Soo.. this weekend I went to Amsterdam for a quick 48hours to suprise my mum on her anniversary trip with my dad. 24 years??!! Cute right? I know, I know #familygoals
Anyways I thought why not document every morsel of food I consumed incase any of you are ever hangry in 'Dam and need some tips! I know, I'm a giver, it's cool you can thank me later.
So here we go...
First night we went to a stunning restaurant called The Seafood Bar and I HIGHLY RECOMMEND!! Some of the freshest seafood I've ever had, and trust me I've had tonnes. Not overly expensive especially if you think about the freshness of the fish and what it would probably cost in a high-end London restaurant. Roughly £40pp but bear in mind we all had starter, main, shared desserts plus cocktails! So now you've had the low down let me tell you what we had:
My dad and I both chose the smoked mackerel, granted this was a departure from my normal choice when eating out but I can happily say I did not regret one mouthful of it! So smoky but balanced especially well with a horseradish aioli on toasted bread. Heavenly.
My mum chose the salmon sashimi and I know what you're thinking - how boring!!! and trust me I thought the exact same thing but I have never been happier to be proved wrong! Such a hidden gem that many would shy away from ordering, purely due to its simplicity and the amazing, more attention grabbing options on the menu. The fish was cut fairly thick for a sashimi style but it was so fresh and just simplicity at its best. Served with seaweed salad, cucumber, soy, ginger and wasabi. Definitely a winner.
My sister originally was not in the mood for a starter but was coerced by my father into trying the Thai fish cakes (probably so he could have two starters without looking that greedy! Classic Rusty) A fairly small portion of just two fish cakes but perfect since she wasn't originally that interested but they for sure left an impression!
For mains mum and dad both had the catch of the day - Seabass. Whole fish, grilled on the plancha and served with samphire, side salad and chips. One word, YUM. So fresh and flaky that it just came off the bone without needing to be filleted, perfection! However it was not so photogenic!
Emma and I had similar mains - mine being battered cod with chips and hers being fritto misto. Same batter, different seafood, same amazingness. I sometimes find that with battered fish the batter can be super greasy, leaving you full before you've fully tucked in which is just such a shame. Thankfully this was the complete opposite - light and crispy served with a wonderful tartar sauce. I don't even like tartar sauce!!
Finally for desert we shared a lemon pie and a chocolate pie, classic us seeing as I like (LOVE) chocolate and the rest don't (no need to cry for me, I like it this way). Though more of a tart than a pie it was still a delightful way to end the meal. The lemon was tangy and refreshing, the chocolate was slightly heavier but just everything you want from a chocolate dessert. Both had beautifully buttery biscuit bases.
All in all a beaut first night making me super excited for what the next meals had in store!!
The next day we stupidly ignored the hotels proclamation that they had the 'best breakfast in Amsterdam' and decided to go and find somewhere else. Boy were we wrong! My parents had a flawed logic that a pancake house with the namesake of my deceased grandmother was a sign from her and so we should of course eat here. I have only one word to describe the meal that was placed in front of my - abysmal. The restaurant was called Sara's Pancake House and trust me Sara should be banned from the kitchen! My sister and my dad ordered the American breakfast, consisting of American pancakes and scrambled eggs. However what they received was a sorry excuse that would make an American hang themselves in shame from the association with this lacklustre ensemble. The pancakes were far from fluffy and the scrambled egg was in fact an omelet that had been chopped up! My mother, who being health conscience as she is and wouldn't touch a pancake with a 10-foot pole decided to go for the 'safe' option of fruit, yoghurt and granola. A look of disappointment flashed across her face as cherries that resembled olives and pear that looked as if it had been cut a week ago were scattered across a mountain of yoghurt with a sprinkling of granola. Clearly not the safe bet she had been hoping for. Finally was my breakfast, I am usually the queen of ordering so assumed I would be having the last laugh. I ordered a potato pancake with fried eggs and mushrooms assuming that the pancake was a code word for a rosti, sadly it was actually a burnt yet raw (an impressive combination) crepe with grated raw potato, a fried egg and some heavily peppered mushrooms. Frankly the only thing worse than the food was the look upon the woman's face who was cooking and preparing it, if looks could kill we thankfully wouldn't have been alive to consume the meal! I won't go on as I feel you have caught my drift.
Stomachs still fairly empty we made our way to the market which sold artisan food, clothing and other random items. Thankfully the food did not disappoint! I had a lovely Florentine, buttery, crispy and dipped in chocolate. My prayers had been answered!!
