Restaurant De Haan and restaurant Nassau in Groningen are included in the Michelin guide. Honorable, according to chefs Dennis de Haan and Christian de Vries.
Tonight he will serve his guests veal sweetbreads, scallops, quail, North Sea crab and chicken from Twente. Or the vegetarian version. Chef Dennis de Haan (34) of restaurant De Haan is looking forward to it.
He opened his business in 2016 as a one-man restaurant: he did everything himself and let his guests pour their drinks. Word soon spread that those who wanted to dine at De Haan had to reserve a table months in advance. That is still the case, but De Haan is no longer alone. He calls his kitchen team − with chefs Mart Buikema (27), Ian Nieswaag (27) and himself − ‘The three musketeers’.
‘No dude, we will never get such a star’
He likes that De Haan de Michelin guide has noticed. “When I’m abroad with my girlfriend, I like to look for restaurants in the Michelin Guide .”
Is it a step towards a Michelin star for him? He bursts into laughter. “No dude, we never get such a star. We cook at a high level, although it is impossible to put a finger on which restaurant will or will not receive a star, but we have no service, so we will not make it in terms of service.”
He doesn’t think that’s a problem. ,,I don’t think a star is important, I never had that goal. I started a restaurant because I want to make beautiful, tasteful things. De Haan is a bit living room-oriented, we experiment in the kitchen and set the bar high enough even without star ambitions.”
‘I hope Nassau gets a Michelin star’
He knows that restaurant Nassau in Hotel Prinsenhof has also won a place in the guide. ,,It may be that Nassau gets a star once. I hope so. There you eat and drink at a high level and the service is excellent. A star business belongs to a city like Groningen after all.”
Chef Christian de Vries (37) from Nassau is delighted with the mention in the Michelin Guide . “It is a confirmation that we are on the right track and we would like to go to a star.”
‘Intuition and feeling, taste and experience’
He has been chef at Nassau for three years, which before his arrival was known as the A la Carte restaurant of Hotel Prinsenhof. De Vries pleaded for the animal to be given a name and left his mark on the business, now in consultation with sous-chef Dion te Velde (27).
He can hardly put into words exactly how they come up with new dishes and flavor combinations. “It is inspiration and feeling, taste and experience. When I prepare a Wadden dish, I want to take my guests on a journey to the saltiness of the Wadden Sea.”
A handful of restaurants in Groningen are already listed in the Michelin guide such as Vive la Vie, De Grote Frederik and Hanasato.
In the province of Groningen, the restaurants Onder de Linden in Aduard and Noor in Hoogkerk have a Michelin star.