Forty meters. As far as you have to go to Belgium to get to the best fish shop in the Netherlands. ‘Fish and more’ is owned by Eindhovenaar Mark Verstennis and his wife Tanja from Best, who have been selling fish together in Poppel, Belgium for twenty years. “More than half of our customers come from the Netherlands.”
It is busy, this Saturday at the fish shop. Customers from the Netherlands and Belgium stand in line for a portion of Kibbeling, a herring with outings or one of the many fresh meals that fish and more sells.
New faces are also coming to the fish specialty shop of Mark and Tanja. They have heard that the store in Poppel has been named the best fish shop of … the Netherlands. “We are really on the border. It’s forty meters,” says Mark.
“Literally and figururingly a borderline.”
The jury therefore doubted whether the store could participate in the election. “They said that I was literally and figuratively a border cases. But more than 50 percent of our customers come from the Netherlands. That is why they said: participate.”
And the participation was winning. Tanja: “That really gives a warm feeling. Also for the team that really feels like family.”
“We are actually just from two countries.”
For Tanja it is a bit strange that their Belgian fish shop, now is the best in the Netherlands. “It feels a bit double. We are of course Dutch ourselves, but we live in Belgium. We are actually just from two countries,” she laughs. “Our customers also come from Belgium and the Netherlands.”
Mark is from Eindhoven, Tanja from Best. Twenty years ago they crossed the border. “Here a store was for rent and then I started chatting. The rest is history,” says the proud Mark. “The two of us started, now I have seventeen people at work. A bit of a passion for fish that got out of hand. This is your life’s work. You will be busy with this seven days a week from the morning until late in the evening. You only want the best of the best.”
And why is fish and more than the best fish shop in the Netherlands? “As a team we work hard for it. Customer -friendliness, service and quality are on one. There is really a difference between whether you get fish at a fish specialty store or a supermarket: the freshness.”
“It’s ten, fifteen minutes drive.”
Loek from Hilvarenbeek stands in line to buy his fish. “I’ve been coming here for twenty years every other week. We usually take some fish for the freezer,” he says.
“I like to go to Mark. Fantastic fish, very fresh and a nice variety of prepared meals. And of course the customer service, a lot of kindness. Always have a chat. It is ten, fifteen minutes’ drive, close by. I think it is a kind of gray area. I count it at the Netherlands,” laughs Loekingly.
Are Mark and Tanja going to make the switch to the Netherlands? “No”, is resolutely. “I have had two stores and I’m going to tell you, that will never happen again.” And so the best fish shop in the Netherlands … in Belgium remains.
