‘T Oud Clooster

The wife did some research to find a restaurant on our first night in Ghent and she found this place. She made reservations immediately to ensure that we had a spot. Ultimately it was a good idea that she did. We weren’t too familiar with the winding streets of Ghent yet, but we made it here pretty easy and it was close enough to our hotel for us to walk there in no time.
Our first challenge came when we entered where we thought was the main door and the wife quickly closed the door as she was flanked by diners on either side of her. The main entrance is in a slight alcove off the street and up a few stairs. We assessed the situation and we figured that it must be the entrance. Some people that were leaving told us to just turn right upon inside to get to the bar area, which also included the waiting/​reception area. So we make it inside and we were greeted somewhat. We were still getting used to this Belgium hospitality, but we also felt like we were bothering people with our presence. At this point, it was great that we had a reservation because they probably wouldn’t had seated us. The tables are small and quite cramped but we were able to be seated and order quickly. The décor is definitely eclectic with various old religious artifacts and presumably empty bottles of booze on the shelves. It felt like an antique shop a bit. The ambience is dark with plenty of candles providing extra light. The first beer that I ordered was not available, so I got my second option at least, and the wife joined along. I ordered the traditional Flemish beef stew while the wife got a fish dish. Drinks and food came out quickly again and the portions were generous, especially the stew. The stew was particularly good and the sauce really hit the spot for me. I was definitely stuffed when I left. It was later in the evening, so we figured that we would get the check once done and we indicated no dessert. We ultimately had to ask for our bill after some time. So the food was definitely the highlight of our visit, and we just chalked up the service to how things are locally. It was our second or third meal in Belgium so we were still getting used to the customs here and beginning to set expectations. The final conclusion and result is a great traditional Flemish meal and I would return.

My wife and I spent a day /​night in Ghent and had our dinner here. The atmosphere is really cool as it is set in a former nunnery. We had a candlelit dinner inside, and there were various items from the old nunnery around the interior. There is an outdoor courtyard option as well. We only speak English, and the server was very accommodating (even though it was his second language), and he was very helpful accommodating my wife’s wheat allergy. While I could not find one online, they did have an English translated menu. I had the GARNAALKROKETTEN which was delicious. I highly recommend.

Wonderful lunch here on Monday! We visited Bruges this past weekend and decided to make a few hour stop in Ghent on our way back to Brussels airport. After hitting the major attractions we were starving and had just enough time for a quick lunch before catching our train.
Despite arriving 20 minutes before closing time, the server assured us that they would be happy to serve us and promptly took us to a table outside. We settled on drinks and ordered the Chicken Pita and the Brochette Roquefort for our dishes. Less than 15 minutes later we were devouring our food, which definitely exceeded expectations. My chicken was seasoned with a curry mix of sorts and I was able to build my own pita with a variety of vegetables and two different kinds of sauce. J’s brochette was a grilled kebab of pork served with a salad and a very light, but flavourful Roquefort sauce. It was grilled to order and tasted great. Our mains came with a crispy and delicious heaping of fries. Very enjoyable.
As we were wrapping up the server called a taxi on our behalf and we made it to the station with 10 minutes to spare! We enjoyed a tasty lunch here and received excellent service. Highly recommend!

Managed to score a spot at the bar without reservations. Kind of unheard of in Belgium, so make your reservations! The menu is in Dutch, so I made use of my phone to translate what I should order. The wait staff are kind though and will offer to translate for you if you need help.
I ordered the Brochette Roquefort, and it was «lick your fingers» good. The bf ordered another delicious dish, which I can’t recall, but I do remember both of us not wanting to share AND on top of that, we devoured every single bite of these enormous portions. All those fries were perfect for wiping up the sauce!
A fantastic meal in Ghent ~ we’d go again if we were in that part of the world again.

Excellent little restaurant just nearby the city center. My wife had a goat cheese salad that she loved, and I had the beef and pork kabob that was also very good. Service was very polite and friendly.

This place is classy and cool! The fact that the food was fantastic was the icing on the cake. Excellent background music and great atmosphere and ambiance. If you want good Belgian /​Flemish food come here. The Belgians do. And you can’t get a better beer selection. Looking forward to coming back and trying more.

We went to t’ Oud Clooster for the first time tonight and loved it. We went early but had reserved a table and were glad we had done so. There are only five tables and a few bar stools inside (although there may be a separate inside area we didn’t see), along with an outdoors seating area, which was a little chilly for our taste tonight. The place is old and atmospheric, comparable to a nice pub in the UK, but with absolutely delicious Belgian food. We don’t speak Dutch but the very nice server translated the menu for us. My husband got a beef and beer stew, which he loved, and I got a beef brochette in a spicy tomato-​based sauce (I don’t know what it’s called, but it’s the first thing on the dinner menu). Both came with large, tasty salads and a big helping of fries and mayonnaise. At 6:30 or 7 it was quiet and easy to have a conversation. All the other tables had been reserved and filled up while we were there (and this was a Monday night). This is definitely one of the best places we’ve found in Ghent. We will be back.

Jardin très sympa. Personnel agréable. Service assez rapide. Mais n’espérez pas une nourriture de qualité particulière. Rapport qualité-​prix moyen. Quantités raisonnables.

I cannot say enough amazing things about ‘t Oud Clooster. As my travel partner said, «one of my top 5 meals of all time.»
We had been recommended this place for dinner by our host, and called to make a reservation about an hour before we got there (on a Thursday). They had space for us, but were fairly full throughout our time there — they don’t have many tables, so I would recommend calling ahead. The restaurant is in a former monastery, and is really interestingly decorated along that theme.
The menu is entirely in Dutch, but we could figure out most of it. Even so, our waiter very graciously offered to translate all of the appetizers and entrees into English for us — and I’m very thankful, because we ended up changing our orders after that! Unfortunately, I don’t know the Dutch names of the dishes we got, so you may need to ask because I would recommend them all.
We ordered a starter of meatballs with mustard dipping sauce, which came out quickly and very warm. The meatballs were mixed with some sort of cream or cheese, so were very soft — the texture was a bit unexpected, but they were very good. I also ordered a jardin bleu tea, which was a floral tea — also very good, and came with two sweets.
The entrees though… the entrees were amazing. The first two menu items are both chicken brochettes (on skewers): one comes with a slightly spicy tomato sauce (which is what I got), and one with a cream sauce.
This. Dish. Was. Incredible. It came fully loaded with the most amazing sauce I have ever tasted. I would recommend this in a heartbeat, oh man. You NEED to try this. Seriously. So. Good.
My friend ordered their beef stew-​type dish, which was also really good, although I preferred mine. Both plates came just absolutely loaded with the main dish, but also included a salad and fries. The fries were combined for us and just came out in one bowl, which was fine.
Anyway, amazingggg. We didn’t have room for dessert, although they had a few options. They also had a specials board, which I think changes fairly frequently. There was a bar and many drink options, we just had one of their Belgian beers that they had on tap. Prices are pretty reasonable, between € 10-​€ 20 per entrée (which includes the salad and fries).
Seriously, if you’re reading this review, you need to check this place out.