Over his long career, Vincent Van Duysen had been approached many times to work on a hotel, but it wasn’t until Mouche Van Hool, the owner of the soigné Hotel Julien, came knocking for help on her sophomore project that the Belgian architect finally found his match.
As it turns out, the 19th-century Military Hospital and Augustinian convent in the city’s Green Quarter development was an ideal canvas for his trademark blend of feathery light aesthetics and gently coloured palette. Five separate buildings – including the nuns’ old private chapel and living quarters – and three walled gardens have been stitched together into a 44-room cloistered retreat. Absurdly high ceilings, restored floor tiles, and oversized arched windows form an impressively lofty backdrop that Van Duysen dresses with Flos lamps, deeply set black leather sofas, and low-slung tables.
The spa, meanwhile, is stocked with Bamford products, but the hotel’s tent-pole attraction is the restaurant where chef Nick Bril orchestrates a mod menu that includes roasted brill paired with beurre noisette, and roasted local vegetables glazed with fermented bean sauce.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
Jules Bordetstraat 5
-
Tiffany & Co nods to its theatrical history with a surreal new campaignTiffany & Co campaign ‘With Love, Since 1837’ sees Dan Tobin Smith and set designer Rachel Thomas create an offbeat set
-
Celine’s new fragrance Zou Zou is inspired by 1960s heroinesCeline debuts a new fragrance, Zou Zou, inspired by Hedi Slimane’s obsession with 1960s youth culture
-
Bar Spero, in Washington DC, nods to the playful nature of Spanish cuisineBar Spero is a Spanish seafood bar and grill designed by Streetsense and led by chef Johnny Spero
-
Bar Magritte in Brussels is the world’s only bar dedicated to the Belgian Surrealist artistBar Magritte, located inside Hotel Amigo in Brussels, offers expert mixology and René Magritte’s inimitable quirkiness
-
Fine dining and environmentally friendly shelters define La Roseraie ModaveChef Marie Trignon’s La Roseraie Modave adds these cabin-style shelters to its acclaimed dining offering, on the edge of the Ardennes in Belgium
-
Hotel August offers a modern-day sanctuary in Antwerp's Green DistrictHotel August is a former Augustinian convent quirkily reimagined by Belgian architect Vincent Van Duysen
-
La Réserve, Knokke’s grand dame of hospitality, is back with a bangLa Réserve in Knokke launches its luxurious redesign by Glenn Sestig, bringing the iconic Belgian hotel icon into the 21st century
-
Brussels' Mix Hotel opens in the former headquarters of La Royale BelgeFor the new Mix Hotel, Lionel Jadot completed the interior overhaul of the former headquarters of La Royale Belge in Brussels
-
Villa One at the One & Only Palmilla — Los Cabos, Mexico -
Martim — Wroclaw, Poland -
Tattersalls Hotel — Armidale, Australia
