Greens in the Park

Greens in the Park is located at Kapelweg 18 in The Hague, within Westbroekpark. The site is situated between The Hague and Scheveningen. Public descriptions characterize Greens as a combination of an organic restaurant and a community garden. This positions the venue within a broader trend where hospitality, urban nature, and social employment intersect.

The plan for Greens emerged from a municipal tender in 2015. Robert-Jan Vermeulen, Wessel Tiessens, and Djoeke Delnooz submitted the concept. Vermeulen was described as an entrepreneur. Tiessens was involved as a district developer and the initiator of Zeeheldentuin. Delnooz brought experience from the hospitality industry and expertise in organic food.

Wessel Tiessens won the municipal tender at the end of 2015. He then collaborated with Vermeulen and Delnooz on further development. Greens was officially opened by Mayor Pauline Krikke on May 30, 2018. The following day, on May 31, 2018, the venue opened to the public.

Greens describes itself as a social concept in a park. The foundation is a restaurant with an edible garden. The operation includes people with a distance from the labor market. Products from the garden make their way onto the menu, depending on the season and availability.

The garden also plays a role beyond the kitchen. Stichting Tuinen van Greens organizes garden activities for volunteers and clients with a distance from the labor market. The foundation manages the gardens in partnership with Stichting Mens en Tuin. A portion of the restaurant’s revenue is used to finance the foundation.

For coffee drinkers, the choice of beans and preparation is particularly relevant. The public menu lists freshly roasted organic coffee beans from Brazil. These beans are supplied by Single Estate. The available information does not provide further details regarding the roast profile, processing method, or specific region of origin within Brazil.

The coffee list consists primarily of espresso-based drinks. The menu lists espresso, Americano, double espresso, cappuccino, double cappuccino, cortado, espresso macchiato, koffie verkeerd, latte macchiato, and flat white. Additionally, the December 2024 menu includes iced Americano, iced latte, chai latte, and a Koffie Special.

For milk-based drinks, the menu also lists plant-based options. Oat, almond, and soy milk are available for a small surcharge. Manual filter coffee, batch brew, or other non-espresso methods are not publicly documented in the available materials. As a result, the recorded coffee structure focuses primarily on espresso and milk-based variants.

Greens states that the kitchen cooks with vegetables from its own biodynamic or organic garden as much as possible. The establishment also highlights a focus on seasonality and origin. The menu notes that Greens uses organic beverages as much as possible and sources drinks as locally as feasible.

In addition to Single Estate for coffee, several other suppliers are mentioned. Fleur de Café supplies loose-leaf tea. Bakkerij Bronswijk at Hoeve Biesland supplies bread. The Haagsche Croquetterij is listed for bitterballen and kroketjes. HaagseZwam is mentioned in connection with oyster mushroom bitterballen. For wine, Greens lists only European wines of organic and biodynamic origin, with an emphasis on small-scale viticulture.

The building is described in the available information as featuring various technical amenities. These include solar panels, heat-insulating windows, a rainwater drainage system, and two heat pumps for heating and cooling. These elements align with the broader profile of a restaurant that explicitly presents its garden, building, and sourcing as an integrated whole.

Greens uses the location not only for regular hospitality services. The available information mentions themed evenings, private dining, group reservations, weddings, lunches, receptions, dinners, and meetings. The small greenhouse can also be rented for groups of up to twelve people. Additionally, there are programs that link food to culture or the park.

Examples include Solo’s@thePark with De Dutch Don’t Dance Division, where a three-course dinner is combined with dancing in the gardens. Pizzeria Greens and a Kunstlunch are also mentioned. The Kunstlunch includes a guided visual walk through Westbroekpark, followed by lunch.

Around its opening, Greens received attention in hospitality and local media. Den Haag Centraal published a profile on the founders, the tender, and the concept on May 22, 2018. FoodClicks reported on the official opening on May 30, 2018. Misset Horeca noted on May 31, 2018, that Greens had opened on the former mini-golf course in Westbroekpark.

Later, there were also reports regarding the garden’s surroundings. In 2019, Greens announced that the Municipality of The Hague had awarded a Gulden Klinker for a project that makes the area cleaner, safer, or more pleasant. In 2020, Greens reported that Mayor Jan van Zanen unveiled the nineteenth sculpture in the gardens, linked to an initiative for temporary art in Westbroekpark.