Amsterdam

I was so excited to take my first long vacation (shout out to Scott's Cheap Flights for making it a steal) in too long to visit my good friend who relocated there and the city did not disappoint! The canals, vibes, and food were all unforgettable and when leaving, I wished I had even more time just to soak in the city (and eat a few more stroopwafels).

Although stereotypes about Amsterdam have been popularized by movies like Eurotrip and the city's coffeeshops and red light district, I was surprised by how incredibly wholesome the city is in general with even more bikes and babies than Brooklyn and wide open windows at street level which display family life so intimately it would make any New Yorker smile and blush at the same time. I was also surprised to discover that because the Dutch had such a prolific colonial history, Amsterdam has been blessed with an abundance of diverse food offerings from around the world. Upon this bounty, I feasted for several days and turned into a human pancake.

Traditional Dutch Foods

Before diving into the traditional dutch foods you must eat, I'd like to take a quick moment to recommend Dappermarkt and Albert Cuyp Market which are two street markets which will have stalls that sell the following foods for you to sample. If you are into street markets, I'd also recommend the Waterlooplein Market (flea market with lots of trinkets, antiques, and books) and Bloemenmarkt (tulips!) to browse. I'd also make a quick shoutout to Febo, the dutch equivalent of McDonald's, which is known for its self-service counter which serves hamburgers, fries, and other snacks (tbh just go straight for the croquettes).

Stroopwafel: This is a must. Both the large fresh-made ones and the chewy cookie version. In as large of quantities as possible.

Dutch Waffels: Somewhere between an american pancake and a crepe, dutch pancakes run on the thin side and can be eaten savory or sweet. I went to PANCAKES by the train station for mine served with ham and brie but there are plenty of good pancake houses across the city.

Poffertjes: Tiny adorable pancakes served with butter and powdered sugar.

Fries: Get them with curry ketchup and mayo (my preference) or oorlong which is a mix of Indonesian peanut sauce and mayo. They are pretty fantastic everywhere but the shop with the most hype that I checked out was Vlaams Friteshuis Vleminckx

Raw Herring: Tasty in my opinion but also very bony and cold which doesn't make for an enjoyable street-side eating experience.

Kipperling: The much tastier and user friendly fish alternative to herring, white fish is battered and fried, served with tartar sauce, mayo, and or/lemon

Bitterballen: I'm a fan of croquettes in every culture but the Dutch take an interesting spin to this genre and smaller golf ball shaped ones seasoning the filling with meat and spices and serving with mustard often as a bar snack

Gouda: Go to every cheese shop or museum and graze. In particular, I found the cheese at Reypenaer Cheese Shop so incredible I bought three chunks to take home (so nutty, salty, and creamy at the same time)

Stamppot: A hefty winter meal of meat (sausage, pork belly, you name it) in gravy served over mashed potatoes and other vegetables. I went to Tomaz to eat this and ordered the pork belly stamppot which was delicious but I regret not getting the other beef stew one only because it came with a whole pot of gravy to eat with the mashed potatoes.

Hagelslag: More for the novelty than anything else, this was a must on my list because I love sprinkles, I love toast, and I love the idea of grown dutch men eating sprinkles on their toast for breakfast. It tastes basically how you'd expect it to but perhaps a little sweeter.

Saucijzenbroodje: This is basically a sausage baked in a pastry. Can't really go wrong here and this is the perfect quick snack to pick up before your train ride at Albert Heijn (the most popular dutch supermarket chain)

International Foods

Suriname food: So some background. Suriname is a small country in South America that was colonized by the Dutch who brought a ton of Indonesians (another Dutch colony) to the country to work there. Therefore, the food is an interesting mix of Latin, Asian and European. Think peanut sauces with meat skewers, okra, and a bread roll all together. I went to Warung Spang Makandra in the very cute neighborhood of De Pijp to sample it and was not disappointed. Not pictured was the chicken soup that I got before this that was to die for and warmed the soul.

Indonesian food: Another must when going to Amsterdam is to go somewhere for a rijsttafel (rice table) which is essentially a prefix sampling of 10-20 different Indonesian foods. We went to Restaurant Blauw at the bottom end of Vondelpark which served many delectable traditional Indonesian foods (you pick either meat or fish) in a modern setting but there are plenty of other restaurants that do this in the city.

Kebabs: A policy of mine is that whenever I'm in Europe I have to eat a doner kebab.

Japanese food: I was pleasantly surprised by a Japanese restaurant called Mojo near the library (I know I'm a nerd) that had a great all you can eat deal and a great view of the water and city. I also learned that the Dutch colonized Japan as well.

Sweets

Winkel 43: Although I was completely stuffed I made room for this massive slice of apple pie at Winkel 43. It tasted incredibly fresh with big slices of apples and a huge dollop of fresh cream. The crust was more of a cake-like consistency and went well with my black tea. This is the perfect dessert to split with someone and the cafe itself is warmly lit and instagram worthy.

Van Stapele Koekmakerij: I don't think I would've discovered this cookie shop without my friend taking me to it. It's very small so a line quickly developed out the door and it appears to only serve one type of cookie: a midnight dark disc with a single big piece of white chocolate melted in the middle. So simple and yet so elegant. Decadent enough to feel satisfied after one and fresh enough to warm you up.

Tony's Chocolonely: The Netherland's main chocolate brand. Pick up a caramel sea salt bar before your train or flight.

Bars

Proeflokaal Arendsnest: 100 Dutch beers on tap and an extremely knowledgeable staff. One of the best beer bars I've been to ever.

Brouwerij ‘t IJ: A brewery in the city with a giant windmill right by a canal.

Belgium

Belgian waffles: Crunchy and light at the same time, I felt like I never ate a belgian waffle before.

Fries: We went to a place called Frituur n°1 and I found the fries to be a little bit smaller and crispier than the dutch version, still delicious.

Seafood: We went to a tiny shop off the main street called Fish a'Gogo where we were shocked to find delicious seafood (razorfish clams!!!) for very reasonable prices.

Beer: Every beer on tap will be delicious particularly if you like wheat beers. Delirium Tremens and Mort Subite (a cherry lambic) were some of my favorites.