Chez Léon restaurant comes under new management

Well-known restaurant Chez Léon in the heart of Brussels is under new ownership, according to the ABVV trade union.

The restaurant was taken over on Tuesday by the Joulie group, which operates numerous hotels and restaurants in France.

The takeover comes after months of negotiations with the Vanlancker family, who had been at the helm of the business since its founding at the end of the 19th century, and follows a series of setbacks for the family business.

First were the terrorist attacks in Brussels, then the pandemic, renovation obligations and the death of Rudy Vanlancker, who had run the restaurant for decades.

“We’re experiencing a real family tragedy,” Kevin Vanlancker said when informing their staff that they would be leaving the hospitality industry.

“It pains us greatly to say goodbye to Léon, which has been part of our family for six generations.

"But the most important thing is the survival of the restaurant, the continuation of my father’s spirit and the preservation of the jobs of the employees, who’ve always been loyal to the Vanlancker family, generation after generation."

The Joulie group, founded in 1974, has 13 restaurants and 14 hotels in France and employs about 850 people.

“We do not intend to radically change Chez Léon,” the group said.

“We’re professionals in the hospitality industry with a family vision and we’ll work in that spirit, just as the Vanlancker family has done since 1893.

"We will do this with all the staff, but some minor adjustments will have to be made."

ABVV Horval, the hospitality and food department of the trade union, emphasised that it will closely monitor the "adjustments" announced by the new management and ensure that jobs are retained.