Amsterdam is the capital of the Dutch country the Netherlands, perhaps most famous for its iconic, skinny canal houses located in and around its impressive canal system—which is comprised of more than 100 kilometres of canals, 1,500 bridges, and 90 islands, first built in the 17th century and today a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site.
It’s also well known for its rich history and culture—and that permeates today through its more than 70 museums in and around the city. And it’s super bike-friendly, with more Amsterdam residents (60%+) owning a bike (or two or three!), and biking as their main method of transportation, over than any other transport. Â
Amsterdam is an absolutely beautiful, busy city full of great activities, adventure, history, and food—I think you’ll really love it, just like we did!Â
In February 2024, we chose Amsterdam as a getaway destination for our first international trip with our 11 month old baby. It was a fantastic trip! We spent more than 10 days in the area so I think we experienced quite a lot, and am excited to share about our adventures with you!
Just a disclosure note that the trip was partially hosted / partially not hosted. Some entry was free as media, others were free with an I Amsterdam Card. We paid for all of the food we ate lol. Regardless, as regular readers know, what I share with you is always my true experience and recommendation!Â
I hope you’ll find great use out of my:
Travel Guide: Things To Do, What To Eat and Where to Stay In Amsterdam, Netherlands 🇳🇱
- A Few Fun Facts
- Using an I amsterdam City Card
- When to go to Amsterdam, Netherlands
- What to Do in Amsterdam, NetherlandsÂ
- Where to Eat in Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Where to Stay in Amsterdam, NetherlandsÂ
- How to get to Amsterdam, Netherlands Â
- How to get around Amsterdam, NetherlandsÂ
- Public Art in Amsterdam, NetherlandsÂ
- Cats of Amsterdam, Netherlands
First,Â
A Few Fun Facts about Amsterdam, Netherlands!
(because who doesn’t love fun facts!)
- As mentioned, the Amsterdam Canals are not only historic but iconic in the city. The 17th century canal houses are not only a sight to behold, but an incredible example of impressive urban planning, which is partly why it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This port city was born out of their canal system. You cannot visit Amsterdam without experiencing their canals (both through tours on the water and walking in and around the canal ring—more on these below!)Â
- As a result of the canal system, the city is also well-known for its numerous Houseboats—thousands of floating homes you’ll see all along the city’s canals.Â
- Although we didn’t go during Tulip season (more on timing of your trip below lol), Amsterdam is also very famous for its tulip bloom and Tulip Festival. Many people come to this region to visit the tulip fields and farms of the Amsterdam region. Even funner fact—apparently way back in the 1600s some tulip bulbs cost more than the price of a house.Â
- Did you know: Amsterdam is actually considered the Biking Capital of the world? Well—I feel like once you get to Europe so many of the cities are built so pedestrian-friendly / walkable that there are many contenders for Biking Capital but there are nearly 1 million bicycles in the city of Amsterdam and more residents than not bike daily. When we were there, we passed so many cyclists and also spotted traffic circles just for bikes! They say if you are travelling to Amsterdam, it is absolutely not necessary to rent a vehicle because it’s so walkable, bikeable, and in general their public transportation system with buses, trains and trams is super slick and easy to use. Â
- The XXX you will see everywhere as Amsterdam’s city symbol is actually three vertical St. Andrew’s Crosses. You can learn more about Amsterdam symbols and colours here!
- Amsterdam is super inclusive! In fact, the Netherlands was the first country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage back in 2001. During our visit we saw lots of progress pride flags, decals, stickers, etc., on trains, buses, and windows around the city and that felt really nice.
Honestly there are so many interesting facts about Amsterdam…
…from the city being built on poles, to there are more museums per capita and per square metre than anywhere in the world, and much more—I’ve linked to a few other ‘fun fact’ articles below for your ease if you’re interested in learning more off-blog, and will get into all the activities we did and food we ate to help you plan your trip below!Â
A few more fun facts:
- 14 Amsterdam Facts (Clink Hostels)
- 13 Fun Facts about Amsterdam (Get Your Guide)
- 10 Things To Know about Amsterdam (Hotels.com)
- Fun Facts about Amsterdam (Meninger)
Before we get into the do + eat ideas, an attractions pass shout-out you could consider:
Using the “I amsterdam City Card” for your trip
For our visit, Amsterdam Tourism gifted us I amsterdam ‘City Cards’ to use for some of our experiences (basically media/press passes to try for our exploration).Â
The I amsterdam City Card is a super handy attractions pass designed to give visitors free or discounted admission to pretty much all major Amsterdam and area highlights including more than 70 museums, plus free city-wide public transport, a canal cruise and bicycle rentals.Â
You can select your City Card in 24, 48, 72, 96 or 120 hour increments—which range in cost from € 60 to € 125—so the longer duration you select the better value you get.Â
Honestly I think even just doing the canal cruise, hitting up just one or two museums, hopping on a few buses or trains, and grabbing a bicycle rental alone pays for your card. I also think the businesses and experiences featured in the City Pass is just a great little cheat sheet for top things to do in the region (if for instance you weren’t using my handy Travel Guide to plan your trip lol).Â
Depending on your duration selected, your day(s) might feel a bit hectic as you try to cram in as much of the free / discounted activities as possible before the pass runs out—but as mentioned, even just doing a handful of things more than pays for the pass. We received the 72 hour City Cards and found that was a great timeframe to comfortably explore. It is activated the first time you use it for attraction entry or transportation, so we used it on our second day (after taking the first day to just get familiar with our neighbourhood). Of course which pass you choose depends on how much time you’ve allotted for your visit to Amsterdam (hopefully longer than a day).Â
Based on our experience, I definitely recommend you get an I amsterdam City Card for your Amsterdam visit—especially of course if it is your first time to the area and you want to try and see and do a lot of the ‘big’ / ‘must-do’ Amsterdam things for free or discounted rates in a short period of time. It’s very much a tool to make it easier to make the most of your visit!
Here’s a note about timing of your visit…
When to Go to in Amsterdam, Netherlands!
We spent nearly two weeks in Amsterdam mid to end of February 2024.Â
February is considered off-season / winter in the region, and while they don’t really get snow in the Netherlands, they do get a lot of wind and rain.
So unfortunately most of our trip due to going at this time of year was pretty grey and chilly, which wasn’t the best however! the big perk of this time of year and to balance out the weather, is that none of the attractions we went to were overly busy or crowded. We loved that!
