On a mild October afternoon we set off in search of something wholesome to absolve ourselves of the previous night’s indulgences. Down a quiet street in the centre of Antwerp, our prayers are answered in the form of Native: a homely neighbourhood restaurant with a strong focus on local, seasonal and natural produce.
It’s a Saturday and Native is quietly buzzing with groups of friends and couples. There’s a lot of chatter and all of the tables are full, but it somehow the atmosphere still feels very calm. Through a glass partition at the back of the restaurant, the kitchen team is hard at work, assembling dishes from the short but well curated menu. We’re greeted by co-owner Jimmy, equally relaxed and dressed in an on-brand t-shirt advertising a past event run by the Native team.
Native was founded by chef Ben in 2013, and Jimmy joined as a co-owner four years later. The two have worked together over the years to come up with what they describe as a “vegetable-first” menu – dishes that make fresh, local vegetables the main event rather than just an accompaniment.
The menu at Native is deliberately minimal, focussing on just a handful of speciality dishes and paired wines. The restaurant ordinarily runs two services – breakfast and lunch – but still manages to create a uniquely evening feel during the day; almost every table was enjoying a glass of wine alongside their lunch dishes. On Fridays, service continues into the evening where a single dish is served to all, and they’ve just started trialling apéro on Thursdays.
Inclusivity is an important part of the ethos behind Native. It’s not exclusively a vegan or vegetarian restaurant, but rather a place where everyone can visit and find something they like to eat on the menu.
We opt for two of the signature brioches: the ‘What She Order’ with grilled chicken, hummus, lettuce and walnuts; and the – wait for it – ‘Shit’s on Fire Yo’ with shiitake mushrooms, broccoli, sesame, soy sauce and pesto. Jimmy insists that we try the house speciality and staple on the menu since the beginning: the ‘Going Native’ salad of caramelised pumpkin, quinoa, goat’s cheese and lettuce. We can see what the fuss is about; the ingredients are simple but the warmth and sweetness of the cooked pumpkin next to the cream of the goat’s cheese is perfection.
And with the brioches it’s the freshness of the veg that elevates the taste; the tang of the broccoli and earthiness of the mushrooms together, and the nuttiness of the hummus and walnuts as the key flavour, accompanied by the chicken.
Each dish comes with a wine pairing suggestion and we dutifully obey, ordering the Leoni Rosso natural wine. It’s served very chilled – not necessarily according to the serving instructions but because that’s the way the owners like to drink it.
This is a running theme throughout Native’s menu; the dishes are combinations that Ben and Jimmy would themselves enjoy. Likewise the drinks: you won’t find brown beer on the menu as they’re not fans, but you will find a list of a select few wines, beers (almost exclusively Belgian craft varieties), a single cocktail (a Negroni of course), and an impressive list of exotic soft drinks, some of which we haven’t even heard of (cacao fruit juice?).
It’s this, in part, that makes dining at Native feel like a personal experience; you’re enjoying what the owners enjoy, and fortunately they have great taste. But the restaurant itself also gives the feeling of having dinner at someone’s house. This, Jimmy explains to us, is possibly because the building used to be a traditional Belgian house and many of the original features remain today.
More than that, it transpires that the building used to house a community well where nearby families came to collect their water. As Jimmy tells us about the events run by the Native team – evenings hosted in partnership with other local independent businesses, summer dinners set up on one long dining table on the street – it’s too easy to draw parallels between the community spirit of the past and the present.
Perhaps Native is so loved by locals because it feels authentic and unpretentious. Its owners have a very clear vision of what they like, but it’s not pushy; they want you to find something you like too. While pointing out that the interior still bears some of the flaws of the building’s past, Jimmy references the Japanese philosophy of “wabi-sabi”: finding beauty in imperfection. Native isn’t about creating the perfect, polished dining experience, but rather creating a space where its guests feel welcome, relaxed, and can enjoy simple, honest food.
We ate
Going Native salad: caramelised pumpkin, goat’s cheese, quinoa – 17.5eur
Shit’s On Fire Yo: shiitake mushrooms, broccoli, soy, pesto, brioche bun – 15eur
What She Order: chicken, hummus, walnuts, brioche bun – 16eur
We drank
Leoni Rosso (Sangiovese) wine, served chilled – 6eur per glass
This was a press visit – all opinions are our own
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