In Mouscron, tucked away in a discreet, unassuming building along a row of aligned houses, one finds a change of scenery, reminiscent of "scenes from provincial life". But beware! This is not the drowsy, overfed province often caricatured by urban intellectuals – those self-appointed tastemakers who struggle between restlessness and haste, between flashy, hollow kitchen celebrities and ephemeral culinary mirages that rise and fall like soufflés.

Here, in the hands of a young chef, the table once again becomes that dreamlike space where an epicurean no longer needs to close their eyes to savour every moment. True to this hedonistic vision, Vugo by Jérôme Axters brilliantly reconciles purity and generosity, talent and mastery.

The dining room unfolds in several atmospheres. Elongated in shape, it first opens onto a rounded bar, followed by a row of tables, and then leads to a bright space overlooking a charming garden. The decorative elements subtly fade into the background, leaving only a soft and immersive impression. This minimalist path disappears entirely once the plates arrive.

Jérôme Axters is a chef of great talent. His experience, honed and refined at Château du Mylord (2*) and Hof van Cleve (3*) under Peter Goossens, results in a brilliant cuisine: colours, spices, cooking techniques, ingredients, plating – everything is meticulously executed. A testament to his refined and thoughtful approach can be found in dishes like salmon trout with horseradish, trout roe, and leek sorbet, Skrei with young onion, confit lemon, and a fish bone vermouth jus, half-cooked scallop with soybeans, lace tuile, daikon, and soy sorbet, langoustine with bacon, cauliflower, eryngii mushrooms, and miso jus, monkfish with shellfish, potato mousseline, young carrot, spinach, and watercress jus, Iberian solomillo with chorizo, octopus, pointed cabbage, and fregola sarda, Black Angus beef fillet with beef cheek, cannelloni, celeriac, and caramelised garlic jus, pomelo with pineapple broth, Italian meringue, lemongrass, shiso, and coconut sorbet, and 70% Guanaja chocolate with banana, caramel, marshmallow, and peanut ice cream.

Jérôme Axters speaks clearly: his cuisine is pure, comprehensible, and remarkable. Let’s go with an open mind, with joy, and without wasting time.

LD