Al he and his now-deceased brother Herman built their grandparents' eel smokehouse into a real empire, Allie Simonis still calls himself a fishmonger.

Catch in the Second Harbour

No fancy suits and frills for this pater familias. This afternoon, he sits in a simple pullover over a cup of tea at Catch in the Tweede Haven. There are already five 'regular' Simonis outlets in The Hague and Scheveningen, a market stall and two high-end restaurants.

Father Allie (right) and son Alain are still full of ideas to expand Simonis.

But on the shiny table are the glitzy impressions of two of the three new projects the entrepreneurial family will use to beautify the face of Scheveningen harbour in the coming years.

Whence the expansionism? From his hand, Allie makes a telephone receiver. "'Can we come over for dinner tonight?' 'No, sorry.' 'And tomorrow?' 'Neither.' If you have to sell no all the time, it can come across as arrogant. We don't want that." He refers to the success that has engulfed French à la carte restaurant Catch since it opened in 2013.

Encore

Son Alain, who rules the roost here, adds: "That's why we opened Encore further down the road in 2017, in the old Harbour Club. Besides the shared-dining restaurant, there is a large hall for weddings and events with well-known artists, among others. Everything that can't be done at Catch can be done there. But Encore, too, is increasingly full."

At the corner of the Fish Auction and the First Harbour, a restaurant with a Spanish character will emerge.

With plans for large-scale new construction on the Northern Harbour Head and the filling-in of the monumental smokehouse, the Simonissen were already in full swing when a site suddenly became available on the corner of the Fish Auction and the First Harbour. "We didn't hesitate, a place like this only comes up for sale once," Allie states. "That's how it is with business: you set your sights on something and then everything turns out differently. It is a big investment, but we look at it over a period of thirty years."

For Allie, it doesn't matter so much anymore, he is 65 now. "For the children, it does, they have to move on, and there are more and more of them. The show must go on."

Spanish cuisine

Of the three new 'shops', as Alain invariably calls the restaurants, this one will be the first to open in autumn 2022. Alain: "To fill it, we asked ourselves: what is missing in The Hague that fits within Simonis? Then of course I'm talking about fish, that's the basis."

The new building on the North Pier Head will soon be partly sunk into a dune landscape.

Soon the gentlemen ended up with Mediterranean cuisine, the richest in fish along with Asian. "Spanish cuisine is quite well-known, but often lacks a certain level of service and international character. Although I think it is a terrible word, it will be a kind of gastrobar as we have seen on our inspiration trips to London, Dubai, New York and Miami."

Unlike most Spanish family-run businesses, the new restaurant - which does not yet have a name - lacks dark corners and a cosy bar. "Thanks to the large window area and a nice position on the sun, it will be bright," Alain explains. "We will make room for an open kitchen and a big bar where cocktails will be served - a lively shop."

Mussels, prawns and squid

And the map? "We haven't thought it out in detail yet. The idea is that, like with the Spaniards at home, you can eat dishes that you can easily share. Think mussels, prawns and squid, but it can essentially be with any kind of fish."

Back to the Northern Harbour Head. After ten years of development, the first pile of Simonis' flat and catering complex will soon be driven into the ground there. "For that, you have to be strong in your shoes," sighs Allie. "As a fishmonger, you can only think about three days a week: if the fish stays away. And there are SO many procedures, it drives you crazy."

An impression of the flats on the floors above the establishment to be built on the North Harbour Head.

However, the entrepreneur never thought of giving up. "Where Simonis aan de Haven is now, it has to leave because the premises will soon be reserved for industrial fishing companies only. Then you can sell the place, but you'll have nothing. While we will soon be at the most beautiful point of the Havenhoofd."

The catering business on the North Pier Head will cover 5,000 square metres.

And that with as much as 5,000 square metres of hospitality and retail space spread over two floors, with flats on top. "Eighty per cent of the commercial space is downstairs. There, the atmosphere should be maintained as it is now: informal and approachable, not even a more modern version," Alain said. "Upstairs will be a restaurant whose working title now is 'Catch 2.0', building on the existing formula." "And the great thing is," Allie interrupts his son, "that soon no more catering facilities will be allowed to be added according to the zoning plan either. You understand that's beneficial for us."

Old smokehouse on Dr Lelykade

Then there is the old smokehouse on Dr Lelykade, which Allie bought eight years ago. "A nostalgic project," he calls it. "My father and mother's smokehouse in the city centre also had such a beautiful pipe. But yes, what to do with it?" Catering requires parking space and there was none at the time. Since then, a residential building with a garage has sprung up next to the smokehouse, solving that problem. "So now you wonder: what are they going to do there again?" laughs Alain, who thinks this is "the coolest building in the whole port". "We're thinking Italian. For that too: lots of mass, little on level. But don't pin us down on it, it could change again tomorrow."

Simonis

A little longer and you can eat out at a different Simonis on Scheveningen every day of the week. "There are still plenty of ideas in the quiver," assures Alain. "So many things can be done with fish. And 15 nationalities work at Catch and Encore, so we can endlessly combine cuisines and flavours." 

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