January 15, 2018 · Menno Hoexum
LHan Plaggemars (36) didn't have to think twice about a name for his new cellar café to open on Oosterstraat. Merlot was the first thing that came to mind. Not entirely by coincidence, as the basement once served as a wine cellar for the residents of the monumental building above. Schimmelpenninck HuysEven more important for the young hospitality entrepreneur is the reference to the name of the restaurant that his father Cees Plaggemars operated an establishment called Merlot on the Gedempte Zuiderdiep around the 1990s, along with the adjacent Café Cees.
“I see the name as a tribute to and a nod to my father, who passed away suddenly two years ago. If he were still alive, he would have loved that his son is now opening his own hospitality business. You could say that I am following in my father’s footsteps. Together with his brother and my uncle Dolf, he once ran the fish restaurant De Twee Gebroeders in the Noorderplantsoen, and after that, he stood behind the bar at the Belgian café De Pintelier on Sunday afternoons with me for a while,” says Han.
His cellar café is located in the basement of the hotel-café-restaurant Schimmelpenninck Huys on Oosterstraat and will open briefly for invited guests on Monday, January 15, from four o'clock in the afternoon.
The plan is for me to be open from Wednesday through Sunday, from one in the afternoon to one at night. Above all, I want to try to turn it into a cozy café. The space that runs under the entire path above is perfectly suited for that. Friends and acquaintances have worked hard over the past few weeks to get everything in order.
The still-young Plaggemars brings a wealth of experience in the urban hospitality industry. He worked at The Pintelier, stood behind the bar of Wolthoorn & Co., made the switch to the Senate, to then work in the restaurants Weeva and Rabenhaupt to end up. His last employer was eatery Roezemoes on the Zuiderdiep. "It has always been my dream to have my own business. At the same time, I don't want to make things too complicated. As I said, a nice, cozy café for sociable people in a beautiful ambiance."
In the cellar café, Han Plaggemars has found space for 40 seats, a regulars' table, and room at the bar. Warsteiner supplies the beer, and guests can also choose from five types of red wine and five types of white wine. The kitchen in the rear section of the basement will be used sparingly for snacks and finger food. “Should there be a chef walking around who sees possibilities, he or she is welcome. Guests interested in the history of the vaults may take a look at the original wine cellar located behind the kitchen.”
The history of the monumental building where Han Plaggemars is now operating the cellar space dates back to the fifteenth century. It is one of the oldest national monuments in the city of Groningen. The entrance to cellar café Merlot is on Oosterstraat, but guests of the hotel located above can also reach the new establishment internally.