Like, it wasn’t empty—there were still lots of people in certain areas, but I couldn’t really imagine navigating through anything busier than what we got in February lol.Â
Tulip Season is considered to be mid-April to mid-May, but Tulip Festival starts mid March. So you can expect March onwards to be a fairly busy time to be in the Dutch Capital. The weather is significantly improved—brighter green fields and bluer skies—but much busier. So just depends on what you’re looking for. Probably on a return visit we would want to experience a sunnier Amsterdam lol.Â
Most of the locals we chatted with during our stay though said Amsterdam is pretty grey and rainy year-round so it’s not unusual for them anymore, the bluer skies is actually less the norm lol so don’t feel too bad if you go and get more grey days than you’d like, that just means you’re living like a local lol.Â
Now, onto some of the awesome attractions and things we we experienced in Amsterdam:Â
What to Do in Amsterdam, Netherlands!
- Canal CruiseÂ
- Dam Square
- De 9 Straatjes
- De PoezenbootÂ
- Fabrique des Lumieres
- Heineken Experience
- Moco Museum
- Muiderslot Castle
- NXT Museum
- Royal Palace Amsterdam
- Rijksmuseum
- STRAAT Museum
- Volendam (E-Bike Rental & Simonehoeve Cheese Farm & Clog Factory)
- WondR Experience
- Zaanse Schans / Zaandem
Canal Cruise
While it might be one of the most touristy things you can do in Amsterdam, I’ve never thought this was a bad thing—you are a tourist where you go. Embrace it!Â
When in Amsterdam, especially for your first visit, you need to go on a canal cruise. I believe it’s like a rite of passage for visiting this city.Â
You cannot go to Amsterdam and not experience the canal!? Right?Â
As mentioned, you get a FREE canal cruise with your I amsterdam City Card and you get to choose your canal cruise from a number of local operators. There aren’t necessarily big differences between the cruise operators, many end up doing pretty much identical routes, many would have audio tours and a captain who shares similar fun facts, many have outside areas as well as covered seating for different views and photo opportunities, etc.Â
Picking a canal cruise ends up being more about if you want a themed canal cruise (for instance some offer wine & cheese, some offer pizza, some are for sunset or evening cruises, etc. however those are usually extra costs so aren’t necessarily part of the City Card free admission), or more about location of boarding.Â
That was the main difference in helping us choose which operator to go with was where the boarding location is / where you’ll be the day you want to do your cruise. On the particular day of our cruise we happened to be exploring more in the Jordaan west-central region the city so we picked the Amsterdam Circle Line which departs in that area, steps from the Anne Frank House.Â
As an aside, we opted not to do the Anne Frank House because personally felt weird to do touristy things around such a sad story even though MANY people recommended the experience to us and it may be something you would do! But an example of weird feelings—while we waited for our cruise to start, many people flocked to the house to take selfies with the exterior sign, and that just felt odd? Of course I can see you wanting to visit and take in the history and take photos of things in the house, learn more about her story, sure… but a smiling selfie?
Not sure about that for us personally.Â
But back to the cruise!Â
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Most of the canal cruises are between one to one and half hours long in duration and there are lots of fun facts, history and monuments shared, you’re totally welcome to ask questions, and there’s plenty of cute photo opportunities from this vantage point of the canals and city.Â
A delightful surprise for us was that the Circle Line ended up being much less crowded during our cruise than other operators at the same time. We passed a few different boats that had way more people—so we were pretty happy with how spacious our boat was in comparison. You can’t really pick for that, could have been the day / time / weather (it was a mostly grey day with some pockets of sunshine), but still great for us. But I do think us going off-season / in ‘winter’ helped with a less-crowded canal cruise overall. Because the canal waterways were less crowded (less boats on the water), our captain was also able to turn the boat around to a few different areas or stay longer in different areas he wouldn’t necessarily be able to had the waterways been full.
Canal cruises in Amsterdam are offered year-round so you don’t need to worry about the timing of your trip in that way—but definitely it will be busier during spring/summer months.Â
Dam SquareÂ
Amsterdam-CentrumÂ
A well-visited town square in Amsterdam’s City Centre is Dam Square, apparently located at the original location of the dam in the Amstel River (where Amsterdam got its city name). This area is also home to the Royal Palace Amsterdam, which I write more about below.Â
Surrounding Dam Square are an assortment of monuments and impressive, historic buildings that are primarily shopping centres. Dam Square is located in an area called “The Royal Mile” (Paleiskwartier) known for its shopping, restaurants and cultural attractions.Â
There’s not necessarily much to do in the physical square itself, but the views and streets all around it are where you’ll find all the shopping, if that’s part of your travel priorities. Otherwise it’s nice to just explore the historic area.Â
Apparently if you time it right, Dam Square is the location of a huge garden constructed each year for National Tulip Day featuring 200,000 tulips that you can pick for free. And also the site of other events held throughout the year. During our late February visit, there were no events in Dam Square lol.Â
De 9 Straatjes (The 9 Streets)
Amsterdam-Centrum
You can’t visit Amsterdam without exploring the city centre, which includes the popular “De 9 Straatjes” or “The 9 Streets” — 3×3 streets and 4 canals that are some of the most picturesque you can find in the city. This historic neighbourhood features more than 250 local shops, hotels, and museums. Find De 9 Straatjes in the middle of Amsterdam’s canal belt.Â
The 9 Streets are: Reestraat, Hartenstraat, Gast-Huismolensteeg, Berenstraat, Wolvenstraat, Oude Spiegelstraat, Runstraat, Huidenstraat and Wijde Heisteeg, but it’s more common to just describe shops and restaurants in this area as being in the “Nine Streets” than actually saying the specific street name lol.Â
De 9 Straatjes is listed on Google Maps—so it’s not hard to find. But to ensure we didn’t miss it, I looked up a variety of local restaurants and cafes around The 9 Streets that we could sort of just walk and eat our way through the neighbourhood with. It worked!
More details on the food in the food section below!Â
This area is described as buzzing with “crafts, trade and culture for more than 4 centuries” and I’d agree—it was pretty bustling when when we visited, although I will note we tried to walk into Fabel Friet, a well-known fries shop, around 9 a.m. because we are on baby time (early mornings), it and most places were not open yet. Once we made our way back after noon, the streets were filled! Most shops here are also open on Sundays and almost all public holidays.Â
De Poezenboot (The Cat Boat)
Singel 38 /G
1015 AB
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Cat lovers will be familiar with looking up cat-related attractions where you travel (cat cafes, for instance). But in Amsterdam, you’ll find not only a Cat Art Museum Katten Kabinet, but you’ll also find The Cat Boat or De Poezenboot, litter-ally a houseboat parked in Amsterdam’s famous canals that since 1966 has been home to a non-profit cat shelter where there are both adoptable cats and resident cats who live on the boat!
Reservations are recommended, and donations are very encouraged.
We bought a nice De Poezenboot toque with funds supporting the rescue during our visit.
