Since 1978, Mestdagh has prided itself on creating artisanal frozen foods based on traditional Belgian recipes. We sell a selection of superior quality appetisers and desserts under our homebrand. We also make customised sweet and savoury recipes under private label. History In the seventies, Luc Mestdagh was the owner and head chef of the boat hotel ‘La Péniche’ in Oostduinkerke. His shrimp croquettes were so popular with his clients that they wished they could take them home. Ever attentive to the wishes of his clients, he began to offer the house specialities in frozen form. In 1978, Chef Luc Mestdagh constructed a kitchen workshop in the cellar of La Péniche to better enable the preparation and freezing of the much-sought-after croquettes. His choice to prepare this very traditional Belgian dish with the finest of ingredients resulted in his shrimp croquettes being in high demand across the entire Belgian coast. Mestdagh came to prefer the creative environment of his workshop to the original hotel aspect of the business and he soon expanded his range with appetisers and desserts. His iced Grand Marnier soufflé and his traditionally-prepared vanilla ice cream became his flagship products. Mestdagh ice cream was twice crowned ‘Best Belgian Vanilla Ice Cream’ in the nineties. At the age of six, the chef’s daughter, Hilde Mestdagh, was already making pancakes for the hotel, often with four pans on the go at once. At this early age she already knew her future was as a pastry chef. And so, upon her father’s advice, she attended a course at the local hotel school. She soon began working side-by-side with her father, and together they expanded the patisserie range. At this time, the workshop at La Péniche started to become too small. In 2004, the business moved to a newly-built property in Veurne, upon which Luc Mestdagh handed over the reins of the company to his daughter and her husband Marc Gombert. Together, they now continue the Mestdagh tradition.
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