Estimated reading time: 9 minutes
Everyone knows, of course, that it should actually be "what you get from afar is tasty". However, I have personally experienced that this does not always have to be the case. At the invitation of the Tholen Better Known Foundation, I was allowed to come and discover all the gems of this island for two days. Although Tholen can no longer be called an island due to some bridges here and there, the inhabitants are very proud of "Island Tholen". Read along in this report what you get up close is tasty and judge for yourself whether you still have to go very far for something delicious.
Tholen Island
Tholen is made up of a number of islands that were created by the reclamation of salt marshes from the 12th century. Through a number of damming and reclamation, five smaller islands eventually formed Tholen. Until 1928 it could only be reached by a ferry service from Halsteren. Later that year, the first bridge was built over the Eendracht. Tholen was also badly hit during the great flood disaster in 1953. In total, more than 1800 Zeelanders lost their lives. During our discovery tour we drove along almost all villages by bicycle, solex and car.
What you get up close is tasty: Poortvliet
With a lovely sun, a fresh Zeeland bolus and a cup of tea, we were warmly welcomed at Landscape camping Kruytenberg. This campsite is characterized by lots of greenery, tranquility, space and a beautiful herb garden. And it soon became clear to us that this is not just a garden! Owned by the same family since 1838 and therefore also a beautiful family business that cleared a piece of farmland for a beautiful garden.
Maintained by Patras familias Hans, now 73 years old. Hans knows how to tell us all about the different seeds, herbs and plants and there are now more than 400 species in the garden. The guests of the campsite can also come and pick delicious fresh herbs for their dinner. We continued our journey with bicycles that are also rented here.
Sint Maartensdijk
The bike ride passed vast flower fields, farmland and, above all, a lot of nature and brought us to the next stop, Sint Maartensdijk. There we were welcomed by Roland van Tilburg. What was very nice is that Roland lived in the village where I now live, in Andel North Brabant. He has opened a kind of alternative tourist office on a nice characteristic square where you can find all kinds of information about the region.
But you can also buy tasty and fun stitch products here. The village has a very close relationship with our Royal Family. Jacoba van Beieren married here in 1434, unfortunately the castle has been demolished, but there are plenty of other nice things to see. Our bike ride continued to the next village.
Stavenisse
Jokingly by our guide, Martine van @zweeuwsefoodie, Called “the end of the world” we took a seat on the terrace at restaurant 't Packhuys. And being on the water with the sea in front of us, it almost seemed to be the case. Stavenisse was hit the hardest by the aforementioned flood disaster, in the village you will find a memorial for this.
After all that cycling we were ready for something delicious. In the sun we enjoyed a "Zeeland 12 hours". A nice board filled with sandwiches, fish soup, fish croquette and homemade tuna salad. Those Zeelanders know how to make a nice fish platter and here too it meant "what you get from close by is tasty"!
St. Annaland
Called “Stalland” by the locals, it has the last operating regional produce auction in the Netherlands. And what fun we had there. Delicious local products that can be bought for a nice price. Press the button at the right time and you own a delicious liqueur or a bowl of sweet strawberries.
The proceeds of these auctions benefit the Regional Museum De Meeste. Here you can really go back in time for a look at life in the past. We found out that we did not go unnoticed in this close-knit community when we were interviewed by Broadcaster Zeeland, and the written press also occasionally joined in during our trip.
crab creek
Of course there was also somewhere to sleep. Our journey continued to the Krabbenbeek chalet park. There we got a short tour of the park and we could freshen up before the evening program. We are and will remain food bloggers, of course, so a nice bite to eat could not be missed during this trip. And what a surprise that was, we were served a fantastic three-course dinner offered by Restaurant Buutengaets while enjoying delicious wines. With a truly enchanting view of the harbor and the sea. That was a very nice end to the first day at Tholen!
Wet Boot Tour
And that was not a word of a lie. With the solex made available to us by “de Deubraek” who also provided our delicious Zeeland breakfast, we left for the dike of St Maartensdijk. In search of seaweed, salt marshes, sea lavender and samphire, all under the inspiring leadership of breed Zeelander Lenie Ponse. She took us up the salt marshes and with a matching, sometimes unintelligible Zeeland accent, she told us everything about life on the seabed. As a surprise, she had arranged a complete tasting. We got to taste delicious algae and various Zeeland regional products, all prepared by Lenie herself in her kitchen.
What you get up close is tasty: Oud Vossemeer
The fact that Zeeland appears to be closely connected to America soon became clear to us during our stopover in Oud Vossemeer. The ancestors of several American presidents were born here. The Roosevelt family. Also known for several famous sayings. We were welcomed in restaurant Huys van Roosevelt, and that connection cannot be missed there! At a really beautifully decorated table we enjoyed a fine burger made from the meat of a Thoolse double-billed cow. And you know it tastes good when an entire table full of clucking food bloggers falls silent. Tholen Better Known Foundation
What you get up close is tasty
That all good things come to an end is a fact. As a last stop we drove back to Tholen where Martine gave us a small tour of her town. That Zeeland has more to offer than the well-known beaches, Renesse and Middelburg, for example, is clear after this voyage of discovery of the island of Tholen. We concluded this adventure with a delicious snack board at Eetcafé Hart van Tholen and each drove home. I hope I have been able to convince you that a weekend trip to Eiland Tholen is definitely a "Bucketlist" trip!
Do you also want to see what we experienced, the video material was processed in the week 20.19 weekvlog, click here for the footage.
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This blog "What you get up close is tasty" was written in a paid collaboration with Stichting Tholen Beter Known
Tholen Better Known Foundation