Expect line-ups when you arrive—people love their cats of course! You wait a little less if you make a reservation.Â
Our visit to De Poezenboot aligned with our stay in Amsterdam-West so this was approximately a 20 minute walk from our apartment-hotel but we ended up walking all over downtown and landing back in this area for our reservation time. There’s so much to see and do in this central area all along the different canals!Â
We enjoyed our visit to De Poezenboot though it was pretty quick—you can pet some cats and ask the volunteers about the boat. You can also peek out onto the canal. This was the only from-a-houseboat perspective we got during our trip so that was fun! But otherwise not a ton of things to do on the boat other than see and pet the cats (and say you’ve been on a Cat House Boat lol). Â
On our trip we had made the choice between the Cat House Boat or the Cat Art Museum and we chose Cat House Boat as we had so many other museums on our itinerary. I think we would’ve spent much longer at the museum but very happy that we visited De Poezenboot!Â
Fabrique des Lumieres
Pazzanistraat 37
1014 DB
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Another attraction we visited while staying in Amsterdam-West was to Fabrique des Lumieres, described as a “modern take on a museum”—an immersive audiovisual experience where different exhibits utilize different projections, video and sound to tell its stories.
If you’ve ever seen or visited the Imagine Van Gogh Experience (or something similar)—where projections of art paired with music and some storytelling text plays on big screen in a big room, that’s very much the Fabrique des Lumieres vibe.Â
Fabrique des Lumieres uses this method to “bring art to life: the works of the biggest artists in history, dished up in an ode of digital image and sound. Allowing state-of-the-art technology to breath and flourish in the large open spaces of Amsterdam’s Westergasfabriek.”
We got to take in Destination Cosmos: The Immersive Space Experience on its very last day of the exhibit during our trip in February 2024. Depending on when you go, you might find showcases of Dutch Masters (famous artists from the Netherlands). As I write this blog in June 2024, there is a Mondriaan: An Abudance of Colour exhibit on that looks like a lot of vibrant fun.
Destination Cosmos was really cool basically taking you through the history of humanity’s space program. From the vastness of space to the canyons of Mars, the heart of Jupiter and rings of Saturn, it was super cool to be surrounded by real space footage paired with animations set to very dramatic music.Â
Bring headphones for your baby if you’re experiencing this one (or if you’re lucky they’ll have a few they can rent out to you). Strollers are not allowed in the exhibit space but there is a stroller parking area here as with many museums in Amsterdam.Â
Also don’t be alarmed at the crowd to get in—lol the space is huge so it actually doesn’t feel crowded at any given time, and the crowd was more because they hadn’t opened yet so once it opens people file through fairly quickly (pre-order tickets online!)Â
Heineken Experience
Stadhouderskade 78
1072 AE
Amsterdam, Netherlands
One of the things about being a parent on vacation is maybe you’ll take turns doing different things while the other parent stays with baby. That’s how we approached Amsterdam’s Heineken Experience, mostly because they don’t allow minors inside lol.Â
At this part of our trip our home base for adventure was a hotel located in Amsterdam Oud-Zuid or Old South—right near Museumstraat (the Museum Quarter), a few minutes walk from the Heineken Experience.Â
So while Benjimin and I napped in the hotel, Mike went to learn more about the world’s most famous beer which originated right here in Amsterdam.
There’s a few different tours you can book at the Heineken Experience including pairing the tour with a canal cruise. Mike chose the basic Heineken Tour, which gets you two beers and a self-guided tour through Heineken’s oldest brewery.Â
Mike described the Heineken Experience as “massive” with “tons of people” and his favourite part about it was purchasing personalized Heineken bottles at the end (lol).
After the Heineken Experience (and my nap with Benjimin), we met up for a great dinner nearby—more on that in the food section below!Â
Moco Museum
Honthorststraat 20
1071 DE
Amsterdam, Netherlands
As you read about all the things we did in Amsterdam, you’ll likely start to notice a theme in our exploration—primarily either historic / old attractions or newer, modern, Instagrammable arts-related attractions lol. Moco Museum falls into the latter description (though the building the museum is housed in is certainly old and historic lol), and features iconic works by celebrated and rising modern and contemporary artists.
The museum features works from well-known names such as Banksy, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Damien Hirst, KAWS, Jeff Koons, Yayoi Kusama, Andy Warhol, Studio Irma, and more! Some exhibits are what you would expect at a museum—canvas paintings or mounted pieces to view on walls, while others are more interactive spaces or physical sculptures. Some even have virtual components—where you can use the Moco Museum app to get a different perspective of the piece through your phone.
The name ‘Moco’ stands for MOdern and COntemporary art.
Moco Museum is located in the museum district or “Museumplein” square of Amsterdam—home to some of the most important museums in the city all located just steps from one another so it’s a perfect location to plan a bit of museum-hoppin’.
Unsurprisingly my favourite pieces were the interactive, digital / light ones! Benjimin really enjoyed our visit here as well. It was fun to have him experience artworks from some of the greatest artists of our time at such a young age. When he raised his hands while looking at the Jean-Michel Basquiat works, I thought that was so special.
Strollers are not allowed in this building (it’s very old and stairs everywhere) but they have an area set aside for stroller parking as many of the attractions we visited offered.
Muiderslot Castle
Herengracht 1
1398 AA
Muiden, Netherlands
One of the best attractions we visited just outside of Amsterdam was the Muiderslot Castle, one of the oldest and best preserved castles in the Netherlands that now acts as a national museum.
Amsterdam Castle Muiderslot is surrounded by water and gardens (you cross an actual moat to get in) and was constructed over 700 years ago just an hour train/bus or 20 minute car ride south east of Amsterdam.
The castle was first built in 1285 (!!!) and it was just incredible walking the halls, climbing the narrow and steep stairs in the towers, and seeing where and how so many once lived. It turns out the castle came close to being demolished but in 1878 it became one of the first national museums in the Netherlands after renovations made from the famous architect Pierre Cuypers, who was also involved in the construction of the Rijksmuseum and Amsterdam Centraal Station.Â
The museum’s collection is centered around the Middle Ages and the 17th century, when poet and writer P.C. Hooft lived at the castle so you can see his room and different areas set up the way they would have been when he was there. P.C. Hooft also commissioned the castle gardens, which today look the way they did in the 17th century! You can visit the dungeon that once held prisoners, see the canopy bed where castle kids once slept, or look at some of the weapons, armour and defense systems they once had to protect themselves, to name just a few spaces.Â
Exploring Muiderslot Castle was really fun and we had it almost all to ourselves during our off-season visit. Not a stroller-friendly attraction (obviously lol) but we brought our baby carrier with us on this trip so it was easy to swap to baby carry (and then very carefully climb up those narrow and steep stairs lol some of the railings were vertical!) Definitely well worth the visit out from the city and actually the whole neighbourhood and City of Muiden where the castle is situated looks like it would’ve been a really lovely place to explore more if we had more time (so YOU should plan more time to spend in the area!)
