In 2025 Leiden will top the list of sustainable venues in The Netherlands
Both business and climate profit from energy efficiency
Small footprint tapwater
can generate revenue
Regional produce
on every menu
Waste reduction, saving material resources
your sustainable choice can make a difference
The hospitality business in the Leiden area is hardly acquainted with renewable energy, fair trade products, organic ingredients, MSC en ASC fish or plant protein. Restaurants and bars still waste a lot of food, energy and drinking water. Food leftovers, wrappings and all other waste are often disposed of in one bin.
They can do so much better! We are professionals with a business and/or academic background. We live in Leiden and surrounding area and cannot wait any longer. So we are running projects to help Leiden's restaurants and bars become more sustainable. Proprietors often work long hours and do not get down to sustainable innovations.
The good news is that you can help us raise their awareness on your day or night out. Read on
Not convinced? Look here.
Enjoy your stay in Leiden at these venues
All sustainable frontrunners in the Leiden area.
AlohaSteenstraat 22, Leiden
Aloha
Steenstraat 22, Leiden- 100% vegetarian
- vegan options
- organic coffee
- plantbased dairy options
- interior mostly re-used materials
- LED-lit
- outdoor terrace with non-fossil warmth (blankets)
Bar van SiemLammenschansplein 2, Leiden
Bar van Siem
Lammenschansplein 2, Leiden- vegetarian and vegan options
- vegan cakes and dairy options
- very little food waste
- tapwater on offer
- no plastic single use products
- LED lighting
- renewable energy
- meals to order in winter
Burgemeester GoeswijnChoorlammersteeg 1d, Leiden
Burgemeester Goeswijn
Choorlammersteeg 1d, Leiden- all wines from the continent (less foodmiles)
- all dishes vegetarian or vegan
- tapwater is offered to all guests
- tea organic and fairtrade
- juices, some softdrinks and egg organic
- soy and oat dairy available, vegan mayo
- vintage interior
De StalDarwinweg 1, Leiden
De Stal
Darwinweg 1, Leiden- lots of vegetarian options
- two vegan dishes
- fairtrade coffee and chocolate
- homegrown herbs for infusion
- veggies and fruit partly homegrown
- solar panels
- rainwater collection
- interior partly vintage
Eetcafé De VoogdHoofdstraat 267b, Sassenheim
Eetcafé De Voogd
Hoofdstraat 267b, Sassenheim- ample choice in vegetarian
- meatless Mondays: veggie dishes reduced price
- organic coffee, tea, icecream and soft drinks
- veggie Dutch snacks (kroketten, bitterballen)
- tapwater self service
- no plastic straws
- serviettes and cutlery bags biodisposable
Het SlachthuisMeelfabriekplein 1, Leiden
Het Slachthuis
Meelfabriekplein 1, Leiden- all-vegan menu
- seasonal produce
- organic coffee and tea
- organic tomato juice
- LED-lighting
- energy-efficient kitchen
- venue well insulated
What you can do
Ask the waiter or proprietor for what you think is important.
Blog
How restaurants and bars in the Leiden area move towards sustainability.
Click here to see all blogs.
Our team
We are proud of our super team, but we could do with a native English speaker. Are you connected with an English speaking community in the Leiden area? Would you like to extend your network while supporting our sustainability goals?
Maybe you can help us involve more foreign communities in our region.
Contact us
team
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Roland is our projectmanager for the waste management of restaurants, shops and offices in the centre of Leiden. He has prepared a pilot for reduction and sorting of all discarded matter, as well as for a clean and quiet collection method.
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Jolanda is our projectmanager for the creation of a regional and sustainable food chain in the foodservice markets in the Leiden area (hospitality and catering). We are running this project in close collaboration with the Dutch union of farmers. The project promotes shorter food chains and will enhance sustainable food production in our region.
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Lize is our steady data-researcher and fills our database. She also designs our newsletters.
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Mieke is our expert treasurer. She not only helps out as a controller, but also advises us about our long term plans and their funding.
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Benjamin is assistant professor at CML, the institute of Environmental Sciences of Leiden University.
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At present a master student of law, Emily has been active in environmental protection for years. Recently she was a board member with Studenten voor Morgen, a sustainability network of students in The Netherlands. Emily represents our foundation at public events.
