Everything he does he does with love and dedication. Whether it's his kitchen and vegetable garden, his immediate living environment, his valued colleagues and family, and even his love of extreme sports that has spiraled out of control, Raymond Remin, head chef of L'Auberge at Château Neercanne in Maastricht, is all about passion.
Château Neercanne is more than just a famous luxury restaurant located on the border between the Netherlands and Belgium. Right next door in the same field is L'Auberge, a bistro-like formula in a historic vaulted space, with a pretty but intimate terrace outside, entirely French in style. Seven luxury suites have now opened above and next to it, influencing the L'Auberge concept. But the philosophy of Chef Raymond Remen (49 years old) remains the same. An accessible restaurant formula with a lot of attention to the taste and character of the region.
L'Auberge's kitchen is now entirely your responsibility, which means you're actually back on the grounds of this castle.
“Seven years ago, Hans Snyders, who had worked as a chef in the castle restaurant for many years, asked me to return to the palace. I was no stranger: from 1998 to 2007 I worked with him first as party chairman, then as banquet master. After 2007, I started Working in other companies for a while, first in the Belgian city of Limburg, then in Le Virage in the city center. At the end of 2016, Bas Wiertz announced that he was leaving L'Auberge. The Snyders and director Peter Harkema were immediately convinced that this would be a good place For me, I had some doubts about that, because I really enjoyed the city. Ultimately, the carte blanche I was given to do my own thing here, plus the Monday-Friday working hours, especially during the day, was crucial to me. So, I'm here almost every day at eight o'clock in the evening. It's early, but it's better to be very enthusiastic than to have no ambition. But?”
Has the cuisine at L'Auberge changed since you arrived?
“The cuisine has always been very accessible. I think there is more sophistication in it now. Even then, a lot of attention was paid to the taste of their region. The initiative to create a vegetable garden had been taken before my arrival, although we had not started working with the produce.” Only after I arrived.
