De Hoefslag Bosch en Duin: New Chef, New Owners
De Hoefslag in Bosch en Duin, near Utrecht, reopened under Mark Minkman in January 2026. Leon Mazairac and Zara Kooke take over on 1 January 2027.
Photo: HenkvD, CC BY-SA 4.0
De Hoefslag in Bosch en Duin is a classical French-leaning fine-dining restaurant and bistro at Vossenlaan 28, in the municipality of Zeist, about 8 km east of Utrecht city centre. Since its reopening on 23 January 2026, head chef and co-owner Mark Minkman has run it. On 1 January 2027 chef Leon Mazairac and Zara Kooke take over. It is not a burger restaurant: I found no burger on any menu or in any press source, from any era.
De Hoefslag, Wilco Berends and burgers: three claims that don’t hold
Three things often said about De Hoefslag fall apart once you check them against the restaurant’s listings, both Wikipedias and Dutch trade press. I checked every one before writing a line.
- Wilco Berends never ran De Hoefslag. He trained there as a young cook. Since 2012 he has been the sole owner of De Nederlanden in Vreeland.
- De Hoefslag is not in Utrecht city. It sits in Bosch en Duin, a wooded village in the municipality of Zeist, Utrecht province.
- De Hoefslag has no burger identity. No source places a burger on its menu at any point in its history.
So this is not a burger story. It is the profile of a former Michelin-starred house near Utrecht that changes hands twice in under a year. For burgers in the city itself, start from our Utrecht burger page in the Restaurants section.
Map of De Hoefslag at Vossenlaan 28, Bosch en Duin (Zeist), with Utrecht Centraal and Utrecht city centre to the west. The restaurant is in the woods east of the city, not in Utrecht itself. Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL, https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright (Map: OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL, https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright)
Is De Hoefslag restaurant in Utrecht?
No. De Hoefslag is at Vossenlaan 28, 3735 KN Bosch en Duin, in the municipality of Zeist, not in the city of Utrecht. International listings often call it a “restaurant in Utrecht” because Utrecht is the nearest big city and gives its name to the province (sources: Dutch Wikipedia, Lekker, checked 14 October 2026).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Address | Vossenlaan 28, 3735 KN Bosch en Duin (Zeist), Netherlands |
| Distance from Utrecht centre | About 8 km east (my estimate) |
| Style | Classical foundation, international influences, focus on sauces and product |
| Capacity | 70 covers |
| Head chef and co-owner (2026) | Mark Minkman |
| New owners from 1 Jan 2027 | Leon Mazairac (chef) and Zara Kooke (front of house, commercial) |
| Partners | Rob and Marco Peek, Brothers Horeca Group |
| Phone | +31 30 225 1051 |
| info@hfslg.nl | |
| Burger on the menu | None found in any source |
Who runs De Hoefslag now? Mark Minkman since January 2026
Mark Minkman is De Hoefslag’s head chef and co-owner. He reopened the restaurant on Friday 23 January 2026. His concept, as described by ChefsFriends, is a classical foundation with international influences and a strong focus on sauces and product quality. Werner Loens, former chief inspector of the MICHELIN Guide, performed the opening.
The reopening also ended an identity question. From 2018 the house traded as “HFSLG”. One source now calls it “De Hoefslag by Mark Minkman”, another says the original name was kept on purpose. I could not settle which is current, so I use the historic name.
Who is taking over De Hoefslag in 2027? Leon Mazairac and Zara Kooke
Leon Mazairac and Zara Kooke take over De Hoefslag on 1 January 2027. The deal was announced on 18 September 2026 (Utrecht Business, ChefsFriends). Rob and Marco Peek of Brothers Horeca Group stay on as partners behind the scenes.
Leon Mazairac, the chef
Leon Mazairac comes from six years at Restaurant Karel 5 in Utrecht, where his team earned a Michelin star. He stays at Karel 5 until November 2026, and Bendert Krommendam succeeds him there (Tasty Trails). His stated philosophy fits on a postcard: “Eenvoud is al complex genoeg”, or “Simplicity is complex enough”.
Grand Hotel Karel V in Utrecht, seen from the Catharijnesingel in May 2025. Restaurant Karel 5, where Leon Mazairac’s team earned a Michelin star before his move to De Hoefslag, is inside this hotel. Photo: Kaethe17, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grand-hotel-karel-V-utrecht-2025.jpg (Photo: Kaethe17, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grand-hotel-karel-V-utrecht-2025.jpg)
Zara Kooke, front of house and commercial
Zara Kooke will run hospitality, commercial development and front of house. She worked in hospitality at Karel 5 and held a commercial role at Lavazza.
The 2027 concept: brasserie plus gastronomic room
The new owners plan two offers under one roof: a lively brasserie for lunch, wine and dinner, and a high-level gastronomic restaurant. That mirrors the bistro-plus-fine-dining split the house has used since 2018.
