Please note that since writing this blog post, Cafe Kostverloren has closed down
I’ve been having a four-star-eetcafe kind of fortnight. One course and a couple of drinks doesn’t really merit an entire review, but I didn’t want to let these casual, Dutch, Wednesday-night sort of places go by without a mention. So here is that mention:
De Bekeerde Suster
Just off the Nieuwmarkt, de Bekeerde Suster is bound to attract tourists. But its own-brewed beer is a draw for the locals too. It has three on offer: the Blonde Ros, the Witte Ros and the Manke Monnik – I tasted two out of the three and was not disappointed. The food is simple and predictable, but that’s no bad thing when we’re talking eetcafes. I had the ribs, which were sticky with sweet-salty flavour. The coleslaw wasn’t bad either.
With one of the biggest terraces in Amsterdam, it’s amazing that Hesp’s Amstel-side service is as efficient as it is. For possibly the first time this year, I wasn’t looking around for a member of staff as I got to the bottom of my beer – she was already there, notepad in hand. Genius. I was trying out another own-brewed beer – this time the Hesp Blond – which was very drinkable. To eat, I played it safe and went for the Saté Hesp – an admirable indulgence in pork, peanut sauce, and mayo-y chips. My friend went a little more adventurous with the Thai fish curry, which turned out to be a risk worth taking: accompanied by a sweet ‘n sour cucumber salad and fragrant rice, the curry was surprisingly delicate and the fish fresh.
I have a feeling I may become a regular at the Kostverloren, having just taken up pole dancing classes at the Rasa-Lila dance/yoga school next door. (Yes, you did read that right: the Amsterdam Foodie has taken up pole dancing.) The venue has a hip vibe to it, with wood-chip walls covered in posters of gigs and shows that I’m probably not cool enough to attend. Again, the service was surprisingly decent for a Dutch café, and the house wine pretty easy on the palate and the wallet. I ate the Caesar salad, which came with a perfectly poached egg and smoked chicken. Caesar dressing can be hard to get right, but I liked Kostverloren’s version. My only complaint was that the croutons were stale.
