Lennart Deddens – The Stockroom

My Life

I grew up in a small town called Stadskanaal in the province of Groningen—up in the north of the Netherlands. I’m the oldest of three kids and we had a wonderful childhood. It was also here where I took my first steps in the hospitality industry, working as a dishwasher in a family-owned restaurant. I was 14 years old at the time and continued to work there on and off during weekends up until I was 17. Actually, after moving up the ranks to kitchen help and then waiter, I eventually became a bartender.

When I turned 17, it was time to move to the “big city”—Groningen—which had me under its spell (read, more bars, girls, etc.). I studied International Hospitality Management at the local hotel school and gained work experience alongside my studies in various hospitality-related businesses.

After spending a year in South Africa finalizing my International Bachelor’s degree and wines certificate, I moved to Brussels where I got a job as assistant F&B manager. By then my interest in the cocktail and bartending culture had started to truly blossom and I didn’t have to think twice when the manager of The Dominican Design Hotel in Brussels offered me a job as a bar manager. Four fantastic years followed before it was time for me to move on and look for the next level within the world of cocktailian possibilities.

“I did miss the “true bar life” and working with a team of bartenders….

Lennart Deddens

I took chef Yves Mattagne up on his offer to become head bartender for his businesses, enticed by the possibility to co-create the most extraordinary F&B stuff with his chefs, who were all working at a three-star Michelin level. It was a very educational experience to work with chefs and creative masterminds of this calibre, but I did miss the “true bar life” and working with a team of bartenders as I was the only one within Yves’ group. That’s why I took the opportunity to return “home,” so to speak, in 2013 and set up the cocktail bar and in-house distillery at a place called Mr. Mofongo—a famous restaurant in Groningen which had the ambition to significantly expand by adding a fully new guest experience to their concept. For me this was a great way to dive deeper into the world of distillation and start creating my cocktail recipes directly from the source: the base spirit.

“The Stockroom adventure in March of 2019, became the first true speakeasy cocktail bar in the city of Groningen”.

Lennart Deddens

I left Mr. Mofongo after four years to become brand ambassador for Hooghoudt Distillers, focusing primarily on the Genever category. And to this day, I’m still promoting Holland’s most special spirit wherever and whenever I can. Hooghoudt, like many other brands, is also a client of Boilermaker, the brand activation agency for premium spirits and beer brands that I started with my associate and best friend Peter Torenbosch in 2017. Over the years it has grown into a full-service business. In 2019 the evolution of our company gained momentum with the realization of two hospitality concepts. One was the opening of BOEL, a street food restaurant combined with eight pétanque lanes and, naturally, a very nice bar. The other one, The Stockroom adventure in March of that year, became the first true speakeasy cocktail bar in the city of Groningen. We often call The Stockroom the pearl or the pride and joy of what has become The Boilermaker Group today, especially after being awarded Best New Cocktail Bar of the Netherlands by Entree Magazine only a few months after opening our doors.

My private life is just as busy as my professional one, since my wife Linda owns a fitness studio especially for women and we’ve got two beautiful and lively boys called Noam (three years) and Louen (four months). Of course, without a doubt, they are my true pride and joy.

The Stockroom

During a cocktail training at Hooghoudt distillers I met Erik Beeftink, who had the brilliant plan to open Groningen’s first true speakeasy cocktail bar and found the perfect location for it—a former vinyl record store, transformed into a dry storage room for the restaurant next door. The Stockroom was born and we managed to create a place like no other. At The Stockroom you are welcomed with open arms and immersed in an exceptional drinking experience that pays homage to the bygone speakeasy era. We serve the finest drinks using only top-quality products. Classic cocktails like in the Roaring 20s, but given a seasonal twist. Expect high-quality service and hospitality from our talented bartenders who understand how to deliver an unforgettable experience; they take pride in and enjoy their experimentation with locally grown ingredients and homemade bitters and liquors.

Best Bars and Restaurants in Groningen

The Future

The bar industry will evolve greatly over the coming years. How and what exactly will happen is hard to predict, but it’s clear that we need to protect ourselves better for future pandemics like Covid-19. Trends and developments which were already happening before will and must be taken more seriously, such as sustainability, for example, making use of circular energy sources, but also working with local producers and craft products. I expect bars to keep furthering ready-to-drink concepts for home use and in general be more aware of sustainable ways of operating a bar concept. That said, for the short term we will be mainly focusing on recovering from the corona virus pandemic as much as possible and have our bars and teams up and running again. Interaction with our team and our guests is what we’ve dearly missed the last few months and it’s what we live for.

Profile

Year born: 1984

Special skills: I believe I am pretty good at inspiring people and lifting the spirits of my team and others, “simply” by conveying my own passion, knowledge, experience, and enthusiasm. Besides, I’m always thinking of ways to improve on what we have and am constantly looking for other interesting opportunities to work on and eventually bring to life within our existing concepts.

Free time: Spending time with my wife and two sons / fitness / tennis / cooking for family and friends / listening to music

Bartender since: 2002

Biggest fail: At The Stockroom we have a wooden ladder to get to the top shelves of the back bar. Clumsy as I sometimes can be, I tend to drop a bottle once in a while when making my way up and down. Guests always enjoy a good laugh when watching me struggle.

Most significant career step: Starting my own business in 2016. The adventure of combining the experience everyone from our team has gained over the years into successful concepts.

Favourite cocktail: A Martinez twist with Genever. Because the Martinez is the godfather of the dry martini, made with Holland gin, actually Genever. Apart from the fact that it’s just an awesome cocktail, combining a slightly bitter and sweet flavor palate, it’s a spirit-forward cocktail.

Check out Lennart’s cocktail recipe: The Stockroom Martinez.

Favourite bar: Jiggers in Ghent, Belgium. You’ll find some of the very best bartenders there. Their knowledge of cocktails and ingredients is outstanding—always seasonal and always with a local twist. Not to mention their service level and awesome bar design. Besides, owner Olivier Jacobs has been a true inspiration during my early cocktailian days.

Groningen: Groningen means home to me. The best and officially the “happiest” city in the Netherlands! Most probably because there’s no curfew for bars and restaurants. 🙂 Furthermore it’s the home base from which our businesses operate, the biggest city in the north of the Netherlands (200k+ inhabitants) with a nice mix of young and old people.

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