You’ll Want to Watch This Moving Documentary About Jonnie and Thérèse Boer of De Librije Tonight
At the end of January, the Gault&Millau awards ceremony took place, where Jonnie and Thérèse Boer received the Lifetime Achievement Award for their contribution to the gastronomic landscape of the Netherlands. To top it all off, the star couple were surprised with a tribute in the form of a documentary. Filmed in secret—they knew nothing about it—it features many fellow professionals and (former) employees. And the result is a moving document. The documentary ‘Van de Kelder naar de Top’ can now be watched on YouTube; highly recommended!
For more than 35 years, they have operated at the very highest culinary level, and De Librije has grown into a group with a hotel and highly successful restaurants in Zwolle, Bonaire and Curaçao. The list of hospitality talents they have trained and nurtured is enormous. Gastronomic magazine bouillon!, which ceased publication in 2022, already wrote a feature of more than 35 pages about Jonnie and Thérèse in 2012 (you can order that issue here). I devoured it; it offered such a fascinating glimpse into life in a Michelin-starred kitchen. More than that, the article revealed what a family business De Librije is and how many talents it has produced.
Van de Kelder naar de Top
For the documentary ‘Van de Kelder naar de Top’, more than 40 top chefs, friends, family members and (former) employees were interviewed. At the end of January, the documentary was unveiled in a small cinema auditorium, where Jonnie and Thérèse had been lured under false pretenses. They had no idea that more than 120 guests in attendance could watch the film—and their genuine reactions—in the cinema’s main auditorium. Sergio Herman has his say, revealing what happened in Bruges—while you see Jonnie thinking and hear him say: ‘Not Bruges…’ Very funny. Michelin-starred chefs Ron Blaauw and Hans van Wolde also explain what Jonnie means to them. The result is moving footage—Jonnie doesn’t manage to keep his eyes dry.
Watch it now
Starting today, you can watch the documentary ‘Van de Kelder naar de Top’ on the Gault&Millau Nederland YouTube channel. I’d say: start watching right away. And if you want to know how Jonnie and Thérèse’s children are gradually being prepared to take over their parents’ business, watch the documentary series De Opvolging which is currently on TV.
Also read:
- How to make Jonnie Boer’s avocado from De Librije***
- Jonnie Boer’s glazed lamb neck
- Seriously: this advocaat from De Librije and Marigold is really delicious
Header image: still from ‘Van de Kelder naar de Top’
