menu

Netherlands Lunch

Bailliage of the Netherlands
Waalre, May 26, 2019

Excellent Michelin 2-star dining
" The signature main course featuring lamb was in keeping with the spring seasonal theme "

Thanks to the good relationship that our Conseiller Gastronomique Piet van den Bosch has with Dick Middelweerd, owner of Michelin 2-star De Treeswijkhoeve in Waalre, Dick agreed to serve a lunch for the Chaîne.

De Treeswijkhoeve is housed in a 1916-built farmhouse formerly belonging to the Treeswijkhoeve Estate. In 1991, Dick Middelweerd joined the restaurant as Head Chef. Together with his wife Anne-Laura he bought the restaurant in 2000.

The lunch was excellent - as should be the case for a Michelin 2-star establishment. The amuses-bouches were original and delicious. Surprising combinations, for example crispy and sour, salty and bitter, melted on the tongue. The accompanying Crémant de Bourgogne was of great class.

Starting the menu was a fish combo - mackerel, crab and oyster served with a Grüner Silvaner from Germany. A successful beginning!

The intermediate dish of Pertuis asparagus from France, morel cheese, turnip greens and goat’s cheese was wonderful. The wine was a great 2017 Clos St. Magdeleine from France.

Asparagus has been grown in areas of France with sandy soils since the late 1400s. It became a favourite of many a French king, notably Louis XIV. Recognised as being one of the best varieties Pertuis green asparagus has been cultivated since the early 19th century on the plain of the River Durance, thanks to the lightness and fertility of its soils.

The signature main course featuring lamb was in keeping with the spring seasonal theme of the four courses. Brezo Mencia, the Spanish red wine chosen, was probably the tastiest of the afternoon. It from Bierzo - a “Denominación de Origen” in the northwest of the province of León - made by Bodegas Mengoba. The wine is a blend of Alicante Bouschet and Mencia with the latter clearly predominant.

The dessert was a worthy conclusion to an excellent lunch prepared by the kitchen brigade. The service was seamlessly efficient as you might expect. The Sommelier was an enthusiastic, recently-qualified oenologist who explained the wine choices with great pleasure.

Wim Sluijter
Bailli of South Netherlands

Search in map