British TV chef Nigella Lawson recently visited our capital for her ‘Amsterdam Christmas special’. Many typical old Dutch references were discussed. For example, she visited a cheese shop, made cookies in the shape of canal houses and tulips and visited Mariska Schaefer’s sweet shop.
Since then everyone has wanted ‘Nigella’s licorice’. “Yesterday I was just crying with happiness,” Schaefer tells Editie NL. “My phone kept ringing, one order after another. My website is blowing up, and I also have 800 followers on Instagram. It’s really great. I’m a hotel debotel.”
In her shop she sells old-fashioned sweets such as cinnamon sticks, butter waffles and egg rolls, but also newer sweets. “Nigella herself was very fond of the real salty sal ammoniac,” Schaefer beams. “But she eventually recommended other sweets. Also because the English often find sal ammoniac too salty.”
Stock almost empty
The soft-sweet canal houses and caramel sticks that Nigella highlighted in her Christmas special are now selling like hot cakes. “I have already removed the caramel sticks from the site, because supplies are going fast. I don’t want to have to say ‘no’,” says Schaefer.
The candy seller himself is still shocked by the effect. “Nigella is actually a kind of goddess. When she says something is tasty, people accept it.”
Iconic
Tourism expert Marco van Leeuwen understands why Nigella is so enthusiastic about the typical Dutch products. “Old Dutch works well because it is iconic. That is what we look for when we visit a country. When you are in Paris, you also want to see the Eiffel Tower and have your picture taken with it.”
Old Dutch is not just about one specific time period. “It is about the time of Pietje Bell, Kruimeltje and the Great Masters of painting. And about nostalgia and the associated icons, such as cheese, windmills, skates and clogs. And therefore also old Dutch sweets. Nostalgia is timeless because it affects people.”
It is therefore no coincidence that a popular British TV chef goes to an old Dutch sweet shop. “The shop touches on the iconic picture and the nostalgia of the Netherlands. The fact that she visited during the festive period further contributes to its popularity. People want to put something tasty on the table during this period. In addition, there are also many tourists around this time of year.”
2023-12-29 17:04:46
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