Jacqueline

Name: Jacqueline
Address: Van Colenstraat 8, 2530 Boechout, Belgium, boechout, be

restaurant

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Automatically translated from DutchTranslated by Google

Core concept and our values

Jacqueline is the restaurant of Evelien Swiers and Raf Rombouts, located in a former butcher shop in the center of Boechout and named after Evelien's grandmother. The building has largely remained in its original state: white subway tiles, meat hooks, and a marble refrigerated counter, behind which the open kitchen is now situated. Evelien, a self-taught chef, is in the kitchen; Raf welcomes guests in the dining room and guides the wines. The house philosophy is as simple as it is consistent: honest and pure cuisine, made with products infused with passion, and prepared with that same passion and pride. The scale remains deliberately small and intimate, with a fresh dining room at the back and a garden for the summer.

Special offering and specialities

The menu consists of a single four- or five-course menu that changes with the seasons. Think of tomato with verbena, veal entrecote with aubergine and courgette, and white chocolate with cherries, finished or complemented by cheeses from Van Tricht. The cuisine is generous and unpretentious: natural dishes in which the product speaks for itself. The wine list strikes a balance between established favorites and the new generation, ranging from classic Bordeaux and refined Burgundy to lively, fruity natural wines. The whisky cellar is a standout feature: an extensive selection of single malts, with the option to pair the entire menu with matching whiskies, right down to the cheese. This makes Jacqueline a rarity in the Belgian culinary landscape.

Impact on the gastronomic ecosystem

Jacqueline demonstrates that fine dining is not tied to the city. By breathing new life into a former butcher shop on a village street in Boechout, while respecting the building's past, the restaurant anchors itself in the location and its history. The deliberately small scale is a choice for attention: to the product, to the guest, and to the people who produce the products. Moreover, the fact that a self-taught chef runs the kitchen here proves that craftsmanship grows from dedication, not from titles. For Boechout and the southern outskirts of Antwerp, Jacqueline is an address that teaches people to look anew at what a village restaurant can be: rooted, honest, and uncompromising on the plate.

Partnerships and collaborations

Jacqueline's menu names its producers. The vegetables come from the farmers of De Volle Grond, Mediterranean organic products find their way to the kitchen via The Food Hub, and the saffron comes from Belgian Saffron. The cheeses are from Van Tricht, the Antwerp affineur who knows better than anyone how to bring cheese to the table at its best, and the poultry comes from houses such as Maison Garat. This care is also extended to the glass, with winemakers ranging from classic to natural and a whisky selection curated with the eyes of connoisseurs. These are all relationships based on the same principle: products filled with passion deserve a kitchen that does something with them.