Roots
Our story begins where every good story begins, with family at the dinner table, getting together with the people you love while enjoying beautiful dishes.
The Tale of Mother and Daughter
Our story begins where every good story begins, with family at the dinner table, getting together with the people you love while enjoying beautiful dishes. Food has always played a conscious and central role in our family, many memorable moments arose around the dining table, and many hours were spent in the kitchen to ensure that even the easiest snack became a real creation. The 'Asterix and Obelix' cookbook was consulted every day and the well-known question for every parent: "What are we eating today?" echoed in unison throughout the house every morning. Because we grew up in the ‘polder’, we shared the environment with many animals and plants that were naturally present in our vicinity, this has instilled in all of us from an early age a deep love for everything that lives and grows. The love for the natural world and our shared passion for food came together in the desire to eat more consciously because we no longer wanted to contribute to the destruction of the world we have learned to love.
Nina and Els, 2018
There and Back Again
Inspired by the magical adventures described in Tolkien's works, our desire to embark on an adventure of our own arose. Armed with our restored Volkswagen bus, we traveled the country like the market stalls of yesteryear ready to share our beautiful teas and homemade cakes with the world. ‘Into the Wild’ we went and as Christopher McCandless once wrote, “Happiness is only real when shared.” We soon discovered that the same could be said for food sharing. Our crusades took us to the most beautiful places, festivals, and markets and this was our first introduction to sharing food outside of our home. No longer were we protected by the safe walls and comfort of our kitchen, but we were challenged to cook in many varying circumstances. The adventure we had longed for turned out to be a wonderful experience, but all this was only a preparation for an even greater adventure close to home.
Wildgroei Delft
We went 'there' and 'back again' to root ourselves in a place close to home where we could continue to share our love for beautiful and conscious food with people. Located on an iconic street in picturesque Delft, on the corner where two roads intersect, our journey continued. In a beautiful and lovely building, accompanied by the presence of the 'Old Church', we opened our own lunchroom called 'Wildgroei' in 2018.
Now recognizable by the green excesses that adorn our windows, our place has become a haven to escape the hectic pace of urban life. A lively oasis where we gently welcome people in a warm space, lit by sunlight, filled with the aroma of fresh and naturally composed dishes, where beautiful conversations can arise, where the sensibility of classical music gently caresses the space.
Like a 'seed' Wildgroei has eventually been allowed to grow into a beautiful and vibrant creation that is firmly rooted in the hearts of the many people who helped make our dream possible. But, as the (Dutch) meaning of 'Wildgroei' suggests, nature teaches us that everything in the wild eventually always finds a way to keep growing.
Like a seed, finding a way to grow
We like to see Wildgroei as a living entity, something that breathes and can continue to evolve based on the input from its environment. From the moment we gave birth to Wildgroei, we have always sought to be able to essentially keep changing concepts based on where we want to "grow" in life. While we still feel a lot of love for the original lunchroom set-up, it feels necessary for us to germinate and grow in a new direction, one that is still inspired by our origins but more in tune with our dreams for the future.
A large part of the motivation to adjust the previous Wildgroei formula, which has proved quite successful, is because we feel that the growing number of visitors per day is causing the 'pace' to be increased. We are truly immensely grateful to everyone who continues to visit us, but our initial motivation has always been to create a place for peaceful encounters and valuable conversations. This is gradually being dispelled by the increasing pressure and speed at which we are forced to work. We have noticed that in our lives we feel the need for gentleness, thoughtfulness, and tranquility and try to move away from the unnecessary rush of modern life. Especially in times when we are surrounded by an excess of information and stimuli, it feels necessary for us to continue to create a place where people can enjoy simple but essential aspects of life in peace. By creating a new form, we aim to consciously say goodbye to a certain 'busyness' because this goes beyond our initial thoughts for designing the place. For us, it feels necessary to give birth to a new iteration, in which we invite not only our guests but also ourselves to (continue to) live at a calmer pace.
“Roads go ever ever on
Under cloud and under star
Yet feet that wandering have gone
Turn at last to home afar”
— J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
Roads go ever ever on
After we officially closed the doors of our lunchroom in Delft in May 2023, to make room for new roads and special paths in our lives, I (Els) decided to continue creating our beautiful, colorful, and cheerful cakes and treats. This way I will continue all the beautiful things we have made over the years and you can still enjoy all the wonderful vegan delicacies.
Wildgroei
If you have any questions, want to make an order, or simply want to share a nice thought, we invite you to share it with us. We try not to spend our entire life behind a screen so a response may take a while, but we do our best to answer it with as much care and thought as possible.