dutchgrub, Author at dutchgrub

New Restaurants in Amsterdam

Foodies love new restaurants. We like trying out new food and we can talk for hours about new restaurants we have discovered or would like to try out.

Dutch restaurant directory Dinnersite has a handy list of all recently opened restaurants in Amsterdam. It provides the name of the restaurant and its opening date.

According to the list, 16 new restaurants opened in Amsterdam during the first five months of 2009. Of the newcomers, food salon Razmataz on Hugo de Grootplein has gotten most attention.

There are also a number of new restaurants on Amstelveenseweg, the up and coming food boulevard just off the western exit of Vondelpark. Amstelveenseweg used to be dominated by greasy snackbars and shady pizza joints. Not anymore! Fair trade restaurant Umoja pioneered this new food location. Then Ron Blauuw established the area with Sophia and Blauw. Fish restaurant Urban Ocean and Chinese Oriental 128 are the latest additions, having opened in February and March 2009 respectively.

Restaurant Umoja Amsterdam Restaurant Blauw Amsterdam Restaurant Urban Ocean Amsterdam

Restobar Knus – Empty on a Friday Night

restobar knus amsterdam - lounge Knus is a combination of restaurant and lounge spread across three cozy floors of an old Dutch house in the Leidseplein area. The menu is small but versatile – a meat, a fish and a vegetarian fusion dish and a large selection of montaditos, Basque style tapas served on a sort of bruschetta style bread.

Against better judgement, we went to Knus last Friday after a company BBQ, thinking that it would be the perfect place to continue drinking and to enjoy some snacks later on. We quickly noticed that this was a mistake as we were the only guests that evening. The food was mediocre and while the staff tried to explain that the emptiness was unusual we could not help but think that Knus will soon make room for a new concept.

While I still think that Knus is one of the better restaurants of its kind, there are two important lessons that foodies should remember: Avoid the Leidseplein area, which is touristy, over-priced and laden with poor quality restaurants. And don’t bother with “restobars” or “gastropubs” that promise to be a one-stop-shop for a whole night out, aim high with fancy fusion or bistro menus and ultimately fail miserably.

Picnic in Vondelpark

When the weather in Amsterdam is as beautiful as it has been throughout April and May, there is no stopping the usually sun deprived Dutch from crowding the canals with boats and covering the parks with picnic blankets.

A very convenient way to join in the fun is to pick up a ready-made picnic basket at Casa e Cucina, an organic lunchroom with friendly service and free wifi. Casa e Cucina is located on Koninginneweg, less than 5 minutes walking distance from Vondelpark. The picnic baskets are € 14,95 if you order in advance and contain a tuna salad wrap, pasta salad, a piece of carrot cake, water and orange juice.

And I’m sure you’ll be able to organize the missing beer or prosecco from one of the convenience stores on your way!

ready-made picnic baskets from casa e cucina

Fresh Summer Truffles at Feduzzi

Back in March I landed an incredibly fragrant and fresh white truffle on one of my frequent trips to Italian traiteur Feduzzi. This weekend I got lucky again. Feduzzi was offering black summer truffles from a fresh delivery from Italy. And like last time, dinner plans were quickly adjusted to Tagliatelle with a sherry and Parmesan sauce and raw shaved truffles.

The black truffles were not as intense as the white ones and pricey at € 40,= for 10 grams. We still enjoyed them a lot!

summer truffle, tagliatelle, parmesan and sherry

summer-truffle-tagliatelle-parmesan-and-sherry-served — raw shaved summer truffle on tagliatelle

Amsterdam Food Festivals June 2009

Amsterdam is promoting itself as the “City of 1001 Flavors” in 2009. As part of the year long program, two large food events are taking place in June.

Festival Sustainable Amsterdam, Saturday 6 June 2009, Westergasfabriek

holland food festival - flyer This festival promotes sustainability initiatives in Amsterdam – solar cars, electric scooters, eco neighborhoods and more. Several food events will be part of the festival.

