Bolenius to pop up in The Hague for the entire month

Restaurants are closed, but hotels are carrying on as usual. More and more Michelin-starred chefs are teaming up with a hotel as guest chefs. Enter the much-praised culinary staycation or mini-escape (you’ll find plenty of tips for this in our Proefslapen series!). Chef Luc Kusters is also going to cook in a hotel; throughout December, he is bringing a pop-up version of his Bolenius (one Michelin star) to The Hague.

Eat-local chef

Luc Kusters of Bolenius is one of the advocates of Dutch Cuisine, the movement that embraces the eat-local principle. Luc is a passionate vegetable fan and has his own vegetable garden in the heart of the Zuidas, between the gleaming office towers of banks and law firms. He has won awards as one of the best vegetable chefs in the Benelux.

Why a pop-up?

Offices are empty, and tourists in the capital are also staying away. Bolenius previously started offering accessible Bolenius menus (€49, three courses) aimed at local residents. But a Michelin-starred chef naturally wants to welcome and pamper guests. In collaboration with hotels, Kusters is now cooking throughout December with a pop-up version of Bolenius.

Where?

The first pop-up took place at the beginning of December at the Van der Valk hotel on the Zuidas, the newest luxury gem in the Van der Valk family. For the rest of December, the Bolenius pop-up is based in The Hague, in collaboration with Staybridge Suites, an extended-stay hotel concept that is part of the IHG Group (including InterContinental and Holliday Inn).

What’s on the menu?

A six-course menu is served throughout the month. Fine dining, entirely in Bolenius style. That means plenty of attention to vegetables. It starts with the vegetable amuse-bouche, a refined little dish of rice pudding made from puréed vegetables and speculaas spices, followed by a starter called ‘The Zuidas Vegetable Garden’, one of Kusters’ signature dishes. A beautifully presented vegetable mix made with home-grown vegetables available from the garden in December. Think turnip, pumpkin, carrot, parsnip and other winter vegetables. Prepared in various ways: grilled, steamed and boiled, offering a range of delicious textures and flavours.

Will you join us by the sea?

Two excursions to the sea follow. North Sea crab with a light sauerkraut foam, served in a sundae glass with pickled watermelon radish cut like a rose. A wonderful dish with an excellent pairing between the crab’s gentle sweetness and the cabbage’s acidity. Served with a glass of Dutch wine: Auxerrois from winemaker Kleine Schorre on Schouwen-Duiveland.

The sole that follows is served with finely sliced apple and brown butter. A lovely balance of freshness and the rich, fatty flavours of the fish and butter sauce. Meat also makes an appearance: a piece of perfectly cooked venison with pumpkin and fermented bread sauce. Served with a glass of red juice made from cherries, elderberries and apple. Because it is now after eight o’clock, a strictly enforced alcohol ban applies.

Alcohol-free, yes…

The next dish is celeriac with mushrooms. Fine little celeriac bulbs, first pickled, are presented by the chef beforehand in a small crate at the table like a precious piece. A glass of smoked tea is served alongside. The alcohol-free theme is carried through consistently and originally in the dessert: a chocolate dessert with star anise, accompanied by a glass of 0.0 Porter beer.

Dutch Cuisine, absolutely delicious

It is a harmonious, delightfully light menu, in the finest Bolenius tradition. The Dutch Cuisine philosophy is woven into every dish in a subtle and creative way—without becoming too conspicuous. But perhaps the most enjoyable thing of all is the pleasure radiating from the Bolenius team at being able to get back to work. The chef and sommelier regularly come to check on everyone at the table and chat. Guests at different tables spontaneously toast one another—despite the distance—to the joy of being back in a restaurant together. As if we were forming a secret pact.

It remains a strange experience to sit down for dinner as early as 6:00 p.m. The switch to juices is original and entirely in Bolenius style, but remains a compromise for the devoted wine drinker. At exactly 10:00 p.m.—after coffee and friandises—everyone is asked to retire to their hotel room. A nice detail: you receive a tray for two to take with you, including a digestif from Van Wees and sweets.

Reservations

The Bolenius pop-up is open from Thursday through Saturday. Special packages are offered over Christmas and New Year’s Eve. From 10 December, the pop-up will be located at Staybridge Suiten, in the heart of The Hague, opposite the Binnenhof. You book a suite, including a six-course dinner. See here for the current full menu and reservations.

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