Muiderslot Castle was easily one of the highlights of our trip!Â
NXT Museum
Asterweg 22
1031 HP
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Located in Amsterdam Noord (North), NXT Museum is known as the first museum in the Netherlands dedicated to New Media Art. Similar to Fabrique des Lumieres (in a way). NXT is all about large scale, multi-sensory exhibitions. I would say its exhibits have more of a science and technology theme than Fabrique des Lumieres, which is more immersive arts focused.Â
What you find at NXT is meant to “challenge assumptions and open minds. We seek, show and question what is Nxt.” Exhibits also focus on “art that uses modern tools to embody modern times.”
For instance, the first piece we experienced titled “Presence and Erasure” (2019, designed by John Bertolaso), surprised everyone by creating art pieces live depicting folks standing in the room. It showed “progressive stages of detection, image capture, printing, and erasure artwork that invites participants to consider our perception of surveillance technology and our role in endorsing, celebrating, or passively accepting its realities. Does the thrill of seeing ourselves mask the potential violation of our privacy? Does the ubiquity of interactions like these equate to consent?”Â
One of the main installations on when we visited was called “Living Room”— which explores the concept of space as a living entity: “a constantly shifting architectural realm that possesses a sentience of its own” manifested through light and fog, so as you step into the Instagrammable, shapeshifting environment, the lights adjust to your movement, raising the question: “Is the space guiding you, or are you engaged in a collaborative choreography with it? This dynamic highlights the ever-present tension between human control and the agency of the machine.”
We thought the science, technology and commentary of the human condition found throughout NXT’s pretty trippy exhibits super interesting!Â
Royal Palace Amsterdam
Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal
147, 1012 RJ
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Standing in the middle of Amsterdam’s city centre, just off Dam Square, is the Royal Palace Amsterdam—both an attraction and currently used as Dutch King Willem-Alexander’s official reception palace.
Described as “a living building where you can follow in the footsteps of royal guests through its imposing rooms and halls,” the Royal Palace and its self-guided audio tour was a really interesting stop in our Amsterdam adventures.Â
It is the largest and most prestigious building from the 17th Century—one of the Netherlands’ most important monuments.Â
The audio tour dives deeper into this, but the Palace was originally built in the mid 1600s as a town hall and used as a City Hall—not a palace! It wasn’t until 1808 when King Louis Bonaparte turned the building into a palace.
Here you will find huge halls, high ceilings, impressive paintings and sculptures throughout the building, along with impressive furniture like a 1,500 lb chandelier. Another museum with an excellent audio tour feature.Â
The Royal Palace was just wild to experience knowing how ‘old’ the building was.
So much history!
Rijksmuseum
Museumstraat 1
1071 XX
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Perhaps the most famous museum in all of Amsterdam is Rijksmuseum, located in the Museum Quarter, housing more than 8,000 works of Dutch art and history, including masterpieces by the famed Vermeer, Rembrandt, and Van Gogh.
The Rijksmuseum is massive, truly. Located in a historic, castle-like building and considered one of the world’s most famous, inside the traditional Rijksmuseum you’ll find 800 years of Dutch history—from the year 1200 to present day (though the building is only about 200 years old—lol “only” when that’s older than for instance, Canada).Â
The thing we found so impressive about much of the experiences we had in Amsterdam was just how old and well-documented, well-preserved, well-collected the city’s history was.Â
This is apparent with the pieces found inside Rijksmuseum, including:
- A self-portrait by Vincent Van Goh (lol Mike said a security guard stepped forward when I reached my arm out to take a photo).
- A four poster bed from 1715 (Mike’s commentary: “beds really haven’t changed in 300 years.”)
- The Cuypers Library inside the museum is the largest and oldest art historical library in the Netherlands (a bibliotheek!)
- Paintings as tall and as wide as the room and ceiling—like The Battle of Waterloo by Jan Willem Pieneman, 1824.
- A replica of the Dutch Republic’s flotilla. “The Dutch Republic owed its prosperity to the sea—to its merchant fleet and fishing.”
- a sculpture of Charity the Educator circa 1842-1845 from Italian artist Lorenzo Bartolini, showing a woman caring for two children and encouraging the older one to read. This piece contributed to the discussion of the importance of education in Tuscany.
To name just a few of the 8,000 objects in the family-friendly museum.Â
When we visited, there was a fun painting class going on inside one of the halls!Â
And they have nice elevator / skip-the-line access for families who visit too—access from The Passage, which you’ll notice first from the street. It’s a cool tunnel that splits the museum’s Atrium—opens out into the streets of the Museum Quarter.Â
I would say Rijksmuseum is a must for the sheer size, scale and history of it all, but personally preferred more of the newer, modern art museums and immersive experiences.Â
STRAAT Museum
NDSM-Plein 1
1033 WC
Amsterdam, Netherlands
The STRAAT Museum in Amsterdam is the world’s largest street art museum and easily one of the coolest museums I’ve ever been to.
STRAAT is dedicated to street art and graffiti, showcasing some of the biggest names and upcoming talent from all over the world. The 8000 m2 former warehouse space on the NDSM wharf of Amsterdam is considered a national monument and the biggest outdoor playground for street art and grafitti—its current exhibition featuring more than 180 artworks by 170+ artists and works frequently rotate depending on when you visit.Â
As soon as we walked in I recognized a piece from Calgary, Alberta artist Michelle Hoogveld (she has a very distinct style!) and I literally squealed—how cool that someone from my home province was represented in this incredible art space.Â
What’s really cool about STRAAT (there are so many cool things honestly), is that all the artworks in the museum are created on-site, and most of the pieces are big as as you would find on outdoor walls. And unlike street art and graffiti you might find on the streets—at STRAAT you get all the context, information and storytelling about the art and from the artists accompanying each piece.
I could’ve spent the whole day here (you could plan to!) you could also plan to attend a spray can workshop or if going with kids, do their interactive art treasure hunt.Â
You absolutely MUST check out the STRAAT Museum when in Amsterdam I don’t care how short or long your visit is, I know you’ll be as impressed with this museum as we were!Â
Volendam (Rent & Event + Simonehoeve Cheese Farm & Clog Factory)
It’s very common for visitors to Amsterdam to plan trips to rural areas located just outside the city and very easily accessible from Amsterdam Centraal Station. It really can’t be overstated how great the public transportation is in Amsterdam (Europe as a whole?)
