Eating out in Amsterdam is a very expensive pursuit, so it is important to find somewhere with tasty food immediately. After having lived in Amsterdam for over ten years, here are my top favourite restaurants to eat out. You should note that I am vegetarian so I can only speak for the vegetarian food at these places!
Kartika (Indonesian Food)
If you have never tasted Indonesian food before, what are you waiting for? Kartika is one of the restaurants I take all my friends to because it is so delicious. It is a little pricey, but 100% worth the money.
While you can order off an a la carte menu, the best thing to order is the “rijs tafel”. A rijs tafel, which can be found at other Indonesian restaurants in Amsterdam, is a buffet with small portions of everything on the normal menu.
The vegetarian rijstafel includes a plethora of different flavour combinations, from spicy tempeh to gentler tofu curries, crunchy peanuts and onions, and sambal eggs. Finish it all off with my favourite Indonesian (and Malay) dessert of all time, pisang goreng, or fried banana.
Hapjes Hoek
Many British people have never heard of Suriname, let alone Surinamese food. Suriname is a small country in South America that was once a Dutch colony. Colonialism is the reason why you find lots of Surinamese food in the Netherlands. All I can say is that Surinamese food is truly delicious.
The best Surinamese food place for vegetarians in Amsterdam can be found in the Waterlooplein metro station. It is a tiny restaurant in the metro, but has the most delicious food, which is why it is often busy and buzzing.
I would recommend getting roti tempeh or tofu. Sometimes you can even get both at once. You can have this curry rolled up in Surinamese roti (made of potato and with a very specific, delicious texture), or have the roti on the side. For a smaller, but just as tasty snack get a filled bara with tempeh. The bara is a deep-fried spiced bread, and it is filled with a spicey tempeh mixture. Delicious, and one of the cheaper eating out options in Amsterdam. 10 out of 10 recommended.
Adis Ababa
For a friendly family restaurant with top-notch vegetarian food, try out Adis Ababa on the Overtoom. This is, rather obviously, an Ethiopian restaurant.
Much like the Indonesian restaurant, you can order a la carte items off the menu, but you are much better off ordering the vegetarian special. When your order arrives you can’t help but smile, because they walk out with a giant silver plate, covered with injera bread and different curries. And there is soooo much food.
The idea is to share the plate with someone else and use the injera bread to scoop up the different vegetables and sauces. Injera bread is made from teff flour, and can easily be made fully gluten-free. The curries are made with different mixtures of vegetables, from roast beetroot through to spinach, lentils and carrots. All are spiced with delicious, warming mixes of spices, including the famous Ethiopian mix Berbera.
To finish the meal you can enjoy a delicious spiced coffee poured from a beautiful coffee pot. This is often served with freshly popped popcorn.
This is the restaurant that I went to after graduation with my family. My dad is allergic to many spices, so we took a bit of a risk, but the kitchen staff were incredibly understanding and cooked him a delicious meal with no contamination at all. They are very allergy-friendly and happy to help. The staff are all really lovely.
Little Thai Prince
When in need of a tasty fix of Thai food the Little Thai Prince, right in the centre of Amsterdam, cannot be matched. With great service, delicious food and a super easily reachable location, this place will fill any of your Thai food needs.
When visiting here I like to go with as many people as possible so we can share a lot of different dishes. My favourites are the Pad Thai, Red Curry and just a simple stir-fried vegetable alongside rice. Simple, delicious and fulfilling.
Hannekes Boom
Hannekes Boom is my summer date spot. It is right on the river, about ten minutes walk from the central station. With brilliant views of Nemo, the Amsterdam docks, and the canals, it is a beautiful hang-out spot. The tables are painted brightly, multicoloured lanterns are hanging and boats pull up to the cafe’s dock to order and eat in the boat.
The food here is very pricey, but every dish that I have had has been very tasty. When I’m showing people Dutch cuisine for the first time I often bring them here for a Dutch borrel hapje (party snack) and a beer. You can order platters of hapjes, both vegetarian and meat. The vegetarian platters consist of veggie bitterballen (deep-fried and breadcrumbed ragout), one of the best things to come out of the Netherlands, kaassouffles (deep-fried and battered cheese) and loempia (crispy, fried spring rolls).
Snack on these to your heart’s content, while just watching the water and boats go by.
These are just some of my favourite spots to eat in Amsterdam, but there are many more. If you’ve visited Amsterdam where do you most like to eat out?
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