One gap matters if you plan a visit. No source says what Mark Minkman does after 1 January 2027: whether he stays, leaves or sells his stake. I will update this page when that is public.
Does De Hoefslag still have a Michelin star?
I cannot confirm a current Michelin star for De Hoefslag. The house lost its star around 2018 or 2019, and while ChefsFriends wrote that it “regained Michelin recognition” after the 2026 reopening, I found no confirmation of that in the MICHELIN Guide itself. Check guide.michelin.com before you book on the strength of a star.
The record behind it is long: starred in 37 of the 40 years from 1979 to 2018, two stars for six of them. The two Wikipedias disagree on when the star went: Dutch Wikipedia says 2018, English Wikipedia says 2019.
| Period | MICHELIN Guide status |
|---|---|
| 1979–1980 | One star |
| 1981–1986 | Two stars |
| 1987–2005 | One star |
| 2006–2008 | No star |
| 2009–2018/2019 | One star |
| 2018/2019–today | No star confirmed |
De Hoefslag’s Michelin stars, 1979 to 2026, shown as a horizontal timeline: one star 1979–1980, two stars 1981–1986 (highlighted), one star 1987–2005, no star 2006–2008, one star 2009–2018/2019, no confirmed star since. The year of the loss is disputed: 2018 per Dutch Wikipedia, 2019 per English Wikipedia. Chart: Burger Breton, data from Dutch and English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Chart: Burger Breton, data from Dutch and English Wikipedia (De Hoefslag), CC BY-SA 4.0)
De Hoefslag history: from coaching stop to HFSLG and back
De Hoefslag has been a restaurant for more than a century. It started as “Huize Bosch en Duin”, a coaching stop and garden restaurant, and was renamed “Huize De Hoefslag” in 1920 (English Wikipedia). Note that English Wikipedia is out of date: it still names Karl van Baggem as chef and misses both the 2026 reopening and the 2027 takeover.
The Fagel era and the two-star years
The Fagel brothers built its reputation. Gerard Fagel led the kitchen from about 1975 to 1989, and Martin Fagel ran the business. The two-star years of 1981 to 1986 came on their watch. Gerard Fagel was murdered on 9 June 1989 during a burglary at his flat above the restaurant.
Head chefs of De Hoefslag
- Gerard Fagel, about 1975–1989
- Wulf Engel, co-head chef, 1981–1985
- André van Doorn, 1985–2001
- Niels van Halen, 2002–2006
- Marc van Gulick, 2006–2007
- Andrès Delpeut, 2007
- Raoul Meuwese, until October 2018
- Bjorn Stukje, from 24 October 2018
- Mark Minkman, from 23 January 2026
- Leon Mazairac, from 1 January 2027
What happened to HFSLG Bar & Bistro?
HFSLG Bar & Bistro was De Hoefslag’s brand name from 2018 until the 2026 reopening, when the house returned to its historic name. Brothers Horeca Group joined in June 2015, according to Entree Magazine and Dutch Wikipedia (ChefsFriends gives 2018). In 2018 designers Hans Kuijten and Claudia Saarloos restyled the building, split it into a larger bistro and a 10-table gastronomic room, and renamed it HFSLG (Entree Magazine).
On 24 October 2018, former De Hoefslag apprentice Bjorn Stukje became head chef, succeeding Raoul Meuwese, who left for Bridges in Amsterdam (ChefsFriends). Aggregators such as Lekker and Tripadvisor still show the HFSLG name and chef Aron van der Grift. Treat those listings as pre-2026.
Chefs who came through De Hoefslag
De Hoefslag has trained and promoted a string of Dutch fine-dining chefs. Three names stand out.
- Wilco Berends: trained here while it held a Michelin star. Now chef-owner of one-star De Nederlanden in Vreeland.
- Bjorn Stukje: apprentice who came back as head chef of HFSLG in 2018.
- André van Doorn: head chef from 1985 to 2001, the longest run on the list.
Wilco Berends: the alumnus often linked to De Hoefslag
Wilco Berends is the chef-owner of De Nederlanden in Vreeland, a one-star restaurant in the MICHELIN Guide’s €€€€ price band (MICHELIN Guide). He was born on 16 April 1972 in Barsingerhorn, Noord-Holland. He trained at Merlet in Schoorl, at De Hoefslag, at two-star Scholteshof in Belgium and at one-star L’Escargot in London, then returned to Merlet as sous-chef and later chef (De Nederlanden, Les Patrons Cuisiniers). His exact role and years at De Hoefslag are not documented.
