative | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
| La Durée | French-Belgian, Creative | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
| Cuchara | Modern European, Creative | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
What to weigh when choosing between Fleur de Lin and alternatives.
check the venue's official channels before booking — a Michelin-starred kitchen at the €€€ tier running a structured tasting menu format will almost always accommodate dietary needs with advance notice, but specifics depend on how tightly the menu is composed. Do not assume on arrival. Reach out well ahead of your reservation date.
Fleur de Lin is a destination restaurant, not a neighbourhood drop-in. Lokerenbaan 100 in Zele puts it along the N70 corridor between Ghent and Sint-Niklaas, so plan transport in advance. Chef Jonas Mikkelsen has held a Michelin star in both 2024 and 2025 — that consistency signals a deliberate, composed style rather than a flash-in-the-pan opening. Arrive on time, pace yourself, and expect a multi-course format.
Book at least four to six weeks out, possibly more. A two-year Michelin run at a small restaurant in a low-traffic Flemish municipality means the reservation window punches well above what the town's profile would suggest. If you have a fixed date — a weekend or a special occasion — do not wait.
At the €€€ price tier with back-to-back Michelin stars (2024, 2025), Fleur de Lin sits in a range where the kitchen has to justify the price with precision and consistency — and the award record suggests it does. If you are already making the trip to Zele, there is no case for hedging on format. Go for the full menu.
There are no other Michelin-starred restaurants in Zele itself. If you want comparable fine dining in the region without the drive, Vrijmoed in Ghent is the nearest starred alternative worth considering, and Boury in Roeselare operates at a similar tier for those building a broader Belgian dining itinerary.
At €€€ with Michelin recognition in both 2024 and 2025, Fleur de Lin is priced in line with what a serious one-star kitchen commands in Belgium. The value case is strongest if you are already calibrated to tasting-menu dining and can build the trip around it. If you are ambivalent about the format or unwilling to travel to Zele specifically, a restaurant like Vrijmoed in Ghent will be more convenient at a comparable standard.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
