ONA is a wine bar in Kouter, Ghent.
ONA is a wine bar near the Kouter square with a carefully curated list of authentic European wines from smaller producers. The format is intimate: a few bar.
Must order: Ask for a producer flight: three glasses from one region, poured side by side to show terroir differences.
Tip: Open Wednesday to Sunday from 16:00; the Sunday noon opening makes it an unusual afternoon wine destination.
Address: Nederkouter 71, 9000 Gent, Ghent
Chubby Cheeks is a convivial natural wine bar where interesting small-plate dishes are designed to match unusual bottles. The card runs from funky orange.
Wine focus: Natural wines and small plates
Order: Natural orange wine by the glass with a small cheese plate: the house pours rotate weekly.
Tip: A Gault and Millau HIP pick; the menu changes frequently so the best visit is a return one.
Bar Terroir sits steps from the vegetable market square, sourcing wines from small estates and pairing them with artisan cheeses and charcuterie plates.
Wine focus: Small-estate grower wines and artisan cheese
Order: Cheese plate with a Loire valley white: the bar curates the pairings and they rarely disappoint.
Tip: The private room with a Ghent towers view seats up to 15; book it for a wine dinner group.
Vinogradoff is a wine shop and bar specialising in natural and biodynamic wines from Eastern Europe: Georgia, Bulgaria, Slovenia and Czech Republic alongside.
Wine focus: Eastern European and natural wines
Order: Georgian amber wine in a traditional qvevri style: skin-fermented, oxidative and unlike any European.
Tip: Shop-bar hybrid; most visits start with the staff recommending a region and end with buying a bottle home.
Win is a compact natural wine bar on Burgstraat near the Gravensteen castle, with a weekend brunch menu and an afternoon coffee service in a renovated room.
Wine focus: Natural wine and brunch cafe
Order: Afternoon glass of the current house natural red with home-made madeleines: the most Ghentian pre-dinner.
Tip: Open Wednesday to Saturday from 10:00; the brunch format on weekends is popular, book ahead.
Hey Frankie is a neighbourhood wine bar open Fridays to Sundays near Vrijdagmarkt. The list is natural-wine focused: growers who farm without pesticides.
Wine focus: Natural wine and wine shop
Order: Weekend natural wine pairing glass with bar snacks: the team selects from what arrived that week.
Tip: Open only three days a week; the Friday evening slot before a Vrijdagmarkt dinner is the sweet spot.
Allegro Moderato has one of the few wine terraces in Ghent with direct views of the medieval guild houses, focusing on Belgian and French grower wines.
Wine focus: Belgian and French wines with canal views
Order: Belgian natural wine by the glass with oysters: the Korenlei terrace turns this into a postcard.
Tip: The terrace fills fast on summer evenings; book a table and stay for dinner to hold it.
