Newcomer in Antwerp: the pure cuisine of restaurant Essenz (Antwerp)
In restaurant Essenz, thirty-somethings Joris and Benthe want to bring the essence of cooking to the plate. No flakes of excess creams, but pure products, what you see is what you eat.
Johan van Baelen
Essenz has just taken the place of the Italian restaurant Blanconero in Kronenburgstraat. “As the name suggests, the interior was completely finished in black and white tones,” says Joris Hoefkens, who took on the renovation together with his spouses Benthe Vande Woenstine. “We have removed the mirrors from the walls and by repainting we have mainly tried to make things warmer.”
The result is a restaurant with enough space to have a nice dinner. “Twenty-five people is about the maximum we can receive. We also do everything with the two of us,” says Joris, who sets an example as a chef, from home-baked sandwiches to desserts.
experience
Joris (33) and Benthe (34) have enough experience in between to take the plunge. Benthe worked for several years in the two-star restaurant Nuance. After that she had flexi-jobs in the businesses where Joris was working. Joris himself learned the trade at Hofke van Bazel, Het Hof van Cleve, also Nuance and Faim in Kontich. He was a cook at Verso Café.
In Essenz, Joris wants to bring Belgian-French product cuisine with an oriental twist. “I don’t cook too hard, but people should of course go home satisfied. They can if they take one of the three appetizers (between 19 and 23 euros) and choose from four (from 25 to 34 euros) and separate desserts.”
“If you want it more lavish, you can choose a menu of four courses (60 euros or 50 for the vegetarian alternative). In the first month it is a mix of a carpaccio and a fried langoustine with radish, nori (seaweed, ed.) and Japanese rice. This is followed by sea bass with celeriac and anchovy gravy, grilled venison fillet with parsnips and a potato preparation of a wagyu alternative.” The chef concludes with conference pears, cheesecake and chocolate.
www.resto-essenz.be Kronenburgstraat 35, 2000 Antwerp