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Anna is a biologist and earth scientist. She is committed to sustainability and environmental awareness in many ways. She sometimes twitters for us and assists us with our crowd communication.
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Marijtje is driven by a strong affinity with nature. Her focus is on food because of its impact on the environment and on life in general. She is active in food transition in various roles. Marijtje, also co-founder of the Leiden community-farm Het Zoete Land, is helping our foundation with a longterm project to get sustainable regional produce on restaurant menus.
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Bas is our digital magician. He builds tools (as he calls it) for the website, and fulfills all of our other digital wishes. He does this because he supports our goals.
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Student Sophie helps us inform the crowds. In 2019 she organized two smashing, fully-booked Tasting Trails along sustainable restaurants. At each venue, participants were offered delicious bites and pitches about eating out sustainably. She is going to repeat this for us in 2020.
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As a professional web analyst, Simone contributes as a volunteer to our digital visibility and effectiveness in the long run. She not only loves data, but is also very interested in gardens and in making our environment greener.
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We could do with a native English speaker. Would you like to inform tourists and expats at a local event, or translate our blogs? Mail us and we will get back to you!
our board
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Minke is an anthropologist and an experienced consultant in international trade. She is also a passionate amateur cook. Sustainablility underlies all of her activities. Within our board she will initially focus on the development of a regional food supply chain for the hospitality and catering business.
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As long as he can remember, Jeroen has wanted to make the world a little greener. At first he chose a political path. More recently he has decided to set up green projects locally, varying from a neighbourhood kitchen garden to a Leiden foodshop-without-packaging.
He gladly accepted an invitation to join our foundation, because our common consumptive patterns can really better the world. -
Daphne is a master of business administration with twenty years of experience across a number of sectors. A more sustainable organization of our economy is now her core business, in order to keep our planet healthy for all living creatures in the long run. She enjoys the innovations with which entrepreneurs respond to today's demands. And she loves eating out!
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Govert-Jan is co-founder of our organisation, together with Carien. He is always pondering how we can improve the world. How we can make it more sustainable, kinder to all living creatures. So, where to begin? A better world can start on your plate!
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Carien is co-founder of our organisation, together with Govert-Jan. She loves wine and good food, provided that it doesn’t harm our planetary life. Therefore, she has thought up many ways to stimulate sustainable entrepreneurship in the hospitality sector. She loves co-creating projects with partners in the business and other stakeholders.
Support us
Our Foundation is a non-profit organization, but our projects come at a price.
We need money to cover our office costs, promotion and services. Every donation fully benefits our goals. We account for all gifts and expenses in our year reports.
Our Foundation is a recognized Public Benefit Organisation (ANBI in Dutch), meaning that you may deduct your gift to us from your Dutch income tax or corporate income tax.
We will gladly accept your gift at NL50 TRIO 0197 9712 88 Triodosbank.
Partners
Our Foundation has received a donation from Leiden municipality and from the regional Fonds 1818. And to set up a sustainable regional food chain for restaurants, B&B’s and hotels, we have struck up a long term partnership with farmers’ union LTO Noord and with Provincie Zuid-Holland.
What they say about us
Eating out scrumptiously and simultaneously helping our city forward. This is possible if you pick one of the venues on this site for your lunch or dinner. For all these frontrunners contribute to a more sustainable Leiden. Did you know that some restaurants waste dozens of kilograms of good food on a daily basis? And that sorting waste can be a challenge in the centre of town? Therefore, we have set up a project. Together with Duurzaamuiteten and Centrum Management Leiden we are enabling the reduction of residual waste, recovery of recyclable matter and a clean and quiet transport of both.
Yvonne van Delft, Leiden's alderwoman for Work and Income, Economy en Culture
Delicious food and sustainability can go hand in hand, as this website shows. Please feel free to use it when you're looking for venues to lunch, dine or have a drink in the Leiden area. And don't hesitate to make use of the suggestions under `how you can help´. These can come in handy on many occasions and will stimulate awareness. Together we go for sustainable hospitality in Leiden!
Paul Dirkse, Leiden's alderman for Education, Sports and Finance
