TOUCH OF THE DUTCH

Chef Jacob Jan Boerma wants a Michelin starred restaurant in India

- REYA MEHROTRA

Every successful person has a story to tell. For Dutch chef Jacob Jan Boerma (pronounced Yakub Yan Boerma)— whose restaurants have earned five Michelin Stars—it was licking dishes for flavours while working as a dishwasher in his early days. Growing up, his parents would take him to Michelin-starred restaurants across Italy, Spain and France. This ignited a passion for food. When Boerma came across the French Michelin Guide in his family car as a child, he dreamt of owning a restaurant with three Michelin stars.

Boerma’s dream came true with his fine dining restaurant, De Leest, located in Vaassen in the Netherlands, which went on to earn three Michelin Stars. “Before starting my own business, I gained experience both domestically and internationally, working with leading chefs such as Dieter Müller, Roger Souvereyns, and Wulf Engel.” However, he gave it all up at the peak when he shut down the restaurant, in 2020, to spend more time with his then-four-year-old son.

In an industry where even the chef’s role is viewed through a gendered lens—cooking professionally is largely considered a man’s job while cooking domestically is seen as a woman’s job—stepping back from a successful career redefines masculinity. It also tells a lot about his confidence in his art. “I was 14 and I had already been to a Michelin restaurant with my parents,” he says, “I started loving food. It wasn’t easy to dream of cooking and owning a three Michelin starred restaurant. But after gaining some experience, I opened my restaurant and ended up cooking there for almost 20 years.”