As you see throughout my guide suggestions, we were able to incorporate a few Dutch countryside activities in our itinerary and we really enjoyed our visit to the Town of Volendam in North Holland, Netherlands—it’s a small fishing village located on the north east side of the country, about a 30 minute train/bus ride from Amsterdam Centraal Station.Â
E-Biking in VolendamÂ
We mainly chose Volendam for a visit because we saw that there was an e-bike rental shop there called Volendam Rent & Event and that this rental shop had baby seat attachments for your bike!Â
We try to e-bike everywhere we travel as a way to easily explore an area—the electric part of it really ensures I can go farther and faster without much effort. It’s pretty much the perfect transportation method to really get into the nooks and crannies of an area.
Volendam Rent & Event is located at the harbour on Markemeer Lake so you can zip around some pretty cute historic homes and cobblestone streets. They also give you a little map so you can easily find your way to different windmills if you like (we visited one). And they recommend you take a free ferry to the nearby town of Marken (but we opted not to due to weather).Â
Cheese Farm and Clog Factory TourÂ
Our big ‘activity’ of the day in Volendam / Katwoude region was visiting Simonehoeve, a cheese farm and clog factory near Volendam! They offer FREE TOURS 365 days a year! The staff were just incredible. Since it was off season we were literally the only ones there so it was like we got a really informational and interactive private tour. We tried clogs, bought clogs, tasted Gouda and Edam cheeses, shopped their huge gift store, and they also do lunch, dinner and workshops for bigger groups. Our experience at Simonehoeve was such a highlight. We learned so many fun facts (you know I love fun facts)—like the proper way to pronounce gouda (watch my Instagram Story highlight for the intel lol) and did you know – in olden Holland days when people wanted to propose, they would have to make their own clog and present it to the father who would then give permission to wed (determining that person was a suitable partner based on the quality of the clog he made). We also picked up a bunch of delicious cheese to take home and are saving it to crack into once I publish this blog post so, I can’t wait lol.
Simonhoeve is not the only cheese farm in the area but we are so happy we popped in and absolutely recommend you do the same. Tell them @lindork from Canada sent you! (when we stopped by they were really trying to increase their Instagram presence so they’ll probably ask you to follow them lol).
Unfortunately our Volendam day trip happened to occur during an especially rainy and windy day of our trip so it wasn’t the most picturesque experience but my sister-in-law had also visited Volendam on her Amsterdam trip a few years back (during high / sunny season) and she had noted this little town was her favourite rural experience in the area. It IS very cute—just a little less when you’re feeling pretty cold lol. The weather actually made our time at Simonhoeve all the more appreciated as a nice little escape from the elements lol. Thank goodness Rent & Event had a wind shield for the bike’s baby seat or else I don’t think we would’ve been able to go at all.Â
WondR Experience
Meeuwenlaan 88
1021 JK
Amsterdam, Netherlands
We really enjoyed our visit to WondR Experience, a super colourful, tactile, Instagrammable experience in North (Noord) Amsterdam. WondR is described as an indoor playground for adults (and kids!)—a world of colour and sensation where you make your way through 15 themed and interactive rooms created by artists.
It’s the ultimate interactive Instagrammable arts experience and I LOVE that it’s also family friendly, including offering dedicated KIDS TIME each Saturday and Sunday morning and Wednesday afternoons. This is where they only let families in during that time frame and we didn’t realize how much of a perk this was until we left around 1 p.m. and there was a line-up of at least 50 people waiting to access the WondR Experience!Â
The spaces were super fun but I could see it being less so if it was really crowded, so timing your visit even if you don’t have kids—to be before or after peak hours would be a good idea if you want some good photos of yourself interacting in the spaces without too much of a wait.Â
We really liked a confetti room where you could throw confetti, and a mirror room with changing colours that was a pretty trippy experience. There’s also a HUGE ball pit space that’s very popular, and a giant vending machine / Japanese-style arcade room that was neat.Â
If you want to spend even more time here, WondR also has a “Roller Dreams” roller disco experience and a “Pink Beach” think Barbie tropical oasis / pool vibes experience, you can really spend quite a lot of time here if you take in all of their experiences + theme rooms—plus they offer food and drinks in a space-themed restaurant once you’re done your play + pictures.Â
As mentioned with other attractions in Amsterdam—strollers were not allowed in the space but they do have an area you can park your stroller and grab afterwards.Â
Zaanse Schans
Another Dutch countryside experience you should consider doing when in Amsterdam area is visit Zaanse Schans, a cute little historic windmill neighbourhood in the Dutch Town of Zaandam, off the River Zaan, located less than an hour public transit (or 20 minute drive) north west of Amsterdam. Zaanse Schans is meant to show you what the region would’ve been like before the Industrial Revolution.Â
Similar to the I Amsterdam Card, Zaanse Schans actually offers their own tourist card which gets you access to several museums, two windmills, crafts and a chocolate factory that’s described as a real-life Willy Wonka experience! We didn’t do the Zaanse Schans card as we only had a couple of hours but if you were there the full day I can see it being beneficial.Â
Historically, this region was one of the world’s first industrial areas where hundreds of windmills produced all sorts of items that you will still see in action today.Â
We basically walked all along the main sidewalk that takes you up and around to all of the different windmills, stopping into some shops and taking photos along the way. We wanted to pop into the original Alberta Heijn, the popular grocery store in the Netherlands that originated in Zaanse Schans in 1887. The store reopened as a museum in 1967, but it is only open on weekends and we visited on a weekday. We did make our own hot chocolate using Zaanse Schans chocolate at Blik op Cacao. The one museum we had time to check out was the Museum Zaanse Tijd (Zaan Time Museum), a museum dedicated to showcasing animated and antique clocks. You can get free admission as part of the I Amsterdam City Card, Museum or Zaanse Schans Pass. As our City Card had expired by this point of the trip, we paid full admission and while it was neat seeing some of the very old and historic clocks (and you gotta love the tick tock sound), if I’m being honest you’ll feel much better about the value if it’s included with one of the passes.Â
We found Zaans Schans to be pretty busy during off-season in February, so I actually can’t imagine how packed it must be during the summer. There are actually signs that remind you how to walk because of how wild the crowds get!Â
If I were picking which historic rural Netherlands town is ‘cuter’ (more Instagrammable photos lol), Zaanse Schans takes it with their multiple windmills and cute 18th and 19th century wooden home and buildings. But I may also be a little biased because we had better weather on the day we visited Zaanse Schans compared to our visit to Volendam lol. They’re both very different experiences though mainly because Zaanse Schans is like an entire picturesque village designed just for tourists (even though real Dutch locals live in these historic wooden homes too!)
There are some food options in Zaanse Schans but if you pop across the bridge you’ll also find more restaurant options in the Town of Zandaam (which is also still very cute—but more of a normal town).Â
Next, some ideas for food and restaurants you could try during your visit!Â
Something that I always try to do when I’m about to visit an area is find what types of food or ingredients are local or popular to the region. When I looked up Dutch foods, lots of items came up and I’m proud to say we were able to try nearly everything on my list!
