Jozua Jaring has held a Michelin star at Ratatouille Food & Wine since 2014, cooking modern French on the Spaarne river in central Haarlem. The signature course is the one the restaurant is named for: a ratatouille of baba ganoush, gnocchi and parmesan that closes the savoury run on every menu. Four courses start at €110 and the top Menu Exceptionnel reaches €225. The room seats few, the lunch and dinner services are short, and Jaring works the pass himself most nights.
The Kitchen
Jozua Jaring opened Ratatouille Food & Wine in Haarlem and won his Michelin star in 2014, an award the room has held every year since, including the 2025 Michelin Guide Netherlands. Michelin praised the restaurant at the ceremony as an example of a new generation of Dutch dining: less expensive, less rigid, more open. Jaring also keeps a Gault&Millau listing and runs a second, more casual Haarlem address, Brasserie Bruis.
His cooking is precise rather than showy. He sets sweet against sour and warm against cold, builds a vegetable jus with real depth, and is happy to drop an Asian citrus note into a French classic. The plates carry his name as much as the room does: the namesake ratatouille of baba ganoush, gnocchi and parmesan is the constant, and the Menu Exceptionnel runs through langoustine with sea urchin and caviar, turbot with cockles, foie gras in a sugar crust and Kagoshima Wagyu A5 before a Grand Marnier soufflé. The address is Spaarne 96, on the river in the centre of Haarlem, and the choice is simple: the four-, five- or six-course Menu de Chef from €110, or the Menu Exceptionnel at €179 for four courses and €225 for six. A vegetarian menu runs the full length.
The Room
The dining room is small and low-lit, the kind of space where the table next to you is close enough to overhear but the noise never climbs past a steady hum. Lighting is warm and dim, weighted toward the plate. Tables are well spaced for a room this size, dressed in white linen, and the service is formal without stiffness. There is no posted jacket rule, but smart dress fits the setting and most guests arrive that way. The whole room turns over once a service across short lunch and dinner sittings, so the pace is unhurried once you are seated.
Best for Proposal
Book Ratatouille for a proposal because the room does the quiet work for you. It seats few, so the evening feels private rather than public; the lighting is low and flattering; and the long Menu Exceptionnel gives you a three-hour arc with natural pauses between courses to talk. The kitchen will mark a celebration if you tell them when you book. Picture a corner table on the Spaarne, the soufflé landing as the plates clear, and a ring coming out over coffee. For more rooms like it, see our guide to proposal dinners.
Not for a fast or cheap meal. Menus run three hours and start at €110 a head before wine, and the kitchen sets one unhurried pace for the whole room.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Ratatouille Food & Wine worth it?
Yes, if you want ambitious modern French in a small, personal room rather than a grand temple. Jozua Jaring has held a Michelin star here since 2014, and his cooking pairs real technique with a lighter, less formal touch than most one-star kitchens. Menus start at €110 for four courses, so it is a considered splurge. Go for the cooking and the intimacy, not for spectacle. See our Haarlem dining guide for alternatives.
How hard is it to book Ratatouille Food & Wine?
Moderately hard. The dining room is small and serves short lunch and dinner sittings, so weekend tables and special-occasion dates fill well ahead. Book on the restaurant's own site or by phone on +31 23 542 7270, ideally two to four weeks out for a Friday or Saturday. Weekday dinners and lunches are easier to land at shorter notice. Tell them if you are marking an occasion when you reserve.
What should I order at Ratatouille Food & Wine?
Take a full tasting menu rather than ordering piecemeal; the kitchen is built around its set menus. The Menu de Chef from €110 is the core experience, while the Menu Exceptionnel at €179 to €225 adds langoustine, turbot, foie gras and Kagoshima Wagyu A5. Whichever you choose, the namesake ratatouille course and the Grand Marnier soufflé are the two plates not to miss.
What is the dress code at Ratatouille Food & Wine?
There is no formal jacket requirement, but smart dress suits the room and most guests arrive dressed up. Think a jacket or a smart shirt for men and equivalent for everyone else; this is a Michelin-starred dining room on the Spaarne, not a casual bistro. You will feel comfortable in business-smart or occasion wear, and slightly out of place in trainers and shorts at dinner.