Slowfood Netherlands is organizing the Holland Food Festival, a taste market where you can buy from local producers. Then there is a cooking competition on stage, pitting chefs from top Amsterdam restaurants De Kersentuin, Ron Blaauw, Krasnapolsky, and Oud Zuid against each other. At the fitness snackbar you will have to generate the energy needed to mix your smoothie on a rowing machine.

rolling kitchens festival - flyer It’s all happening on the Westergasfabriek, a former gas factory consisting of several beautiful brick buildings. The weekend of the rolling kitchens will take place at the same time and place. Dozens of mobile food stalls unite for a giant open air restaurant.

Taste of Amsterdam, 25 – 28 June in the Amstelpark

The Amstelpark will see a much more high-end culinary event as London based “Brand Events” organizes Taste of Amsterdam during four days from June 25 to 28. Taste of Amsterdam is part of a world-wide series of food festivals originating in London and now taking place in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Sydney, Melbourne, Dublin, Cork, Dubai and Amsterdam.

taste amsterdam - flyer For EUR 12,50 you buy tickets up front for either lunch or dinner on one of the four days. For an additional EUR 4 to 9 each you can then sample up to 3 starter-size signature dishes from 15 of Amsterdam’s top restaurants including Sophia, Vis aan de Schelde, Ron Blaauw, elusive hot spot Momo, Jamie Oliver run Fifteen, Restaurant As and Le Garage.

There also are wine tastings, live cooking demonstrations, and a fine food market.

Perfect Sunday Afternoon at Brouwerij 't IJ

Brouwerij 't IJ Amsterdam - wind mill

The weather in Amsterdam has been great throughout April and May. And Sunday was one of those perfect, lazy afternoons at Brouwerij ‘t IJ: Sitting on their terrace in the sun, enjoying home-brewed beer, spending time with friends amidst the friendly and laid-back crowd, right under a typical historic Dutch windmill. What else can you ask for?

Brouwerij ‘t IJ – or The Brewery by the IJ River – is different. It’s a Dutch microbrewery making Belgian style beer. It’s located close to the city center, just a few tram stops to the east, but will make you feel as if you were out in the countryside. The brewery and pub are located in a historic bath house and wind mill with a large terrace. The decoration is minimal, mostly a collection of beer bottles from all over the world. Guests sit on simple beer benches and happily stand in line to get their own beer.

Its simplicity and quirkiness has made the brewery very popular. On sunny weekend afternoons the terrace literally spills over as the thirsty crowd claims each and every inch of the brewery’s pub, the terrace and the pavement of the nearby streets. There is an interesting mix of regulars, locals, families, beer enthusiasts and tourists. Most of the staff have worked at the brewery for many years. And somehow, what must look like utter chaos from the outside, gels to an incredibly friendly and welcoming atmosphere.

The secret behind Brouwerij ‘t IJ is its beer. Owner and brew master Kaspar Peterson started the brewery in the 80s and has managed to give the beer a very distinct and individual character. All beer types are yeasty – drinking them is almost like eating a loaf of bread. In general, they also are strong flavored with a very present hopsy bitterness.

Brouwerij 't IJ Amsterdam - beer

My favorite kind at this time of the year is the IJwit, a very smooth and drinkable wheat beer that is slightly cloudy and deceivingly strong for a wheat beer at 7% alcohol. The name is a pun. The name of the river IJ sounds like ei, Dutch for egg. And eiwit – or egg white – is Dutch for protein.

The most popular beer is the Plzen, a light and bitter blond with 5% alcohol. Then there are the two Trappist beers – a bittersweet Trappist dubbel called Natte (wet one) at 6.5% and the 8% strong fruity brownish triple Trappist Zatte (full one). Completing the lineup are two 9% strong, take no prisoners ales – the Struis (ostrich) with dark color and winter flavors and the amber and bitter Columbus (the one with the egg – you get it…).

Brouwerij ‘t IJ only serves the simplest of snacks – cheese (single kind), salami, egg, and peanuts. So be warned. The excellent beer, quirky vibe, friendly crowd and sunshine on a bright day can get to your head!

Brouwerij “Het Ij”
Funenkade 7
1018 AL Amsterdam