Jos van Oosterhout (1959) joined Mitland 45 years ago. The Food & Beverage manager saw many changes, but some things are still exactly the same, according to him. "Nineteen years old I was. Just finished school and I wanted to work right away. In those days, Mitland was still called the Mitbanen. Even then a household name in Utrecht. Business was going so well that the complex could be expanded with a restaurant, with room for about 80 guests. That appealed to me. Right from the opening I was allowed to help make this new facility a success. The menu was not as extensive as it is now. Sandwiches and platters of satay and especially bitterballen were very popular. On the tables the first fondue pans were splashing cozily. The men ordered a lager or a coke of vieux. The ladies liked sherry, rosé or a sweet German white wine. We wrote down the bill on the back of a beer mat. Everyone still paid in cash. If people couldn't pay, we wrote the outstanding amount "on the lath. The Netherlands discovered nightlife and
'going out' gradually took on a different meaning.
Of course, with the arrival of the hotel, there had to be a serious meal on the table for our guests, everyday fare like steak or a slice of fried salmon. For dessert a dame blanche or a sorbet with a parasol. In the early 1990s there was even an aquarium with live lobsters in the restaurant. There appeared to be little demand for lobster, so the tank with seawater soon disappeared. Fortunately, the hotel did run like clockwork. The fondue pan gave way to the gourmet plate and the menu became more varied. In those years we had many company parties and hosted many staff associations. Of course, a little humor was not to be missed. If an English guest inquired if we also had "mussels," we would show off our muscular arms.
We made long days of sometimes up to 14 hours at a time. But no one complained. Over ditches of coffee and a quick smoke outside, we kept it up at that age. Afterwards we always went over the issues of the day with each other. And then around 3 or 4 o'clock we went to bed dead tired but satisfied. The kitchen looks like a laboratory these days with all those screens and automated systems. We have cocktails and mocktails and an extensive vegetarian selection. There is decaffeinated cappuccino with soy milk and tea made of thinly sliced fresh ginger with honey and a slice of orange. There is granola, cruesli and leftover yogurt. And the gourmet plate has given way to the table grill. My unappreciated, insanely involved staff in the kitchen and in the service are no longer the bending "cutter" of old with black vest. We now wear dark blue shirts, trendy green aprons and walk on sneakers. But we are still just as serviceable and hospitable 45 years later as on the first day I started at Mitland. And we may not be able to fulfill every wish, but we do try terribly hard."