i. Biography
Bram Candries took over Gillis in Gent, Belgium, in 2017, carrying forward a meat-focused restaurant built on dry-aged European beef, butchery-led cooking, and an Old World wine cellar served without ceremony. The work is not split between product and service: selection, aging, cutting, cooking, and pouring are treated as connected judgments.
Training and Lineage
A family restaurant can train an artisan by repetition rather than spectacle. At Gillis in Gent, Belgium, Bram Candries worked in the family business until 2017, close to the counter, the dining room, and the daily calls that shape consistency. In a house defined by meat, the learning stayed practical: selection, aging, cutting, cooking, and restraint. A takeover tests whether continuity can be tightened without being made louder. In 2017, Candries took over the restaurant, and today he is chef-owner of Gillis, a role held since 2017. The restaurant’s line has stayed clear: European beef handled seriously, butchery treated as craft, and wine presented as pleasure rather than performance.
At Work Now
A restaurant led by owner, butcher, and sommelier can keep the meat program and wine program under one set of standards. At Restaurant Gillis, Bram Candries holds all three roles, so texture, fat, age, and cut are judged alongside acidity, maturity, structure, and generosity in the glass. The result is measured and informal, with knowledge present but not pushed onto the table. Candries puts it plainly: “Ik weet dat we geen vanzelfsprekend restaurant zijn, maar de duurste wijnen kan je alleen krijgen op aanvraag. We leveren kwaliteit en dat kost wel wat. Maar bij ons geen sjiek gedoe, onze aanpak is heel persoonlijk en informeel.” The cellar may contain expensive wines, but the service does not use them as display. Quality is priced accordingly, while the room stays personal and direct. The point is not to flatten the seriousness of the work, but to keep it usable for the guest. “Ik ben een liefhebber. Ik ontwikkelde mijn smaak en kies er de wijnen uit die ik lekker vind.” A wine list built from developed taste has a different register than one built for performance. Candries frames the selection through preference and use: wines he likes, chosen with a palate shaped over time. That gives Gillis its practical conviction.
Signature
Signature dishes include Jersey Dry Aged Rundsvet and Holstein beef tartare.
Recognition
Recognition has followed the clarity of the restaurant’s position. Bram's honors include World's 101 Best Steak Restaurants, ranked No. 19 (2026), Best Steak Restaurant in the Benelux (2026), World's 101 Best Steak Restaurants, first listed (2023), Award of Excellence for Gillis' wine cellar (2023), and White Star (2023). The through-line is meat, wine, and hospitality handled with seriousness and kept close to the guest.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Bram
Where did Bram Candries work before?
Earlier in their career, Bram Candries worked at Gillis.
What recognition has Bram Candries received?
World's 101 Best Steak Restaurants, ranked No. 19 (2026).