We continued the day with standard sightseeing and sadly choose yet another disappointing restaurant for lunch. Trust me the hanger was in full force! Though nothing was overly wrong with the food nothing was particularly right with it either but I wont bore you with the depressing details.
We finished the day with a quick stop at a nearby bakery where I picked up another Florentine (!!) and Emma chose carrot cake, we consumed these back at the hotel with a delightful hot chocolate.
Thankfully dinner was exceptional! We went to the Michelin star restaurant named Vinkeles. The whole experience was just amazing and I would thoroughly recommend to only those who fully enjoy an experience with their meal. Be aware that like many Michelin starred restaurants the portions are very small yet highly priced due to the expertise and quality of the dishes and the people behind them.
Anyways I thought why not document every morsel of food I consumed incase any of you are ever hangry in 'Dam and need some tips! I know, I'm a giver, it's cool you can thank me later.
So here we go...
First night we went to a stunning restaurant called The Seafood Bar and I HIGHLY RECOMMEND!! Some of the freshest seafood I've ever had, and trust me I've had tonnes. Not overly expensive especially if you think about the freshness of the fish and what it would probably cost in a high-end London restaurant. Roughly £40pp but bear in mind we all had starter, main, shared desserts plus cocktails! So now you've had the low down let me tell you what we had:
My dad and I both chose the smoked mackerel, granted this was a departure from my normal choice when eating out but I can happily say I did not regret one mouthful of it! So smoky but balanced especially well with a horseradish aioli on toasted bread. Heavenly.
Emma and I had similar mains - mine being battered cod with chips and hers being fritto misto. Same batter, different seafood, same amazingness. I sometimes find that with battered fish the batter can be super greasy, leaving you full before you've fully tucked in which is just such a shame. Thankfully this was the complete opposite - light and crispy served with a wonderful tartar sauce. I don't even like tartar sauce!!
The next day we stupidly ignored the hotels proclamation that they had the 'best breakfast in Amsterdam' and decided to go and find somewhere else. Boy were we wrong! My parents had a flawed logic that a pancake house with the namesake of my deceased grandmother was a sign from her and so we should of course eat here. I have only one word to describe the meal that was placed in front of my - abysmal. The restaurant was called Sara's Pancake House and trust me Sara should be banned from the kitchen! My sister and my dad ordered the American breakfast, consisting of American pancakes and scrambled eggs. However what they received was a sorry excuse that would make an American hang themselves in shame from the association with this lacklustre ensemble. The pancakes were far from fluffy and the scrambled egg was in fact an omelet that had been chopped up! My mother, who being health conscience as she is and wouldn't touch a pancake with a 10-foot pole decided to go for the 'safe' option of fruit, yoghurt and granola. A look of disappointment flashed across her face as cherries that resembled olives and pear that looked as if it had been cut a week ago were scattered across a mountain of yoghurt with a sprinkling of granola. Clearly not the safe bet she had been hoping for. Finally was my breakfast, I am usually the queen of ordering so assumed I would be having the last laugh. I ordered a potato pancake with fried eggs and mushrooms assuming that the pancake was a code word for a rosti, sadly it was actually a burnt yet raw (an impressive combination) crepe with grated raw potato, a fried egg and some heavily peppered mushrooms. Frankly the only thing worse than the food was the look upon the woman's face who was cooking and preparing it, if looks could kill we thankfully wouldn't have been alive to consume the meal! I won't go on as I feel you have caught my drift.
Stomachs still fairly empty we made our way to the market which sold artisan food, clothing and other random items. Thankfully the food did not disappoint! I had a lovely Florentine, buttery, crispy and dipped in chocolate. My prayers had been answered!!
We continued the day with standard sightseeing and sadly choose yet another disappointing restaurant for lunch. Trust me the hanger was in full force! Though nothing was overly wrong with the food nothing was particularly right with it either but I wont bore you with the depressing details.
We finished the day with a quick stop at a nearby bakery where I picked up another Florentine (!!) and Emma chose carrot cake, we consumed these back at the hotel with a delightful hot chocolate.
One of my favourite aspects of a Michelin star restaurant (and many high-end restaurants) is the amuse bouches that they serve alongside the main meal. An amuse bouche literally means to excite the mouth and the first amuse bouche we were served did exactly that! Served in an oyster shell that had been sprayed gold lay an edible pearl that encased a cocktail of gin, tonic, cucumber juice and oyster juice.