If you want to immerse yourself in Dutch cuisine, use my suggestions below.Â
I categorize by type of Dutch food and then recommend some associated restaurants we tried.Â
Some restaurants we had fuller dining room experiences with whereas others we ordered take in for (sometimes that’s just easier with a baby lol). It was so fun learning more about the culture and region through its food!Â
I also want to note that it wasn’t our intention to dine at some of the oldest restaurants in the city, it’s just sort of the nature of the city lol—it’s been around for such a long time!
Where to Eat in Amsterdam, Netherlands:
- Broodjes
- Cafes
- Cheese
- Deep Fried Dutch Dishes
- Bitterballen
- ChipsÂ
- Frikandel
- Kibbeling
- Kroketten
- Dutch Classes / Comfort Food
- Erwtensoep or SnertÂ
- Gehaktballen
- hutspot
- Stamppot
- Dutch Pancakes
- PannenkoekenÂ
- PoffertjesÂ
- Rijsttafel – Indonesian Rice Table
- Stroopwaffels
- Tompouce
- Asian Restaurants (this part isn’t alphabetical order lol)Â
Broodjes – Dutch Sandwich
Something you might see a lot on your Amsterdam walks are Broodjes stands.
Pronounced “brode-jez”, Broodjes is simply a Dutch sandwich with your choice of filling.Â
Broodjes are super convenient as a on-the-go item and is generally super affordable.Â
During our visit we came across a Broodje Haring specialty stand called Jonk Volendammer Haringhandel, which turned out to be quite a historic, family-owned stall, originating in 1987. Now more than 30 years later, Jonk Volendammer Haringhandel has upgraded to a more modern look but still serving the same high quality fish specialties including fresh herring—a Dutch delicacy—that it always has. This is what we ordered at Jonk Volendammer Haringhandel.Â
Ummmmm so for me, not a huge fan of herring sandwiches lol.
The herring is raw and salt-cured, served cold, with pickles and onions.
I love sashimi, don’t get me wrong, but this was perhaps fishier and slimier a texture than I typically prefer.Â
I should say I’m glad I tried it because I love trying food that locals love (there was a steady line-up of people ordering up their Broodje Haring when we stopped by), but would I order it again? Probably not lol. But still recommend you try if you’re interested in the Dutch / local experience!
Herring sandwiches are not the only Broodjes you can try in Amsterdam though, of course!Â
From Salgerij Vet, a Broodjes shop / butcher / deli open in Amsterdam’s Centrum (downtown) since 1955, we ordered a few different Broodjes for breakfast and these were more up our alley!
We tried:
- Broodje Gegrilde Ribeye Truffelmayo – a grilled Ribeye beef filling with truffle mayo
- Broodje Zeedijk a smoked chicken and fried bacon sandwich with Zeedijk sauce, a sweet-spicy curry mayonnaiseÂ
- Broodje Carpaccio, a raw thinly sliced beef sandwichÂ
- Broodje Gezond, which literally translates to Healthy Sandwich lol and comes with lettuce, cheese, ham, tomato, cucumber and egg
Speaking of sandwiches, in Amsterdam, we also really enjoyed our stop into:
Smoked Crispy Bacon Sandwich House
a popular deli in the Jordaan neighbourhood that is well-known for its pile of smoked crispy bacon sandwich. In fact, front and centre in their window are piles of crispy bacon both the visual and smell drawing you in from the street.
This item (titled Sandwich Jordaan) costs € 6.50 and pretty much everyone there when we were ordered this. But the restaurant actually has a very long list of sandwiches you can choose from—this crispy bacon one is just its most well-known (and delicious!)Â
Cafes
In Amsterdam, a ‘cafe’ isn’t necessarily what we imagine a cafe to be in North America—it’s more like a neighbourhood pub!
This article breaks down the famous brownstone ‘cafe’ pubs of Amsterdam in more detail but basically worth popping into one for vibes and drinks.Â
Mike spent some time at Cafe Chris, the oldest cafe in Amsterdam’s Jordaan neighbourhood—open as a beer house since 1624! Here he had some Amstel (local) craft beer and Jenever, a traditional Dutch spirit similar but not quite like gin.Â
These pub-cafes in Amsterdam are typically very old.Â
Cheese
Although we had most of our cheese just outside of Amsterdam, primarily at Simonehoeve Cheese Farm & Clog Factory, Dutch cheese is something you can easily get around the city!Â
We didn’t get to it but I really want to try Kaasbar—the city’s revolving cheese restaurant—when we return. The revolving cheese is only at the bar so I wasn’t sure if bar stools would’ve been great with the baby lol.Â
I am actually waiting to eat the cheese we brought back from Amsterdam after hitting publish on this blog post so… yay!Â
Deep-fried Dutch Dishes
We learned during our Amsterdam trip that the Dutch like deep-fried dishes (and so do we!)
These items are often great as grab and go dishes for your city exploration.
A few Deep-fried Dutch Dishes we enjoyed in Amsterdam include:Â
- Bitterballen – deep-fried balls of beef stew
- Chips with Mayonnaise – chips being friesÂ
- Frikandel – like a long and thin minced-meat sausage
- Kibbeling – battered fish chunks
- Kroketten – a croquette! Deep-fried roll of meat, seafood or cheese
We tried Bitterballen from LunchcafĂ© Dialoog, a basement pub and restaurant that is also the meeting point for the Amsterdam Canal Cruises we took. You’re encouraged to order food and drink from this restaurant to take onto your cruise.Â
We had famous fries from Fabel Friet located in De 9 Straatjes (the equally famous Nine Streets) in Amsterdam’s City Centre / Centrum.
Fabel Friet’s fries are authentic Dutch fries using Agria potatoes grown in the Netherlands. You may not know but fries originated in Belgium, which neighbours the Netherlands. So you can imagine the long history of fries in the country thanks to its neighbour’s tasty invention.Â
The recommended fry order here comes with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and homemade Truffle mayo but the way you order is to choose toppings (parmesan or cheddar), choose sauces (they have six different types of mayo plus two types of ketchup or a peanut sauce), and you can add chopped onions if you wish. They have three set/ suggested combinations for fries which range from € 5.55 to € 6.40 (approximately $8-$10 CAD).Â
This spot was the longest line-up we experienced for any food-related experience while in the city, the line went out the door, down the street, with a short break to allow cars / traffic to cross, and then continued again along the canal. It was actually *crazy* but also moved really fast lol. You are asked to NOT line-up to wait for or eat your fries on the other end of the street in front of the stores. This has apparently become so much of an issue that there are no-fry signs in place!Â
Also at Fabel Friet we tried the Frikandel and what they call a Cheese Souffle which is essentially a Dutch empanada. Both were great! Honestly, meat sticks and deep-fried cheese?
