Mijn Restaurant: Mechelen duo closes Setl for three days

The Mechelen duo in the VTM series Mijn Restaurant, Elroy Krijnen and Gaetano Volpicelli, have closed their restaurant Setl for three days, five days after the competing restaurants opened to the public. They announced it on Instagram after a jury visit that has not yet aired, HLN and Het Nieuwsblad reported on 15 and 16 October.

“After the last jury visit, which ultimately went wrong, we had to decide to close for the next three days, to regroup and start again from zero,” Krijnen said, according to Het Nieuwsblad. Volpicelli said their ambitions remain high, “but we ran into a wall. Running a restaurant is hard.” Bookings were cancelled and the duo apologised to guests. “We’ll be back with Setl 2.0,” they said.

Marc Coucke speaks of a lack of respect

On this kind of television, a dress rehearsal becomes a real service the moment the bookings are real.

Setl, a fine-dining concept with Italian hospitality, occupies the premises of the restaurant Maillard opposite Mechelen station, which its owner rented to VTM for the series, the regional site Made in reported. Krijnen, 31, is a chef from Breda, Netherlands; Volpicelli, 29, is a sommelier from Naples.

The pair finished first in the jury’s opening test. In the dress rehearsal, broadcast on 13 October, they served a tasting menu instead of à la carte, largely with the same dishes as in the first round. HLN reported that a shortage of staff and experience was given as the reason. Jury member Marc Coucke replied: “I find this a lack of respect for the first place we gave. What are we actually doing here?”

The episode shown on Thursday 15 October followed the rest of that service. According to Het Nieuwsblad, the first dishes arrived after two hours. The jury called the langoustine a disaster, Shannah Zeebroek declined to eat it and the duck was described as dry and cold. The panel left before dessert. “You both have talent, but the symphony doesn’t work,” the jury told the duo.

What is at stake in Mijn Restaurant

The new season of Mijn Restaurant started on 6 October. Five duos run restaurants with public reservations in Ghent, Halle, Hasselt, Mechelen and Ostend, judged on cooking, hospitality and service by entrepreneur Marc Coucke, chef Marcelo Ballardin, pastry chef Sarah Renson and sommelier Shannah Zeebroek. Last season’s winners, Charlotte and Aristide of the restaurant Lucien, are now working on a Lucien 2.0, according to TVvisie.

Off-screen, Flemish chefs face the same choice between set menu and à la carte: in Kortrijk, Matthieu Beudaert opened Chambres d’Amis à la carte this month.

The jury visit behind the closure has yet to air. Mijn Restaurant continues on Tuesday and Thursday evenings on VTM, and Setl is due to reopen after three days; no date has been announced.