1238 Restaurant
Pascal Duvivier
Named after the year of the venerable monastery’s foundation, the Botanic’s stargazing 1238 Restaurant is set in a perfectly peerless location: taking up an entire façade of the inner courtyard of the Monastery Garden, a modern conservatory provides an impeccable architectural foil for the Botanic’s historic building fabric. The garden’s serenity adds to the unruffled dining experience and peaceful ambience, while the elegant interior exudes a sense of restrained luxury.
The boundary between inner and outer worlds is blurred …
It’s the heart of the Botanic.
In a bustling city centre.
Awards & Accolades
The Botanic Taste
Light, timeless and stylish, dishes are based on the classic foundations of French and Belgian cuisine. The focus on fresh, local ingredients prepared with an expert’s understatement results in covetable options such as crab with double cream, blackcurrant leaf vinegar and chilled nori bouillon – an evocation of the North Sea with international panache and a soupçon of the countryside that surrounds Antwerp.
The Tastemaker
Pascal Duvivier can’t remember a time when he wasn’t in love with the culinary arts. Amsterdam born and bred, he honed his craft as a sous-chef at the city’s award-winning Restaurant Bridges. Today the passionate chef presides over the Botanic’s 1238 Restaurant. Although Duvivier’s signature dish is Imperial Heritage Caviar with egg yolk, crème fraîche, parsley and creamy potatoes, he’s also rather partial to a tasty langoustine or two! 1238 is where team spirit combines with fresh, locally sourced ingredients to bring beautifully curated and tasty treats to the table.
‘Being part of a beautiful and inspiring location combined with great food and even greater people: that’s 1238.’
Pascal Duvivier
The Tastemaker
Pascal Duvivier can’t remember a time when he wasn’t in love with the culinary arts. Amsterdam born and bred, he honed his craft as a sous-chef at the city’s award-winning Restaurant Bridges. Today the passionate chef presides over the Botanic’s 1238 Restaurant. Although Duvivier’s signature dish is Imperial Heritage Caviar with egg yolk, crème fraîche, parsley and creamy potatoes, he’s also rather partial to a tasty langoustine or two! 1238 is where team spirit combines with fresh, locally sourced ingredients to bring beautifully curated and tasty treats to the table.
‘Being part of a beautiful and inspiring location combined with great food and even greater people: that’s 1238.’
Pascal Duvivier
Stargazing 1238
Philosophy
Named after the year it all began – 1238 Restaurant blends culinary luxury with a sense of place and time. Good is never good enough – our aim is to always improve, setting new standards of excellence.
Setting
Set in a timeless conservatory, the restaurant combines the historic atmosphere of the monastery with the freshest local products to provide a calm dining experience in the centre of the bustling city of Antwerp.
Good to know
On Sundays and Mondays, when 1238 is closed, guests can dine in Henry’s Bar.
Stargazing Restaurants
at the Botanic