How can you go wrong..Â
Of course Fabel Friet is not the only place in Amsterdam where you can get your chips and mayo fix, or my stick of meat fix lol.Â
We also had fries and Frikandel from Doardi, an ice cream and fries shop in Amsterdam West.Â
Both also excellent.Â
And I mentioned the Broodje Haring we tried from Jonk Volendammer Haringhandel, but also worth noting that we tried a fish / seafood Kroketten made fresh from this stand too.Â
Rounding out the Deep Fried Dutch Dishes category is: Kibbeling, a common deep fried battered chunks of fish snack, which we enjoyed at Royalvis & Traiteur in Amsterdam Noord (North).Â
This very unassuming seafood shop offers a variety of fresh and deep fried fish dishes including the Kibbeling (we also got salmon) and is sisters with the Royalvis & Traiteur Restaurant across the street (which has a bit more of a varied menu).
Seafood in general (I know this is the ‘deep fried’ section for food but just noting here that fish is pretty popular in general in Amsterdam.Â
Dutch Classics / Comfort Food
What do Dutch people eat as comfort food? Well, we tried a few dishes considered ‘Dutch Classics’ during our visit to Amsterdam, including:
- Erwtensoep or Snert – Split Pea Soup (loved this!)Â
- Gehaktballen – Dutch Meatball
- Hutspot – mashed potatoes, carrots and onions
- Stamppot – a kale mashed potatoes sausage dish (loved this!)Â
We enjoyed some of these traditional dishes at:Â
which I would recommend these if you’re looking for those comforting, hearty Dutch dishes!
Hollands Hap Hmm Restaurant is located in Amsterdam Oud-Zuid (Old South), and has been around a long time—since 1935! It is a multiple award-winning restaurant (for best stew and best schnitzel) and we lucked out without a reservation on our first night in Amsterdam (I think they took pity on us with a baby coming in from the rain lol).Â
We ordered a delicious Stewed Beef (a Hap-Hmm specialty) and Viennese Schnitzel (award-winning!) and all dishes come with Dutch vegetables like Spinazie (spinach) with hardboiled eggs (I really love this even though like it’s objectively so simple) and boiled potatoes (the boiled potatoes were just okay lol). And Mike tried something called Jenever here, which is a traditional Dutch spirit similar to but not quite like gin. I forgot that water is not typically free at restaurants in Europe so this first food stop for our trip was a good reminder (good water though!)Â
I am still kicking myself that we didn’t try ‘Grandmother’s Meatball’ (we later tried other meatballs which were delicious and again, a Dutch thing lol) but I bet it would’ve been great here.
Main course prices at Hap-Hmm ranged from €14.95 up to €23.95 and the vibes are great.Â
I loved our Dutch Meatballs (Gehaktballen) from Mister Meatball Restaurant.
Not to be confused with Bitterballen, these Dutch meatballs are more like the meatballs we’re familiar with in North America (where the bitterballen has the different stew / roux texture inside).
From Mister Meatball we ordered:
- Ambachtelijke rookworst – smoked sausage
- Grootmoeders gehaktbal combinatie – a combo of
- Stamppot andijvie (endive mashed potatoes)
- Stamppot boerenkool (kale mashed potatoes)
- Gebakken spekjes (fried bacon)
- Stamppot boerenkool – kale with homemade gravy
Honestly, I know many Asian soups and noodles are my main comfort food but I think back very fondly to having my bowl of meatball, mashed potatoes with veg and bacon. I totally get why these dishes are considered Dutch comfort foods. So delicious. Heavy but feel-good.
Our Mister Meatball order was take-out so no cute restaurant shots but trust me, it’s good!
For even more traditional Dutch cuisine, head to Moeders (Mother) Restaurant located closer to Amsterdam West / Jordaan neighbourhood. This is a really fun restaurant decorated to the brim with photos of mothers! It’s super cute in a cluttered kind of way lol and the menu is packed full of Dutch comfort food.Â
This restaurant started in 1990 and on opening day the owner asked guests to bring a plate, glass and cutlery for their meal. These items are still the cutlery used at the restaurant today—more than 30 years later! There are also hundreds of framed and unframed pictures of mothers in this super cozy, casual restaurant that specializes in traditional Dutch cuisine and I am just sad I didn’t come prepared with a photo of me to submit to the wall lol.Â
The room is pretty tight so stroller is not recommended here though we were able to find a spot in the corner to tuck ours, it took a little bit of finagling through the door.Â
Service was great and the kitchen is actually in the basement of the building so from our table we could watch and see the food coming up through some kind of lever system. Apparently basement kitchens are common in Europe!Â
At Moeders, we wanted to order a dish unique to them—a “Dutch Ricetable.”Â
I write more about the “Rijsttafel – Indonesian Rice Table” which is a popular Dutch cuisine below, but as I’m sharing food in alphabetical order, I’ll just talk about the Dutch version of it first lol. Like its Indonesian counterpart, the Dutch Ricetable is basically a way to try a bunch of smaller portions of different dishes all in one order, but ironically without rice lol.Â
They describe the Dutch Ricetable as “little bits and pieces of traditional Dutch home cooking,” classified as a Moeders Classics, if you are looking to try a few typical Dutch dishes in one go, the Dutch Ricedish is for you.
This dish costs € 21 per person (around $31 CAD), minimum 2 people order, and features Granny’s stewed beef, Dolly’s Hachee (beef stew with onions), hotchpotch (hutspot – mashed potatoes, carrots and onions), boiled potatoes, red cabbage, apple sauce, bacon, sausage and gravy).
We came here specifically for this dish, but also added “Mama’s Happas” which features a variation of five small appetizers. They explained what each item was but I was a bad food blogger and didn’t write it down lol.Â
Overall really loved our experiences with Dutch classics during this Amsterdam trip!Â
Dutch Pancakes – Pannenkoeken & Poffertjes
When in the Netherlands you need to try Dutch Pancakes—larger, wider, thinner ones known as Pannenkoeken or smaller, rounder, fluffier mini ones known as Poffertjes.Â
In Edmonton, I usually get Poffertjes once a year at Heritage Festival from the Dutch Pavilion. In Amsterdam, I mean go nuts, pancake houses and restaurants are everywhere.Â
Both of these aren’t like the typical pancakes we’re used to in North America, but I think both of them are better lol. You can get both types with sweet or savoury toppings, which we did at De Carrousel Pannenkoeken Amsterdam, as just one suggestion for a spot to get your Dutch pancakes in the Dutch Capital. De Carrousel is a circular restaurant built around an old carousel near the Museum Quarter (Old South) region of the city!
