Almost two years have passed since our last visit to Bord’eau, the two-star restaurant in Hotel de l’Europe, and so it was time to check the new developments on our home turf. Also because I was curious to compare it … Continue reading Dining in Amsterdam: Bord’eau** (2015)
Daalder is located on Lindengracht in the Jordaan neighborhood in Amsterdam. It has nice outside seating, perfect for dinner on a (rare) warm summer night. Inside the tables are small and a bit close together. Daalder doesn’t have a menu. … Continue reading Dining in Amsterdam: Daalder
I use two rules for distinguishing a good Italian restaurant from a tourist trap. The rule in Italy is that the menu should have local dishes from the region (e.g. spaghetti alla carbonara is a good sign in Rome but … Continue reading Dining in Amsterdam: Eatmosfera
One of our favorite restaurants is the Librije, three Michelin star restaurant in Zwolle (Netherlands) of Jonnie and Térèse Boer (no relation). Less than a year ago, sister restaurant Librije’s Zusje (“zusje” means little sister) opened in the Waldorf Astoria … Continue reading Dining in Amsterdam: Librije’s Zusje**
After eating at Bord’eau in July I wrote “I wonder when chef Richard van Oostenbrugge will get his well-deserved second star. We’ll be back!” in my blog post about that wonderful dinner. I didn’t have to wonder for long, as Bord’eau has indeed just received its second Michelin star. Van Oostenbrugge was also announced by Gault Millau as “Chef of the Year 2014”. All of this calls for a celebration, or a good excuse to go eat there again 🙂 Continue reading “Dining in Amsterdam: Bord’eau**”
Chef Ron Blaauw gave up his restaurant with two Michelin stars (at which I never dined) and replaced it with a “gastrobar”, which after its first year received a single Michelin star. Ron Blaauw wanted to create a more accessible restaurant, and I think he has succeeded. At Ron Gastrobar you can order as many dishes as you like for 15 euros (about US$ 20) each. They are of an intermediate portion size: not as big as a main course, but not a small bite either. Three or four dishes are enough for a meal. The term “gastrobar” also means that there are a lot of tables and quite close together. The restaurant is a bit like a “grand café”. I was curious about this new restaurant, and so I went to check it out. (Photos taken with my iPhone in bad lighting conditions.) Continue reading “Dining in Amsterdam: Ron Gastrobar*”
We thought we’d ‘celebrate’ not being able to use my kitchen (see my previous post to read why) by going out to eat at Vermeer, a one Michelin star restaurant in the Barbizon hotel across the street from Central … Continue reading Dining in Amsterdam: Vermeer*
Hotel de l’Europe is one of the best known luxury hotels in Amsterdam, located by the Amstel river. Since a few years a new restaurant has opened in the hotel, called Bord’Eau with a nice wordplay on the location as well as the famous wine region. We’ve had dinner there when it had recently opened and really enjoyed it. Meanwhile they have gotten their first Michelin star, so it was time to pay another visit. Continue reading “Dining in Amsterdam: Bord’Eau*”
Chef Moshik used to be the chef of restaurant ‘t Brouwerskolkje in Overveen, half an hour west of Amsterdam. He has recently moved to Amsterdam under a new name: &Samhoud Places and immediately received two stars from Michelin (the same as at Brouwerskolkje). We were curious and so went to pay a visit. We had the 7-course “Inspiration” degustation menu (EUR 159.50) with wine menu (EUR 65) and black truffle supplement (EUR 20). Photos made with my iPhone. The amuse bouche are travel themed: Hong Kong, Venice, Chicago, and Moscow. The first is dim sum of scampi: both the filling and … Continue reading Dining in Amsterdam: &Samhoud Places**
Bistrot Neuf is a brasserie-style French restaurant with classic French food like oysters, lobster, snails, bouillabaisse, cote de boeuf (prime rib), crème brûlée, and a nice wine list with many wines by the glass. The latter is not surprising as it is next to, and affiliated with, wine store Chabrol. The wines are mostly from France with some from other ‘old world’ wine countries. Wine is always expensive in Dutch restaurants, often marked up to 3 times the retail price or more, and unfortunately Bistrot Neuf is no exception to that rule. Expect to pay at least 50 euros for … Continue reading Dining in Amsterdam: Bistrot Neuf
Bussia is one of my favorite restaurants in Amsterdam. It is a true Italian ristorante where you eat antipasto, primo, secondo, dolce instead of pizza. Everything is made from scratch from fresh ingredients and they have a nice selection of Italian wines. The service is as professional as it is friendly. Last night we took a friend there for her birthday, since I knew she would enjoy this. And she did, as did we! Although you can also eat à la carte, the main attraction of Bussia is the six-course daily menu (antipasto, pasta, risotto, fish, meat, dolce) that you can … Continue reading Dining in Amsterdam: Bussia
The Okura hotel in Amsterdam has two restaurants with michelin stars: downstairs the traditional Japanese (Kaiseki) restaurant Yamazato* and on the 23rd floor Ciel Bleu** with a magnificent view on downtown Amsterdam. We had not been there in a few years, and were looking for a special occasion to go to Ciel Bleu again. This occasion presented itself when two American friends were in town, and we decided to celebrate the occasion by having dinner at Ciel Bleu together. Since it was a weekday and we all had to work the next day, we chose the 5-course summer menu (95 … Continue reading Dining in Amsterdam: Ciel Bleu**
Lastage opened up less than two years ago at a stone’s throw from Amsterdam Central station. I tried it last year and was impressed with the quality of the food, wine, and service, especially considering the very affordable prices. Meanwhile they have been awarded a Michelin star, but the prices are still the same. You can choose 3 to 6 courses with 2 choices per course for 38 to 62 euros (US$ 48 to 78 at today’s exchange rate), with matching wines for 7.50 euros ($9.50) per glass. Given this price level this is a very good place for a … Continue reading Dining in Amsterdam: Lastage*
Even though are favorite way of dining is to let the chef decide what to cook and the sommelier which wines to serve with it, we had never yet tried Utrechtsedwarstafel because of the pricetag (between 65 euros for 3 course with basic wines and 125 euros for 5 courses with premium wines) and mixed reviews on Dutch leading restaurant review site Iens. But since their formula is exactly the way we like it, we decided to give it a try and go for the full treatment (5 courses with premium wines). We had high expectations of the wine pairings, … Continue reading Amsterdam dining: Utrechtsedwarstafel
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