Onglet

In 2019, Onglet (formerly the famous butcher shop of the Schürmann family) opened in the trendy Wyck neighborhood. On the 'front' side, there is a butcher shop where you can visit three days a week for premium cold cuts, homemade grilled specialties, exquisite meat, and generously filled sandwiches. And 'at the back', accessible through the walk-in cooler after ringing the bell at the shop, lies a trendy restaurant where meat takes center stage. Owner and chef Alan Oostrom and his team present a recommended six-course menu, meant to be shared or enjoyed individually. If you want more, there is also the Specials menu. Vegetarian – you wouldn’t necessarily expect it – is definitely an option here. Co-owner, host, and sommelier Levy Smit curates elegant wine pairings. From the moment you step inside, you already know: the evening is guaranteed to be a success. The service is warm, the atmosphere straightforward, and the food, as it turns out, is of unmatched quality. We start with a glass of elegant Bourgogne Rosé Brut from Domaine Vitteaut Alberti, accompanied by fennel salami, sourdough bread from Tongeren, Tomasu soy butter, and homemade lard. So. That’s something you could happily take home with you. The first course is classic veal tartare with tartar sauce, sourdough crisp, Bloody Mary gel, bacon, and sweet-and-sour celery. Nothing to complain about. Next comes a light poultry mousse on puff pastry with green apple, endive, smoked almonds, and blackberry vinaigrette. A beautiful mix of textures, and the fresh Bourgundy Aligoté from Georges Lignier pairs seamlessly with the dish’s mild flavors. Gently baked cod follows, served with guanciale, artichoke cream, dried cherry tomatoes, a spicy artichoke and 'nduja crumble, all drizzled with a rich langoustine sauce. The main course comes in two parts: grilled onglet with veal cheek in balsamic, sweet-and-sour onions, and parmesan sauce, alongside spring turnips, sweet onion cream, and an XO sauce vinaigrette. We say: delicious!

At Onglet, in the heart of the city district 'Wyck', we step through the butcher shop into a beautiful restaurant. Host Levy Smit and chef Alan Oostrom provide excellent hospitality and a distinctive taste experience. In this establishment, we see on he...

Je moet het weten. Zo niet, dan ga je ongetwijfeld met grote pas aan de kleine slagerswinkel in de hippe ambachtswijk Wyck voorbij. De bestverstopte culinaire parel van de stad, én inmiddels ver daarbuiten. Als we aan de gesloten winkeldeur aanbellen, wordt al snel opengedaan en worden we via de koelcel naar de voormalige slagerswerkplaats aan de achterzijde geloodst. Hakblok en gehaktmolen hebben hier een aantal jaren geleden plaatsgemaakt voor een elegant en trendy restaurant, met zowel zitplaatsen aan tafels met krakend wit tafellinnen als aan de bar van de open keuken. Waar vorige jaren vleesgerechten werden afgewisseld met vis- en vegetarische gerechten, ligt de focus nu op vlees met af en toe vis-accenten. Het vaste menu van chef Alan Oostrom bevat zes gerechten om te delen, inclusief een schaaltje wisselende charcuterie. Onze plek aan de marmeren bar met comfortabele okergele barkrukken is een schot in de roos. We zien niet alleen alle bereidingen, maar ervaren ook de relaxte sfeer én proeven van het menu dat de volgende dag wisselt. Vooraf getoaste brioche met de allerlekkerste romige kalfstartaar met kreeftenmayonaise, crème van eierdooier en serranoham. Erbij een frisse Chenin Blanc uit de Franse Anjou geschonken door de jonge en kundige Loek Meijers, rechterhand van sommelier Levy Smit. Daarna huisgemaakte paté van wildzwijn met PX-dressing en knolselderijsalade, procureur met krokante 'nduja-crumble en wijngaardslakken en de meest malse langzaam gegaarde krokante sukade met knapperige rodekool. We breiden het menu uit met de special terrine van eendenlever met truffel en banyuls-gel. Helaas wordt deze vrij koud geserveerd, waardoor smaak en malsheid missen. Intussen in het glas een Chianti Reserva met rijke tonen van cederhout, vanille en rijpe pruimen. Goddelijk!

A cheerful atmosphere fills the former butcher's workshop. Young and old alike find their way to Onglet effortlessly, and the place is packed to the brim. Meat is the main theme of the kitchen, which is hardly surprising since the restaurant is part of Slagerij Onglet, a Maastricht institution for over fifty years. Vegetarians need not worry either: there are plenty of options to choose from. Chef Alan Stroom and his team serve a recommendations arrangement featuring savory dishes meant to be shared. The menu can be supplemented with a selection of specials. Accompanying a glass of sparkling Crémant de Bourgogne Brut Blanc de Blancs from Vitteaut-Alberti comes a generously filled plate of charcuterie. We begin with pulled beef brisket mixed with smoked eel under a cap of herb foam, served in a bowl and saucer. Ingenious. Next, pickled ribeye arrives in paper-thin slices beneath a small salad of spinach and pine nuts. A plateful of delight. Cannelloni follows, filled with deliciously stewed procureur and topped with a crunch of spicy Italian 'nduja. We pair it with a biodynamic unfiltered Clos des Capucins Eminence Grise from 2017. Packed with red fruit, spicy, with a velvety mouthfeel and a long finish. Applause for the mayweed salad with almond and buttermilk dressing, so delicious that we shamelessly ask for another serving. We don't see that on the bill. Not only because of that, but for an evening full of culinary and drinking pleasure, Onglet is a place you will want to return to often.