At De Carrousel we tried one Pannenkoeken with bananas, whipped cream, sugar and syrup on top (sweet) and one with bacon, cheese and eggs cooked right in the dough (savoury). The Poffertjes (like mini pancakes) came with mixed fruit, sugar, syrup and whipped cream.
The food, service, ambience and location of De Carrousel are all excellent. The location used to be home to a fairground with the restaurant located nearby, then at one point, the family-owned business decided to build around the old carousel ride. We learned afterwards that the famous Amsterdam pancake restaurant will have to close to make room for a new park planned for the area (though it doesn’t say how soon that will happen). I do hope they reopen elsewhere and that you get to try them! But you can really find Dutch pancakes around most corners of the city, we also enjoyed Poffertjes we ordered in from a place called Pancake House on Uber Eats (for some reason I can’t find them online anymore!)
There was also a pancake boat we debated having pancakes on, along with a second-floor pancake restaurant that had good reviews as well. The main way we chose where to dine during our Amsterdam stay was based on those types of Dutch food followed by location / proximity to where we were staying or attractions we were headed to each day. I also like to leave a bit of flexibility for just stopping and trying random places we come across during our city walks!Â
Rijsttafel – Indonesian Rice Table
Now you might be surprised to learn that a traditional Dutch dish is an “Indonesian rice table” or “Rijsttafel.”
The meal is comprised of multiple small plates eaten with rice and was popularized in the Netherlands sadly as a result of Dutch colonization / occupation of Indonesia for nearly 150 years back in the 1800s.Â
As side bar, I have such mixed feelings about food influences as a result of colonization. So many delicious dishes all around the world that are such integral parts of cuisine and culture (think French occupation in Vietnam and our bánh mì and ca phê coffee, for example), but created as a byproduct of occupation and slave labour, among other harm. Very good stuff that came out of very bad stuff.
But as a result of all of that, Indonesian cuisine is considered ‘local’ and ‘Dutch’ so we knew we wanted to try it while in the region.
The Indonesian Rice Table is such a part of Dutch cuisine you can even upgrade to an “Indonesian Meal” on the airplane trip to the Netherlands (if you fly with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines!)
During our visit to Amsterdam, we tried Rijsttafel from Tujuh Maret, located in Amsterdam Centrum-south ish (not far from the Museum Quarter). Actually our walk to Tujuh Maret was one of the coolest because we encountered a huge bike traffic circle en route which was super fun to see.Â
The Rijsttafel from Tujuh Maret featured 18 dishes including chicken satay and lemongrass chicken, eggplant, spicy beef, boiled eggs, sweet and sour salad and more, including two types of rice! It was a great and filling meal that’s meant to be shared by at least two people.Â
The Rijsttafel Tujuh Maret we ordered cost €37.50 per person (around $55 CAD each). You can also get a slightly smaller version featuring 12 dishes (€32.50/pp) or a Vegetarian option (also €32.50/pp). They also ask if you want your dishes Mild, Medium, or Spicy.
The restaurant itself was pretty small—and totally packed and popular. We were glad we hadn’t brought our stroller to this restaurant as the door to get in is super narrow and once inside there really wasn’t tons of walking space. At this restaurant we also got to experience the skinny, narrow, steeps stairs commonly found in Amsterdam’s skinny buildings.Â
Benjimin was a hit at this restaurant—from the servers to the owners to the chefs, they all stopped to say hi to him (he was partial to the chicken dishes in the Rijsttafel).Â
Tujuh Maret is not the only location you can order an Indonesian Rice Table though—we just picked it again based on reviewing our itinerary for the day and where we’d be / what would be most convenient. I actually would like to go back and explore this area more when we return to Amsterdam, I really enjoyed our walk and sightseeing around here and would like to do it during the day (we went for dinner—which is the more common time to have the Rijsttafel).
Stroopwaffels
The Netherlands are known for its Stroopwafel! These are thin, round waffle cookies with two layers (think thin wafer) and a syrup filling.
There are many stroopwaffel bakeries across the city but a lot of popular ones are located in the city centre, including at Hans Egstorf, the oldest bakery in the city.Â
Hans Egstorf has been handcrafting its Stroopwaffels, croissants, sourdough breads and other pastries since 1898!! This four-generations family business still makes authentic Stroopwaffels according to the original recipe from more than 100 years ago. We really lucked out when we arrived they had just opened so there were no line-ups (but they had stanchions ready to go for the day’s expected line-ups lol, perks of exploring early on a baby’s schedule).
Even the building Hans Egstorf is located in is interesting—”built in the style of Nieuwe Kunst (New Art), or the Dutch version of Art Nouveau.” (or “swirly” in my plain language lol).
We also popped into Melly’s Stroopwaffel in the city centre and quite enjoyed the offering too—known for their original / classic but also their experimental topping variations.Â
Stroopwaffels make a great Amsterdam gift to bring back!!
Tompouce
I really enjoyed the Dutch pastry ‘Tompouce’ which is basically a Dutch take on the ‘mille-feuille’ or ‘Napoelon’ dessert. It’s puff pastry with sweet custard cream filling and to me was like a light and bright dessert.Â
We actually didn’t get it in a restaurant we found pre-packaged ones at Albert Heijn, the largest grocery store chain in the Netherlands founded in 1887.
We love browsing grocery stores in different locations to see what goodies they have and are usually never disappointed with snacks and pastry options.Â
What about Asian restaurants in Amsterdam?Â
Who would I be if I didn’t try Asian cuisine on my travels—Amsterdam included.Â
The most significant Asian eatery we visited as Sea Palace Amsterdam, a massive, 600-seat, three-storey, floating, pagoda-style Chinese restaurant that is massive, surprising to find in the harbour, and full of fun history.Â
Not only is it the only restaurant of its kind outside of China, it was said to be the largest Chinese restaurant in the world when it first opened in 1984.Â
According to Sea Palace, the restaurant started as a Chinese-Indonesian restaurant which was common at that time given the Indonesian colonization by the Dutch. Then they became one of the first restaurants in Amsterdam to focus solely on Chinese cuisine (today popular for their Cantonese dishes and dim sum).
We actually learned about Sea Palace from our Amsterdam Circle Line tour operator! Who shares the urban legend of Europe’s first floating restaurant actually sinking when it first opened. The story we heard essentially said the restaurant was modelled after a similar one in Hong Kong, but didn’t account for the less salty (and thereby less buoyant) water in the Amsterdam canals, so on opening night when hundreds piled into the restaurant, it started to sink. Just a legend but fun!
We enjoyed our meal (order food from tablets) at Sea Palace (wouldn’t say it was the best Chinese food we’ve ever eaten but certainly the best Asian food experience we had in Amsterdam) and the location / setting cannot be beat!Â
