Nebo is a modern gastronomic restaurant located in the New South district of Antwerp in Belgium. While the area is still developing, Nebo has quickly positioned itself as a destination restaurant, attracting a diverse, local and international clientele. Led by Belgian chef Dimitri de Koninck, deeply rooted in classical French cooking and shaped by Japanese influences, Nebo delivers a refined yet warm dining experience where product quality, precision, and atmosphere come together seamlessly.

Concept & Location

The name “Nebo” translates to “heaven” in Croatian. It was inspired during a period when Chef and Owner Dimitri de Koninck resided in Croatia for several months, shortly before the pandemic. At that time, he was envisioning the possibility of opening his own restaurant one day. Dimitri was raised in his father’s restaurant, La Luna, which means “moon” in Italian. While sitting on a breakwater in Rijeka at sunset, he realized that the word “Nebo” perfectly embodied the emotion he aspired to convey in his future establishment. Although he understood early on that his restaurant would mark a new chapter of independence rather than being a direct continuation of his father’s La Luna, it felt fitting to choose the name Nebo as an homage to his father’s legacy.

The restaurant is situated in Antwerp’s New South, a dynamic district still in development but clearly positioned for future growth. While other parts of the city have become increasingly saturated with dining options, New South offers valuable space, enhanced accessibility, and promising long-term potential. The interior design of Nebo embodies the kitchen’s philosophy: modern, refined, and thoughtfully executed. Through the use of high-quality materials, warm earthy hues, and subtle lighting, the space creates an intimate and welcoming atmosphere where guests feel truly at ease.

Particular attention has been paid to acoustics and layout. Each table forms its own cocoon, allowing guests to enjoy privacy without losing the sense of energy in the room. Lighting is carefully designed to enhance this effect, and changes automatically throughout the service. Art plays a significant role in defining Nebo’s identity. All artworks in the restaurant are by Belgian artist Nils Vercaeren, whose pieces serve as visual anchors throughout the space. Weekly fresh flower arrangements and a big tree at the entrance soften the industrial elements, adding warmth and hospitality. In the private dining room, the palette becomes darker and more dramatic, allowing the wine cabinet and artwork to serve as focal points.

While the restaurant started with only à la carte options, nowadays it is also possible to eat a full experience menu. The restaurant continues to offer an à la carte menu, mainly catering to returning guests and regulars. To keep the experience fresh and engaging, the tasting menu changes every five to six weeks, encouraging guests to rediscover Nebo time and again.

The Chef & The Team

Founding father and culinary mastermind behind Nebo is Belgian chef Dimitri de Koninck. After studying at Ter Duinen, one of Belgium’s most respected culinary schools, he spent seven years working in his father’s restaurant La Luna in Antwerp. He later stepped away from the hospitality industry for eight years, exploring entirely different fields such as car sales, bathroom design, and swimming pool construction. While this period put his culinary career temporarily on hold, it equipped him with valuable technical and entrepreneurial skills that would later prove essential when opening his own restaurant. Eventually, the pull of the kitchen became impossible to ignore. He returned to hospitality with renewed conviction, gaining experience in several establishments before deciding the time was right to open his own restaurant. Nebo became that long-awaited personal project.

The kitchen team currently consists of three chefs including Dimitri, with an additional team member joining soon. The front-of-house team is compact, young, all female and highly engaged. The team is led by Michelle Gielens, the girlfriend of the chef, who is also sommelier. Both kitchen and service operate as one unit, assisting each other whenever needed. This sense of unity is essential to Nebo’s atmosphere. There is no rigid hierarchy, only shared responsibility and pride.

Gastronomy

At its heart, Nebo is a product-driven kitchen. Financial considerations never outweigh the importance of quality. The chef does not cook to maximise profit, but to express his craft at the highest possible level. And this is visible in the amount of high-quality products that are served in every menu.

The culinary identity of Nebo is best described as modern French cuisine with Japanese influences. The foundation lies firmly in classical French techniques, but many dishes are subtly reinterpreted through elements drawn from Japanese cuisine. A current example is wild turbot, inspired by the classic sole Véronique. While the reference remains French, the execution introduces a sake beurre blanc and red yuzu kosho, resulting in a dish that feels both familiar and contemporary. The Japanese influence is not accidental. It stems from the chef’s upbringing. His father was one of the pioneers of fusion cuisine in Belgium, opening the country’s first fusion restaurant years ago. In the early days of Nebo, this influence was clearly recognisable. Over time, however, the chef developed a distinct culinary voice of his own. Not every dish contains Asian influences. Some plates remain purely classical, such as milk-fed pig with peas and green asparagus. The philosophy is clear: Japanese elements are applied only when they enhance the dish. That said, certain preparations, most notably the signature tuna, are unmistakably Asian in character and have become an integral part of Nebo’s identity.

The chef’s cooking technique has evolved significantly over the years. Everything is prepared à la minute in pans or steamers at carefully controlled temperatures. Precision is key. Turbot, for instance, is lightly cured according to its thickness, gently steamed at 65°C, finished with kombu butter, and only portioned at the very last moment. The goal is to preserve moisture, texture, and purity of flavour. Ingredient sourcing has become increasingly selective over the years. The chef works with multiple fish suppliers depending on the season, ensuring access to the best available product at any given time. Meat comes from trusted specialists, while poultry and game are sourced through long-standing Brussels market suppliers.

Vegetables are primarily sourced through specialised suppliers in Belgium but also abroad, while select Japanese ingredients are imported through dedicated distributors in Germany. Compromise is never an option, if the right product is unavailable, it simply does not appear on the menu.

Signature products include turbot, bluefin tuna, and caviar. The signature tuna dish of de Koninck has become iconic. Akami tuna, accompanied by a refreshing salad of Noah cucumber, salty herbs, and a dressing made with rice wine vinegar, coriander oil, and wasabi oil. This combination achieves an excellent balance. The dish is finished with a sesame cracker and cucumber foam. Additionally, crystal bread is served separately with sea urchin cream, otoro tuna, sake-washed ikura trout roe, and daikon.

Perfectly cooked wild turbot, accompanied by morels stuffed with a turbot farce. The dish features a cauliflower emulsion, tender cauliflower florets, and a delicate dashi jus infused with black winter truffle. A second sauce of rich vin jaune jus complements the flavours. The turbot is finished with a light foam of black winter truffle, adding an elegant aromatic touch.

The pigeon was prepared classic-style on the carcass, then filleted and lacquered with honey and sancho. The jus, made from the remaining parts of the pigeon, includes mirin and sake, adding a beautiful extra umami note. As garnish, there is kale, kale cream, crunchy kale, and a white parsnip cream.

Crêpes Suzette

Service And Wine

Service at Nebo can best be described as relaxed yet refined. The team adapts their approach to each table, reading guests carefully to determine how much interaction or explanation is desired. The goal is to make guests feel welcome and at home, without becoming overly informal.

Wine plays an essential supporting role in the experience. Instead of focusing on prestigious labels, the sommelier Michelle Gielens curates pairings based purely on harmony with the dishes. The cellar holds around 3,000 bottles and roughly 280 references, with a strong focus on Italy and the New World, complemented by a selection of classic French names.

Why Go

Dining at Nebo is about more than just food. It is about balance: between elegance and comfort, precision and warmth, tradition and evolution. Guests leave not only remembering what they ate, but how they felt: relaxed, engaged, and genuinely welcomed. Nebo offers a dining experience that feels personal, thoughtful, and deeply rooted in the chef’s journey, one that continues to evolve with each new menu.