He joined De Nederlanden, at Duinkerken 3, 3633 EM Vreeland, as chef in 2006 and became its sole owner in 2012. Food Inspiration gives “owner and head chef since August 2009” instead; I follow the restaurant’s own site. Its bio also says he has held a star “every year since 2000”, which predates his arrival in Vreeland, so the early stars most likely belong to his Merlet years.
De Nederlanden at Duinkerken 3, Vreeland: the white listed building (rijksmonument) of Wilco Berends’ one-star restaurant, with the Dutch flag out front. Berends trained at De Hoefslag but never ran it. Photographed on 15 September 2012. Photo: HenkvD, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vreeland\_-\_De\_Nederlanden\_RM26126.JPG (Photo: HenkvD, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vreeland\_-\_De\_Nederlanden\_RM26126.JPG)
Two more facts complete the portrait. In February 2018 he passed the SVH Meesterproef and became an SVH Meesterkok, a Dutch master chef title (Entree Magazine). He cooks with Irish beef, belongs to the Chefs’ Irish Beef Club, and his signature beef dish is tournedos, not a burger (Entree Magazine).
Is De Hoefslag worth the trip from Utrecht?
My advice: wait for the Mazairac era before you make the trip, and never make it for a burger. I have not eaten there under Mark Minkman, and right now nobody can tell you what is on the menu or what it costs. The official site, hfslg.nl, returned an HTTP 522 error when I checked on 14 October 2026. Lekker’s hours (weekday lunch, dinner 17:00–22:00, Saturday dinner only, closed Sunday) predate the January 2026 reopening.
Why wait? Mazairac ran a starred kitchen at Karel 5 for six years, and his plan gives the house two ways in: a brasserie for lunch or a glass of wine, and a gastronomic room for the full evening. That is the De Hoefslag I want to judge, from 1 January 2027. If you go sooner, call +31 30 225 1051 or email info@hfslg.nl to confirm hours and book.
How to get to De Hoefslag from Utrecht Centraal
Bosch en Duin is roughly 8 km east of Utrecht city centre, close enough for a bus or bike ride. That distance is my estimate, so plan the exact bus line and journey time on 9292.nl, the Dutch public transport planner.
Looking for a burger in Utrecht instead?
For burgers, stay in the city and start from our Utrecht burger page. One piece of context: Ter Marsch & Co, the chain Pim de Lange founded in 2014, opened a branch at Voor Clarenburg 2. Its Gojira burger (dry-aged beef, pulled pork, Korean-style toppings) won Best Burger Netherlands and Benelux 2020. That Utrecht branch is now listed as closed, and I could not find the closure date (Entree Magazine).
If a Dutch Michelin chef with an actual burger is what you are after, read our profile of Ron Gastrobar Amsterdam and Ron Blaauw’s Wagyu burger. For the rest of the country, browse the best burgers in Amsterdam, the best burgers in Rotterdam and the best burgers in Eindhoven, or the full Restaurants section.
How I researched this article
I built this profile from desk research, not a meal. Every fact comes from the restaurant’s listings, Dutch and English Wikipedia, the MICHELIN Guide, and Dutch trade press (ChefsFriends, Entree Magazine, Utrecht Business, Tasty Trails), all checked on 14 October 2026. Where sources conflict, I name both and say which one I follow. I left out anything I could not verify, including current menu items and prices.
FAQ: De Hoefslag Bosch en Duin
Is De Hoefslag in Utrecht? No. It is at Vossenlaan 28 in Bosch en Duin, municipality of Zeist, about 8 km east of Utrecht city centre.
Who is the chef at De Hoefslag now? Mark Minkman, head chef and co-owner since the reopening on 23 January 2026. Leon Mazairac takes over the kitchen on 1 January 2027.
Who owns De Hoefslag? Mark Minkman is co-owner, with Rob and Marco Peek of Brothers Horeca Group as partners. From 1 January 2027, Leon Mazairac and Zara Kooke are the owners, with the Peek brothers staying on behind the scenes.
Does De Hoefslag still have a Michelin star? Not that I can confirm. It lost its star around 2018 or 2019, and no MICHELIN Guide listing confirms a new one after the 2026 reopening.
What happened to HFSLG Bar & Bistro? HFSLG was De Hoefslag’s name from 2018. The restaurant reopened under its historic name in January 2026, though older listings still show HFSLG.
Is there a burger on the De Hoefslag menu? No source shows a burger on De Hoefslag’s menu in any era. It is a classical fine-dining restaurant and bistro.
Did Wilco Berends own De Hoefslag? No. Wilco Berends trained at De Hoefslag. He has owned De Nederlanden in Vreeland since 2012.
Which well-known chefs came through De Hoefslag? Wilco Berends of De Nederlanden trained there, Bjorn Stukje started as an apprentice and returned as head chef in 2018, and André van Doorn led the kitchen from 1985 to 2001.
