The restaurant, previously known as “Le Tinet” and “Zinc Bar,” located at the intersection of Rue de la Wallonie and Placette du Vieux Marché au Beurre, is set to reopen soon under the ownership of Tournaisian chef Logan Renders. The establishment, named “La Tour Blanche,” will open its doors on April 7. According to Chef Renders, the name was chosen as a reference to the building’s history and simply sounded like a good fit for a restaurant.
Chef Renders’ path to the kitchen was a bit unusual. Though he studied Latin and Greek at College Notre Dame de Tournai after his time at the school of the Brothers, Chef Renders found himself attracted to the art of food preparation. Despite completing a bachelor’s degree in law, he chose to pursue his true passion and enrolled in evening cooking classes at the IPEPS in Leuze. After working in the legal sector for a time, Chef Renders recognized that a career in cooking could provide more fulfillment, pleasure, and passion in his life, and began working at Diôle brewery and the Your Nature restaurant.
Since he always had the dream of opening his own restaurant, when political group Les Engagés began seeking to revitalize the ground floor of the building where “La Tour Blanche” now stands, Chef Renders immediately jumped at the opportunity. He will be working with a team of friends, including Martin, Bastien, and Cheyenne, in the 40-seater dining room.
Chef Renders plans to serve innovative, modern, and homemade cuisine. Focusing on using fresh, local ingredients, Chef Renders wants to breathe new life into daily dishes with new flavors, allowing people to discover something new with each meal. He will also create a new menu every month and select wines from small, independent winegrowers who cannot be found elsewhere. Additionally, the chef will be introducing a “market” lunch menu for visitors to sample during the day.
At the corner of Rue de la Wallonie and Placette du Vieux Marché au Beurre, and after being successively “Le Tinet” and the “Zinc Bar”, “La Tour Blanche” will come back to life in the hands of by Tournaisian chef Logan Renders. The restaurant opens its doors this Friday, April 7. “The name is a little nod to the history and origin of the building, and then it sounded good for a restaurant”smiles chef Logan Renders.
The career of the young 29-year-old Tournaisian is quite atypical. “I studied at the school of the Brothers, and then at the College Notre Dame de Tournai in Latin-Greek option, he explains. After such a career, you move towards university studies or higher education, and quite difficultly towards cooking… and so I chose law, with a bachelor’s degree, in Tournai.”
Yet cooking has always tickled the Tournaisian. “It’s a bit of a passion that we shared as a family; I like good food and putting myself behind the stove.” After a first professional experience in the legal sector, the evidence is there: it is in the kitchen that he finds pleasure, passion, fulfillment and valorization. “I realized that office work was not what I wanted to do all my life. As I was still young, it was now or never to embark on a new challenge and I am enrolled at the IPEPS in Leuze for evening cooking training.”
Beautiful experiences punctuate his career, within the Diôle brewery and then at the restaurant of Your Nature. “But I always had in a small corner of my head, the desire to open my own restaurant to express my personal cuisine. At the same time, the political group Les Engagés was seeking to revitalize the ground floor of the building , of which it occupies the floor. And therefore, the project was able to materialize in the center of the city of Tournai.”
Logan Renders will be able to count on his side, in the kitchen and in the dining room (40 covers), on the presence of friends. “I’m the oldest in the team, he laughs. There will be Martin, Bastien and Cheyenne. Everything is there to work in a good mood and bring a friendly and cozy atmosphere to the restaurant.”
On the plates, the chef will provide modern, innovative, creative and homemade cuisine. “I want to give back to the appellation “restaurant” its letters of nobility. with the work of all the products by the cook. I will prepare fairly simple, fresh and local products, but not in a way already seen and review. The goal is to rediscover everyday dishes and associate them with new flavors, and thus allow people to discover new things. The menu will be changed every month, and for the wines, I call on to small independent winegrowers who cannot be found elsewhere.” At noon, the chef will offer a “market” lunch menu.
With the opening of “La Tour Blanche”, Tournai has gained a new jewel in the crown of its culinary scene. Chef Logan Renders, with his passion for food and expertise in the kitchen, promises to deliver a unique experience to every diner who walks in. The reinvention of “La Tour Blanche” in its new avatar is a testament to Tournai’s rich history and culture. As we bid adieu, we look forward to exploring Logan Render’s innovative and creative cuisine, and wish him and his team all the best for their culinary journey ahead. Bon appétit!