First Tilia in Etten-Leur, now Wollerich in Sint-Oedenrode. Brabant loses another star restaurant. Chef Gerard and hostess Meriam Wollerich put the plates on the table for the last time at the end of February 2023, after 34 years. “It’s done. It’s been beautiful.”
“To be honest, we had been working on it for some time,” says 63-year-old Gerard. “Initially, we looked at whether it would be fun to build and rent apartments in our building. That was last year. But yes, I’m really only good at frying steaks and renting is just not my thing,” Wollerich chuckles. It did result in an offer from a party that was eager to take over the enormous building in Sint-Oedenrode. “Last month we came out and gave it a hand. Now I know it’s in good hands.”
“I still have trouble with the decision and I doubted whether I should continue.”
And so, after more than three decades, stirring in the pans is coming to an end. First seven years in De Lindehof in Nuenen and then, from 1996, 27 years in the striking villa on the Heuvel. A mixed feeling, Wollerich admits. Because the sale may come at the right time, but he was by no means tired of the craft. “I wasn’t done cooking at all,” Wollerich says firmly.
“I still do it with a lot of love and pleasure. I still have trouble with the decision and doubted whether I should continue. If I wouldn’t regret it. My stomach still turns when I think about it. Honestly.”
“A snack bar where you can eat fantastically.”
Gerard looks back with pride on all those years behind the stove. “From the renovation of a building for social work to a ‘sweet spot’ where you can eat fantastically well. We’ve all put it together nicely. Absolute. It all happened so terribly fast. The years have flown by.”
He is also proud of the no fewer than 30 Michelin stars and the Golden Chef’s Hat (2016) that he has on his resume. “That is the highest price you can achieve in the Netherlands.”
What will the Wollerichs do next? That recipe book is still blank. “I will be the proud chairman of the restaurant association Alliance Gastronomique for at least another year. It contains 44 top businesses with 1 to 3 stars. After that I’ll see what comes my way, although I would like to transfer my knowledge to the young guard. At least not behind the geraniums. We have been too busy for that all these years.” Laughing: “My wife and I definitely don’t have any peace of mind.”
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