Gourmets should Go Dutch; Amsterdam does not necessarily spring to mind as a destination for gastronauts. but, you may discover, the Dutch Capital definitely tickles the taste buds.
“Apple tart, sir?” asked Hans from behind the well-patronised, heavily polished bar. “Why not?” I replied in high spirits, as I looked forward to sampling another special liqueur from the sagging shelves of the Proeflokaal Wynand Fockink in Amsterdam.
Trying alcoholic beverages before buying them is one of the city’s oldest and most popular traditions – especially as publicans used to top up glasses free of charge. Nowadays you can expect to pay around pounds 1.40 a glass. But at least here in this historic tasting house, which dates from 1679, the etiquette lingers on.
“Keep both hands on the bar, bend from the waist to the glass, and slurp,” Hans instructed, placing special emphasis on the final word, which comes straight from the Dutch language. My first glass of young “genever” – Holland’s famous gin – had been the perfect heart-warmer for a chilly evening. The orange liqueur that followed had unleashed a sense of adventure.
Now Hans was pouring out equal measures of apple brandy, apple wine and old genever laced with amaretto and juniper seeds to the very brim of my glass. Unlike the previous tipples that had brought on a sense of wellbeing, the potent blend headed rapidly north in a fiery surge that made my eyes water.
Fortunately I was still able to appreciate one of the features I had come to inspect at the Wijnand Fockink before moving on – an amazing collection of liqueur bottles on which portraits are painted of every mayor of Amsterdam since 1591.
Tasting houses are as much of an institution in Amsterdam as the city’s “brown cafes”, where you can enjoy breakfast, lunch – and drink – in a more conventional way. So called because the walls are stained brown by age and tobacco smoke, they should not be confused with “coffee shops”, whose use of words like “free”, “happy” and “high” in their name give away what you can expect to find.
The Cafe Hoppe is one of Amsterdam’s most famous brown cafes, a 17th century haunt where city suits congregate at standing receptions outside on the pavement and enjoy the “gezelligheid” that Amsterdammers strive for.
Basically that means enjoying a good chat over a few beers. Visitors tend to get invited into the discussion too, as we quickly discovered, but thankfully you don’t need to understand Dutch because the locals enjoy talking to you in English.
Moving indoors as the evening got chillier, we discovered an almost surreal world of penguin-suited barmen, classical pictures, leaning beams and sawdust-covered floors – and a ladies’ loo you can only reach (as my companion found) by clambering behind the bar.
With a hearty appetite beckoning, it was time to sample the city’s restaurants and there can be few more fascinating than the d’Vijff Vlieghen or “Five Flies”. The unusual name derives from its combination of five houses that date from the 1620s and one of their early inhabitants – Jan Janszoon Vijff Vlijghen.
Bubbly Mirella, our waitress, showed us around the nine richly decorated dining rooms, each with its own style and joined by little stairways. Etchings by Rembrandt, medieval maps, armour from the Eight Years’ War with Spain, historic glassware and exquisite panelling recreate the atmosphere of the Golden Age.
The step back in time was complete as we enjoyed traditional Dutch-style fried catfish and roast red gurnard at a candlelit table overlooking some of the city’s oldest buildings.
Despite its mere 700,000 population, Amsterdam offers many more restaurants and styles of cuisine than Birmingham. The tiny Ponte Arcari was worth the wait in the rain for one of its seven tables to become vacant to enjoy its fabulous inexpensive Italian food and laid-back conviviality.
For those who like to combine their food with top-notch entertainment, Boom Chicago shows at the Leidsplein theatre have become an institution. The troupe of American artistes has been performing comedy sketches for almost 12 years, parodying personalities from Michael Jackson to Tony Blair.
The food may not be as good as the show but it’s worth booking dinner tickets before leaving Brum – the new attraction Bite the Bullet was a sell-out on the Saturday we were there.
Weekends just fly by in Amsterdam but you can’t return without tasting one of its famous pancakes – and there can be nowhere better than Nieuwe Kafe in Dam Square. Just a short walk from the central railway station with its 15-minute connection to Schiphol Airport, the cafe is popular with locals and tourists alike.
The trouble is the pancake menu is not only sweet but comes with a serious choice of toppings. Now if only they would let you taste each one first…
Simon Hale stayed at the five-star Bilderberg Garden Hotel in Dijsselhofplantsoen. KLM and Bmibaby offer daily flights from Birmingham to Amsterdam. The Proeflokaal Wynand Fockink is in Pijlsteeg, a side street to the right of the Hotel Krasnapolsky.
The d’Vijff Vlieghen restaurant in Spuistraat offers main courses from pounds 14. The Ponte Arcari restaurant in Herengracht offers main dishes from pounds 7. Tickets for Boom Chicago shows cost pounds 21 per seat plus pounds 14 for a three-course meal.
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