4 - Recognised
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Most of what the kitchen serves is grown on the estate itself, on beds worked without chemical fertilisers or pesticides, with the remaining ingredients bought from producers in the surrounding area. Because the restaurant is fed by its own harvest, the buffet is rebuilt each day around what has just been picked.
Waste is addressed from several directions: the buffet is sold by weight so guests take only what they will eat, surplus leaves through Too Good To Go, vegetables are lacto fermented to extend the harvest, and irrigation water is held in retention basins and released automatically according to the weather.
The estate runs as a cooperative, has signed La Hulpe's inclusion charter for extracurricular activities, hosts workshops for children and adults, and recruits volunteers from the area. Vegetables are the structural base of the menu rather than a side. The restaurant is listed in the We're Smart Green Guide with one radish, and reached the finals of the Province of Walloon Brabant's Trophées Incidences in 2020.
The impact dimensions
Low waste & circular practices✓
Sustainable animal products✓
The restaurant sits on a six hectare cooperative market garden that supplies the majority of its vegetables.
The estate covers nearly six hectares at La Hulpe with around two hectares in diverse vegetable production. The restaurant's own gardening page states that vegetables, flowers and herbs are grown by an in house market gardening team working closely with the kitchen.
L'Avenir reported in 2020 that the restaurant drew over 60 per cent of its vegetables from the farm, with a stated target of 95 per cent, and that the remaining ingredients came from committed local producers nearby. The We're Smart Green Guide lists the six hectare cooperative farm, and the restaurant's current site confirms the kitchen garden feeds the buffet daily.
The buffet changes daily with the season and the kitchen garden's harvest.
Seasonality is structural rather than decorative because the kitchen is supplied by the beds beside it. The restaurant's own site states that the buffet changes daily and showcases the produce of the kitchen garden, with freshness and seasonality framed as the organising idea.
L'Avenir reported in 2020 that lacto fermentation of the farm's vegetables extends their availability through the year, confirming that the kitchen's supply is harvest bound and that seasonal gaps are managed deliberately.
The buffet is sold by weight, vegetables are fermented to extend availability, and irrigation is climate-responsive.
Food waste is addressed across multiple points. The buffet is sold by weight and the restaurant's own site frames this explicitly as taking only the right amount for considered consumption. A Too Good To Go listing offers surplus surprise boxes, and L'Avenir reported a lacto fermentation project run specifically to extend the shelf life of the farm's vegetables.
Water management is named with precision: retention basins together with electronically controlled valves that adjust irrigation automatically to real time climate conditions. Growing practice is free of chemical fertilisers and pesticides, with nettle extract used instead.
Ingredients not grown on the estate come from producers in the surrounding area.
Meat and fish are served and are referenced in editorial coverage. The We're Smart Green Guide describes honest dishes with fish or meat alongside vegetables. L'Avenir reported that ingredients not grown on the estate come from committed local producers nearby.
The estate has signed La Hulpe's inclusion charter for extracurricular activities and hosts education programmes for children and adult volunteers.
The estate runs as a cooperative and has signed La Hulpe's inclusion charter for extracurricular activities, a named and verifiable commitment. The restaurant hosts education programmes including holiday courses and one-off nature activities for children and training for adults, and recruits volunteers from La Hulpe and the wider Brussels area.
Independent coverage corroborates the education programme, including the use of Ouessant sheep for teaching. The estate reached the finals of the Province of Walloon Brabant's Trophées Incidences in 2020 in the enterprise category, recognising its social engagement.
Vegetables are the structural foundation of most dishes; the buffet is at least two-thirds plant-based by the We're Smart Green Guide definition.
Vegetables are the structural foundation of the offer, not an accompaniment. The We're Smart Green Guide lists the restaurant and describes honest dishes, both vegetarian and with fish or meat, and always with a lot of vegetables to give taste and colour; inclusion in that guide requires a menu of at least two-thirds fruit and vegetables.
The restaurant's own site presents the buffet as a showcase for the kitchen garden, and L'Avenir reported an offer that is 80 per cent vegetarian. Brussels' Kitchen described lunch dishes composed overwhelmingly of vegetables.
Sourcing signals
✓
Direct named-farm sourcing
The restaurant is fed by its own market garden on a nearly six hectare cooperative estate.
The named producer is the restaurant's own on site market garden at Les Terres D'ici.
Bread is baked daily on site, vegetables are lacto fermented, and soups and tarts are made in house.
