A cozy living room atmosphere in restaurant Nevel

A mix of restaurant and gallery

Restaurant Nevel in Den Bosch serves refined (vegetable) dishes in a refreshingly cozy environment. The restaurant also functions as a gallery: various beautiful works by local artists hang on the walls on Artiteq Click Rails. This mix of restaurant and gallery works fantastically. “Life is about enjoying, and art absolutely belongs to that!”

Focus on vegetables

Together with her partners, Marjolein van Boxtel opened restaurant Nevel at the end of 2023. “My partner Bobby and I have long dreamed of starting our own business,” Marjolein explains. “We felt that Den Bosch was missing a high-level restaurant focused on vegetables. Last year, we decided to jump into that gap together.” Together with good friend Douwe, the couple started restaurant Nevel at Brede Haven in Den Bosch. Marjolein: “Douwe is a fantastic chef with a background in a Michelin-starred restaurant. Bobby takes care of the drinks and gastronomic combinations, and I am responsible for the business side and hospitality during our opening hours.”

Minimizing waste

The entrepreneurial trio makes conscious choices regarding sustainability. “We find that very important,” Marjolein explains. “For example, we only serve a surprise menu and no à la carte, as that results in much less waste. Furthermore, we look in various ways at what we use to throw away as little as possible. For example, our guests receive a sandwich upon arrival without the ends. But we process those ends into our pastries and make other products from them, such as bread yeast.”

An ode to everything that lives

Vegetables are central to all dishes, but that doesn't mean there is no meat or fish on the plates at all. “Nevel, the name of our restaurant, stands for life, but turned upside down. We have an eye for all the beautiful things in life, on the plate and in the glass. We respect all life. Vegetables are indeed our greatest love, but certainly not the only one. If the dish calls for it, we also work with fish or meat. But in a different ratio. We choose as much as possible for organic, sustainable, and local.”

Art is part of enjoying life

For the team at Nevel, life is about enjoyment. “That’s why we also chose to have art on the walls,” says Marjolein. “As far as we are concerned, art is indispensable when it comes to enjoying life.” The inspiration came from good friend Anne-Claire, who with her initiative LOA (for the Love of Art) provides a platform for European art and craft. “We thought it would be fantastic to showcase the art she offers. We have consciously chosen to exhibit work primarily from emerging artists in the region. Furthermore, we find it important that the paintings match our style, atmosphere, and the interior of Nevel.”

Gallery in a restaurant

At the moment, works by three different artists are hanging on the walls. Next to each artwork, there is a card with an explanation about the painting and the artist. “Art on the walls of a restaurant is of course not unique, but it is indeed special that all the work we exhibit is for sale,” says Marjolein. “It really hangs like in a gallery. And as soon as a piece is sold, there is room for something new.”

All paintings are hung on the Click Rail from Artiteq. “The system quickly came to light thanks to the collaboration with Anne-Claire,” Marjolein explains. “In her gallery Arti-Pop, the art is also hung on Click Rails, and there we saw it in action. We found the hanging system very subtle and a sustainable solution for preserving the walls. You can paint the rails in the color of the wall so that it almost disappears. And the artwork hangs beautifully on it.”

Shifting tables = shifting art

Installing the painting hanging system in the restaurant went very quickly, Marjolein recalls. “You screw the clips into the wall, click the rail in, and you can get started. For one wall, we painted the rail the same color as the wall, and we deliberately left the other one white so that it matches nicely. Furthermore, we didn’t have to finish anything, it looks very neat right away.”

Marjolein is very satisfied with the flexibility of the system. “You can change the artworks very quickly and hang them higher or longer. You don’t have to make new holes in the wall for that,” she explains. “Completely ideal for us as hospitality entrepreneurs is that we can easily move the paintings across the width of the wall. For example, if I want to shift a table by a meter because we have a large group coming, I can just shift the artwork that hangs above the table along with it. Very handy!”

Cozy living room feeling

Restaurant Nevel has only been open for a few months, but is already doing incredibly well. “What we hear from our guests is that they naturally find the food delicious, but especially appreciate the atmosphere,” says Marjolein. “What we serve is of a high standard, but we do it in an accessible, cozy way. The most important thing for us is that you feel comfortable as our guest.”

Restaurant Nevel shows that fine dining doesn’t have to be cold or distant at all. You can certainly find coziness in the hospitality industry in 's-Hertogenbosch, but usually not in combination with a full evening program. You mainly see that in places with neatly set white tables. “We really do it differently,” says Marjolein. “We have worked hard to create a cozy living room atmosphere. You can see that both in the interior and in the way we interact with our guests. We don’t put on a mask, but are just ourselves. That’s what we get the best compliments about.”