Don’t doubt it: if you’re standing outside the closed and deserted butcher shop of Onglet after five in the afternoon, you’ve come to the right place. Once we ring the bell, the shop door soon swings open and our host leads us to the heavy cold storage door. We walk through the cold room—the so-called steak passage—and suddenly find ourselves in a lively restaurant housed in the former butchery workshop. Unique, surprising, and just as popular as ever. The à la carte menu is gone. Only a chef’s recommendation menu remains. Chef Alan Oostrom draws his inspiration from the seasons for this curated selection. Elegant dishes served across five courses for sharing. Meat takes center stage, yet thirty percent of the menu is consistently vegetarian. The menu can be extended with rotating specials, cheese, and dessert. Following a small plate of charcuterie comes butter-soft veal tenderloin nestled in savoy cabbage with a mushroom vinaigrette. Paired with a glass of Auxerrois from the local vineyard Domaine Wijngaardsberg. An absolute winner! Next comes sour zult (blood sausage) stuffed with duck liver, caramelized with brown sugar and served with a salted lemon sauce, alongside fried asparagus with crispy lamb sweetbread and wild garlic cream. We round out the meal with short ribs in salsa verde, accompanied by confit potatoes, beluga lentils, and crème fraîche, all kept warm in a small copper pot. Served alongside a glass of ripe Valpolicella Ripassa. For dessert, there’s rhubarb Romanoff. Every dish is refined, thrilling, and delicious. Onglet remains a beloved gem in Limburg’s capital. It’s easy to see why.

The most hidden restaurant in the Netherlands, located on one of Maastricht's busiest shopping streets. Behind a butcher shop lies this Parisian bistro, lit only by natural light from a dormer window. Offering shared dining, with attention paid not only to meat but also to fish and vegetarian options. The atmosphere is relaxed, accompanied by soft jazz music in the background. Young and old alike gather here to sample the culinary creations of chef Alan Stroom. To start, a charcuterie selection: salami with fennel seeds and Parma ham. Followed by thinly sliced onglet with fermented red beet and strawberry. The accompanying nettle bread is flavorful. Paired alongside it is a mineral-driven Chardonnay from Domaine Pietershof, situated just across the border in Belgium. What an opening! A vegetarian omelet with cauliflower and aged cheese foam is joined by white truffle and lava oil. Alongside it sits a plate of glazed veal escalope with mushrooms and gherkin. Another home run, particularly when matched with 'The Butcher Cuvée', a Chardonnay from Burgenland, Austria, by Weingut Schwarz, complete with a fittingly butcher-themed label. Kudos to the service staff, who skillfully walk you through both the food and the wine. The main event is a 'pas de deux' of roasted eggplant with sweet-and-sour cucumber and radish, accompanied by salted lemon and feta jelly. We are completely blown away by the flavor, texture, daring, and creativity. Onglet rules!

New to this guide last year. Onglet is housed in the former butcher shop of the Schürmann family in Wijck, Maastricht, and comprises both a butcher’s shop and a restaurant. It will come as no surprise that meat is the common thread running through this trendy establishment. The restaurant occupies the old workshop, which you enter through a heavy cold room door. Alongside the open kitchen runs a long marble dining bar with comfortable ochre-yellow stools, while you can also take a seat on cozy built-in bench seating or on wooden chairs (which are slightly less comfortable). Restaurant owner Levy Smit says: “During the lockdown, we saw just how beautiful and indispensable hospitality is, yet at the same time, the sector remains highly vulnerable to external influences.” Chef Alan Oostrom and his team serve classic French cuisine, combined with modern techniques and influences. The menu features refined dishes highlighting special cuts of meat – including onglet, which appears on the menu as “Maastricht beefsteak” because many guests assume it’s offal. The kitchen’s pride and joy is the Southbend grill, used to give the meat a pure, unadulterated flavor. You can start with a delicious charcuterie board, followed by dishes that are all portioned like side plates. If you think there’s nothing here for vegetarians, you’d be mistaken: vegetarian options make up 30% of the menu. The service is friendly and professional, and the wines are excellent: “We have a diverse wine list – with Burgundy being our personal favorite – that pairs seamlessly with many of the dishes.” A lovely spot.

We even hesitate when standing in a butcher shop surrounded by cold cuts and homemade sauerbraten. But soon we are ushered through a walk-in cooler door into the 'secret' restaurant, housed in what was only recently the workshop of the renowned Maastricht butcher Schürmann. Wooden chairs glide across the original butcher flooring, while large vintage pendant lights hang from the ceiling. Alongside the open kitchen runs a long marble counter, paired with comfortable ochre-yellow stools. We begin with a sparkling wine from Luxembourg and order sourdough bread with lard alongside eighteen-month aged Serrano ham from the extensive charcuterie selection. Every dish on the menu is designed for sharing, which is exactly what we do. While meat remains at the heart of this former butcher shop, the menu also features exciting seafood pairings and trendy vegetarian dishes. We kick things off with smashed langoustines served with pancetta and a lemongrass sauce. This is followed by dry-aged beef cheek with anise mushrooms, pan juices, and a crisp garden salad. The pork rib roast with string beans and a rich veal tongue sauce is equally delicious and intensely flavored. The cheese selection is also noteworthy, featuring a coastal Belgian white mold and Friese Tjonger. Unfortunately, the sangria semifreddo falls short due to noticeable ice crystals. That said, it was visually stunning nonetheless. To accompany these dishes, we first enjoy an Auxerrois from nearby Ulestraten, followed later by a Spanish wine from Ramon Bilbao in La Rioja. It’s soft and smooth, offering notes of ripe red fruit and impressive vanilla undertones. Maastricht has gained another wonderful 'hidden' gem in every sense. Welcome to Lekker!