Neil Wolkodoff is a golf and travel writer from Denver, Colorado. He covers golf, dining, activities and accommodations from the luxury and unique perspective. He has even been golfing with goats.
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12 Comments
Amsterdam has always been one of my favourite cities and it’s good to see it joining in with Europe’s culinary charge.
To be honest I think we are lucky to be living in perhaps the greatest era of restaurant food that the world has ever seen. There are so many high quality chefs around nowadays. They are competing with each other and the bar keeps on being pushed higher.
Yes, the culinary bar is really getting pushed upward and fast in Amsterdam. And, my experience is they understand both the art and science of fine dining.
I always look out for a menu that changes daily adapting to what’s seasonal and available. Frequent changes also suggest a chef who is full of creative ideas. I’ll be looking out for the Speakeasy Graphite by Peter Gast next time I visit Amsterdam though I think I’ll be opting for the 10 course option – you can have too much of a good thing!
Carolyn, the courses are not overly large, but rather artistically arranged. 15 courses is the perfect amount at Speakeasy Graphite.
I grew up with the old-fashioned idea that you had starter, main and dessert – though where I came from it was usually called pud. If you were really lucky you got cheese and biscuits as well.
What happens with 10, 15 or 20 courses? What are the courses called then? I’m guessing that you go through a sort of savoury to sweet progression. I’d also expect a few amuse-vouches along the way too.
Well, actually, they don’t tell you what you are getting until it arrives, then they describe it. Yes, the arrivals bop around from sweet to savory, but at the whim and discretion of the Chef, Gast. It is all well thought out, you just sit back and digest. Appetizers, kind of, but more as a course to re-direct the taste buds for the next creation.
I am not in the least bit surprised by the quality of the Stromma Dinner Cruise.
I’ve found in a number of cities that dining on a river, lake or canal cruise makes a pleasant change from an evening in a restaurant.
You get to see the local sights and also there are many local people on board too, often celebrating special occasions, so you get something of a feel for the local culture.
I enjoy getting up for a stroll between courses and taking in the views out in the fresh air on the deck. All in all it is a great experience. Thoroughly recommend it.
Until last summer I hadn’t been to Amsterdam for simply yonks. Although I didn’t eat at any of the establishments listed here – and it is a pity that I didn’t – I was quite amazed at how much Amsterdam’s culinary scene had improved.
The last time I visited was in the last millennium but things on the foodie front have improved vastly since then.
Nice article!
This is just my kind of post, I am very much foodie and love to read anything which is having food in it.
Now I am gonna visit Amsterdam to eat in all the above listed places.
Thanks for sharing.
Cheers!!
Aside from having a sumptuous dinner and an amusing cruise in the Stromma Dinner Cruise, there is also an informative sharing of historical facts by the crew to complete your fine dining experience. I did not even noticed that it’s already been two hours since we started the cruise because I enjoyed every moment of it. I haven’t tried the other restaurants yet but I hope I can find time to dine during my next visit to Amsterdam.
One of our top fine-dining experiences in Amsterdam was Moon. A 19th floor revolving restaurant on top of the A’DAM tower with breathtaking views and wonderful fine food.
Andrew, thank you for your comment. In preparing this article, we had to determine venues to write about based upon various factors. That included our own internet research prior to the trip. Then upon arrival, we would talk to taxi drivers, concierge services and locals. Another challenge in articles of this type is getting to the venue, so the final point of initial selection was easy to get to from our lodging. With only 5 restaurants featured, it is difficult to take into account all the other operations in Amsterdam that are also stellar in this rising culinary scene. Hopefully, we can cover Moon in a return engagement.
Amsterdam has always been one of my favourite cities and it’s good to see it joining in with Europe’s culinary charge.
To be honest I think we are lucky to be living in perhaps the greatest era of restaurant food that the world has ever seen. There are so many high quality chefs around nowadays. They are competing with each other and the bar keeps on being pushed higher.
Yes, the culinary bar is really getting pushed upward and fast in Amsterdam. And, my experience is they understand both the art and science of fine dining.
I always look out for a menu that changes daily adapting to what’s seasonal and available. Frequent changes also suggest a chef who is full of creative ideas. I’ll be looking out for the Speakeasy Graphite by Peter Gast next time I visit Amsterdam though I think I’ll be opting for the 10 course option – you can have too much of a good thing!
Carolyn, the courses are not overly large, but rather artistically arranged. 15 courses is the perfect amount at Speakeasy Graphite.
I grew up with the old-fashioned idea that you had starter, main and dessert – though where I came from it was usually called pud. If you were really lucky you got cheese and biscuits as well.
What happens with 10, 15 or 20 courses? What are the courses called then? I’m guessing that you go through a sort of savoury to sweet progression. I’d also expect a few amuse-vouches along the way too.
Well, actually, they don’t tell you what you are getting until it arrives, then they describe it. Yes, the arrivals bop around from sweet to savory, but at the whim and discretion of the Chef, Gast. It is all well thought out, you just sit back and digest. Appetizers, kind of, but more as a course to re-direct the taste buds for the next creation.
I am not in the least bit surprised by the quality of the Stromma Dinner Cruise.
I’ve found in a number of cities that dining on a river, lake or canal cruise makes a pleasant change from an evening in a restaurant.
You get to see the local sights and also there are many local people on board too, often celebrating special occasions, so you get something of a feel for the local culture.
I enjoy getting up for a stroll between courses and taking in the views out in the fresh air on the deck. All in all it is a great experience. Thoroughly recommend it.
Until last summer I hadn’t been to Amsterdam for simply yonks. Although I didn’t eat at any of the establishments listed here – and it is a pity that I didn’t – I was quite amazed at how much Amsterdam’s culinary scene had improved.
The last time I visited was in the last millennium but things on the foodie front have improved vastly since then.
Nice article!
This is just my kind of post, I am very much foodie and love to read anything which is having food in it.
Now I am gonna visit Amsterdam to eat in all the above listed places.
Thanks for sharing.
Cheers!!
Aside from having a sumptuous dinner and an amusing cruise in the Stromma Dinner Cruise, there is also an informative sharing of historical facts by the crew to complete your fine dining experience. I did not even noticed that it’s already been two hours since we started the cruise because I enjoyed every moment of it. I haven’t tried the other restaurants yet but I hope I can find time to dine during my next visit to Amsterdam.
One of our top fine-dining experiences in Amsterdam was Moon. A 19th floor revolving restaurant on top of the A’DAM tower with breathtaking views and wonderful fine food.
Andrew, thank you for your comment. In preparing this article, we had to determine venues to write about based upon various factors. That included our own internet research prior to the trip. Then upon arrival, we would talk to taxi drivers, concierge services and locals. Another challenge in articles of this type is getting to the venue, so the final point of initial selection was easy to get to from our lodging. With only 5 restaurants featured, it is difficult to take into account all the other operations in Amsterdam that are also stellar in this rising culinary scene. Hopefully, we can cover Moon in a return engagement.