The story
Novaela, at Bagijnhof 118 in Delft, is a seafood-focused French kitchen that earned one Michelin star for 2026. The restaurant cooks in a 17th-century building, where an oak ceiling and old clay floor sit beside softly coloured walls and modern art.
Chef Daniël Duijster Gomero, who has Peruvian roots, builds the menu around fish and shellfish, with seasonal terroir products added alongside. Gault&Millau gave the restaurant 14 points for 2026, citing the passion he puts into every dish.
The menu moves through five chapters, Cru, Silk, BBQ, Fruit and Comfort, and each course grows in intensity. Line-caught sea bass arrives with cockles, razor clams and liquid creams of peanut, kiwi and dill. Barbecued langoustine is glazed with weigle syrup and served with homemade malt bread. Dessert is pear, prepared several ways, with whisky caramel and a black cardamom broth.
Recognition
Ambience
Details
History
High quality cooking
After years of working as an independent chef at top restaurants such as FG Restaurant in Rotterdam and Flore in Amsterdam, driven chef Daniël Duijster Gomero, who has Peruvian roots, embarked on a new adventure together with his partner and hostess Eline Stroomberg. In 2024, they opened their own fine dining establishment in a historic building on the Bagijnhof in Delft. The name Novaela comes from supernovae 1a, a natural phenomenon that symbolizes balance. For Daniël, it serves as a guiding principle for his restaurant, which seeks harmony between tradition and innovation, embraces a welcoming approach, and certainly includes the occasional joke. On the plate, there is no excess or showiness, but rather sublime flavors that truly matter, presented in ultimate balance and refinement. The menu is structured into chapters: Cru, Silk, BBQ, Fruit, and Comfort, with each chapter translating a specific texture or flavor. The dishes build in quantity and intensity. On weekdays, an à la carte menu and a business lunch are also available. Daniël favors seafood, and the line-caught, dry-aged sea bass fillets accompanied by cockles, razor clams, and liquid creams of peanuts, kiwi, and dill are already memorable. The same applies to the barbecued langoustine, glazed with weigle syrup, served with homemade malt bread, melted mangalica fat, hazelnut cream, and crispy capers. What ingenuity! The finale is peerless: various preparations of pear with whisky caramel and black cardamom broth. This is a chef to keep an eye on. We are completely won over. Welcome to Lekker!
At Novaela, you can feel the passion and love for cooking of chef Daniel Duijster Gomero in every dish. His craftsmanship and energy are reflected in refined preparations. The amuse-bouches immediately set the tone with, among other things, a tartare of pata negra...
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