The story
Matil, at Hoogzij 7 in Genk, Belgium, is a seasonal kitchen that earned 12 points from Gault&Millau in 2026. Chefs Johan and Umi Cuypers cook in the spirit of their great-grandmother Mathilde, and the menu follows what the garden and local farms produce.
Herbs and vegetables come from the kitchen garden in Heempark, just behind the restaurant. The rest is sourced from nearby farmers and artisans, many of them organic. The menu changes with the harvest.
The tasting menu runs three, four or five courses and stays vegetarian. Le Fooding described ravioli filled with ricotta and garden cavolo nero in a wild mushroom broth, followed by a blood orange rice pudding. The dining room is light-filled, with polished concrete and terracotta walls.
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History
Like father, like son… and my, what a great-grandmother! Matil, as she was affectionately known, lives on through chefs Johan and Umi Cuypers, who channel her spirit in their light-filled pavilion in Heempark. Between polished concrete and terra cotta walls, the duo carries forward her radical take on seasonality, championing ultra-local sourcing (vegetables from Mangelmoes farm, herbs straight from the garden), in a three-, four- or five-course vegetarian tasting menu. Take the other evening: roasted yellow beets with anchovy salsa, puffed buckwheat and purslane; Alouette potato pommes soufflés, lifted with a zing of preserved lemon and served with maple samara and chervil “country caviar”; ravioli stuffed with ricotta and cavolo nero from the garden, bathed in a deep wild mushroom broth, alongside creamy polenta and truffle espuma; and to finish, a sabayon-style blood orange rice pudding. All enjoyed while watching Umi prepare next week’s fermented kale in the kitchen… Safe to say, we’ll be back – Grandma or not! · Helmut Biscotti
At Restaurant Matil, Johan and Umi Cuypers build upon the legacy of their great-grandmother. Today, father and son translate that tradition into a contemporary cuisine, driven by seasonal produce from their own garden and from local producers...
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