A very strange combination and sensation occur when the thin shell dissolved once in the mouth and yet it was surprisingly delightful. This shows the beauty of the amuse bouche as it is usually not something you would choose to order and you wouldn’t want more than a mouthful of it if you were able to order it.
The second amuse bouche consisted of crispy tapioca with smoked fish and I assure you that it was unsurprisingly amazing!
Next we were served bread made of Emmerwheat (translated to bucketwheat not buckwheat, confusing I know!) with olive oil imported from Italy and butter. WOW. Some of the best bread I’ve had and who knew olive oil could taste so good!
Upon first glance at the menu it seemed limited yet overwhelming, however upon further looking I was genuinely excited for all the meals that were ordered by myself and my family members. Before our starters arrived we received another amuse bouche! This consisted of a thin meringue shell which you cracked open to reveal a seabass ceviche with tzatziki. Words cannot describe how amazing this was! I could’ve have easily had this for my starter alone!
For our starters Emma and I chose quail breast with black truffle, chestnut, and a chocolate sauce made with 100% Cusco Chunco cocoa beans, my mother had seabream with pear, dill, avocado, sea buckthorn and crispy chicken skin and my father had dutch white 'krombek' beans with black truffle, egg yolk and parmesan. All were exquisite in their own way, the quail was quite rich, though small in size, the seabream was so refreshing and bright, as for the beans I can never dislike anything with truffle!
Next came the main course where we all ordered the mallard (duck)! There aren’t enough words to describe this dish! The simplicity of the dish left the duck to shine as brightly as it should with only a small amount of pistachio puree to steal the limelight!
Though none of the deserts took my fancy the complimentary petit fours at the end were more than enough to satisfy my sweet tooth. Comprised of an incredible warm chocolate tart which tasted of the middle of a chocolate soufflé, a raspberry creme dipped in dark chocolate, a sharp raspberry jelly and a date and coconut square which had just the right amount of cinnamon.
I can happily say that this is one of the best meals I’ve ever had and would recommend to anyone who would appreciate such an experience!
The second amuse bouche consisted of crispy tapioca with smoked fish and I assure you that it was unsurprisingly amazing!
Next we were served bread made of Emmerwheat (translated to bucketwheat not buckwheat, confusing I know!) with olive oil imported from Italy and butter. WOW. Some of the best bread I’ve had and who knew olive oil could taste so good!
Next came the main course where we all ordered the mallard (duck)! There aren’t enough words to describe this dish! The simplicity of the dish left the duck to shine as brightly as it should with only a small amount of pistachio puree to steal the limelight!
I can happily say that this is one of the best meals I’ve ever had and would recommend to anyone who would appreciate such an experience!
After what was genuinely one of the worst breakfasts of my life we decided to keep it safe and eat breakfast in the hotel. What happened next only reaffirms my belief that the food of Amsterdam is against me and wishes my to feel hanger for as long as possible!!! It started off so promising! A lovely buffet which although was limited for me due to my intolerances was perfect for the rest of my family. We then ordered eggs to go alongside and they even had gluten free bread for my eggs royale, RESULT! Sadly it took over an hour for the eggs to arrive and though they looked full of hope they were lukewarm and one egg was overpoached, however I did consume it due to the extreme amount of hanger the waiting induced!
Though slightly disheartened by our yet again poor dining experience we went out and did some more thoroughly enjoyable sight seeing. Once the hunger started to set back in we decided to not chance fate and instead returned to the extremely enjoyable Seafood Bar we went to on our first night. Thankfully it did not disappoint, we stuck to what we knew and ordered nearly the exact same meal, it was a perfect way to end a lovely trip!
I hope you have enjoyed this bonus blog and please let me know if you’d like me to do more reviews like this! Not only on my travels but also when I’m out and about in London/Nottingham!!
As always make sure you’re following me on Facebook and Instagram! My next blog post will be full on Valentines Day inspiration so make sure you don’t miss it!!!
Much Love
x
P.S apologies for some of the rants but y’know the hanger is real and I’m a strong believer in a bad meal being able to ruin the mood (dramatic I know!)
As always make sure you're following me on Insta and Facebook for more recipes in between blog posts and stories. Feel free to share, comment and tell all your friends about Just a Hangry Girl!!
As always make sure you're following me on Insta and Facebook for more recipes in between blog posts and stories. Feel free to share, comment and tell all your friends about Just a Hangry Girl!!