winederlust

Amsterdam Food Round-Up: Indonesian, Pancakes, and Herring!

Jay and I weren't sure what to expect from Amsterdam food. Some people had told us that it was yummy; many others told us it was tough to find a good meal, especially for New York City foodies.

Though perhaps we weren't in Amsterdam long enough to judge fairly, we did figure out that you could get a solid meal by focusing on some of the city's strengths: Indonesian food, pancakes, and fish from one of the fish stands. (Surinamese food also sounded intriguing, but we didn't get to sample it on this trip - would love to hear from anyone who has!) Here's a quick snapshot of each type of food that we enjoyed:

Restaurants: De Witte Uyl, Amsterdam: Low-key local with interesting combos

 
Amsterdam / June 4, 2011 / dinner

Winederlust Rating (details below): 7.5 out of 10 / Winederlust Worthy: Yes

Prior to our quick trip to Amsterdam, online restaurant research pointed us to De Witte Uyl (“The White Owl”) as one of the best restaurants in the city – neighborhoody, but focusing on high-quality, organic ingredients in a creative (as we would learn, for Amsterdam) menu.

Jay and I took a pleasant 20-minute or so walk from our hotel near Vondel Park to De Pijp, which we heard was an up-and-coming neighborhood and home to the city’s largest open-air market, the Albert Cuypmarkt.

This was to be the first of several restaurants in Amsterdam that were ¾ empty when we ate there – not sure if it was because we were eating at a late (for Amsterdam?) hour of 9pm, or what the case was. But there were only a couple other tables occupied at that time.

De Witte Uyl itself is small and casual with off-white walls, an open kitchen in the back, and jazz tunes playing in the background. They charge EU 39.50 for two courses of your choice plus dessert – which seemed like a good deal until we saw the price converted by our bank to American dollars after returning home! (With a couple glasses of wine each, it came to nearly $170 U.S. for the meal.)