Balthazar's keuken
Amsterdam · Jordaan4.5
Balthazar's Keuken occupies a converted blacksmith's workshop on the Elandsgracht in Amsterdam's Jordaan, where roughly 30 guests sit among scrubbed wooden floors and an open kitchen. The format is distinctive: a fixed three course meal beginning with a shared platter of five starters, followed by a choice of meat or fish, then dessert. Under chef Wanne de Vries, the menu changes weekly, guided by what the market and the seasons bring. Founded in 1995, the kitchen is now led by the next generation: Beau, his wife Zwaan and chef Wanne. The atmosphere leans closer to a dinner party than a formal restaurant, with personal interaction between kitchen and table. A small terrace opens in fine weather.
De Kas
Amsterdam4.7
De Kas occupies a 1927 municipal greenhouse in Park Frankendael, Amsterdam Oost. The glass structure frames the kitchen's purpose: growing, harvesting and cooking vegetables on the same day. Over 300 varieties of vegetables, herbs and fruits are cultivated across the on-site gardens and a second plot in the Beemster polder, with the menu composed around whatever the harvest delivers each week. Chefs Jos Timmer and Wim de Beer, who took ownership in 2018, apply a light, Mediterranean approach to Dutch-grown produce. The fixed menu changes weekly, shaped entirely by what the gardens yield. Vegetables occupy the centre of every course; fish or meat appears in roughly one dish in ten. In summer, lunch is served on a terrace among the herb beds that supply the kitchen. A single evening seating and an open kitchen designed by Studio Piet Boon set an unhurried pace.
Rijks
Amsterdam4.4
Rijks occupies the Philips Wing of the Rijksmuseum, its floor to ceiling windows framing an open kitchen where the brigade works with precision. Joris Bijdendijk has shaped the restaurant around what he calls the cuisine of the Low Countries: a repertoire built on Dutch produce, enriched by flavours from centuries of trade. The menu moves between land and sea. Red beet millefeuille with tomasu soy sauce, grilled celeriac with North Holland Messeklever cheese, Zeeland oysters and heritage breed meats all feature, but vegetables take the lead more often than not. Bijdendijk co-founded the Low Food foundation, dedicated to rethinking Dutch gastronomy around sourcing and inclusion. That conviction runs through the kitchen: direct producer relationships, Slow Food Chefs' Alliance membership, and a wine list recognised by Star Wine List.
Restaurant De Struisvogel
Amsterdam4.7
Tucked beneath an 18th century canal house on the Keizersgracht, De Struisvogel seats 34 in the heart of De Negen Straatjes. The kitchen works in a French register, turning out a three course set menu that changes regularly. Veluwe heathland lamb and Blonde d'Aquitaine beef anchor the protein side of the menu, alongside sea bream and mackerel. Vegetarian and vegan options run through every course, and the full menu is prepared in house. The format is relaxed evening dining at a price point well below the neighbourhood average.
Vermeer
Amsterdam4.6
Vermeer occupies a sequence of 17th century canal houses within the NH Collection Amsterdam Barbizon Palace, opposite Centraal Station. Under chef Sebastian Baquero Garces, the kitchen applies classical French technique to Dutch ingredients across seasonal set menus of four to six courses. The dining room draws its atmosphere from the painter: restrained light, calm tones and an unhurried pace. Dishes are built around three elements (sea, land and earth) and rely on named Dutch producers, including outdoor raised Kemper chicken and hand-caught North Sea fish. An adjacent wine room, Vermeers Wijnkamer, extends the evening with wines by the glass and refined small bites selected by sommelier Dannis Apeldoorn.
Café Remouillage
Amsterdam4.7
Chef Jonathan Sparber runs a solo kitchen at the corner of Vechtstraat and Trompenburgstraat, turning seasonal produce into small plates built from two to four components. His training spans French kitchens in Amsterdam (Toscanini, Vermeer, La Rive) and years spent cooking across Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan. The result is a stripped back style he calls complex simplicity. The room seats around 30, with a food bar facing the open kitchen and a terrace on the street. Colourful chairs, candlelight and Bauhaus details set a casual, unhurried tone. Guests order incrementally, and Sparber serves both food and wine himself. Bread is fermented slowly from water, flour and yeast. Kefir and kombucha are made in house, and the drinks list centres on natural, biodynamic and low intervention wines from producers such as Anders Frederik Steen and Christian Tschida.
VanOost Restaurant
Amsterdam4.8
VanOost occupies the first floor of a former 1908 university building inside Pillows Maurits at the Park, its fifteen metre ceilings, original wooden beams and stained glass still intact. Chef Floris van Straalen, shaped in the kitchens of Sergio Herman and guided by three star chef Jannis Brevet, brings together French technique, Japanese precision and Indonesian accents in a cooking style built on restraint and the purity of each ingredient. An open kitchen framed by a marble bar anchors the room. The tasting menus move from delicate seafood preparations to vegetable courses of real depth, with a dedicated plant menu available on request. Named producers feature throughout: Lindenhoff asparagus in season, Balfego tuna from the Mediterranean. Sommelier Rick Neuteboom curates the wine programme, recognised with a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence.
De Waaghals
Amsterdam4.6
De Waaghals has held its place on Frans Halsstraat since 1981, making it one of Amsterdam's longest running vegetarian restaurants. The kitchen, led by chef Henrique under the direction of Eva and Martijn, transforms seasonal vegetables into three to six course surprise menus that draw on culinary traditions from across the world. No processed substitutes appear on the plate; every dish is built outward from the vegetable itself. The dining room doubles as a rotating exhibition space for local artists, giving the room a quietly creative character. The atmosphere is informal but the cooking is precise, blending classic and modern technique with the kind of boldness that earns the restaurant its name: waaghals, Dutch for daredevil.
Gebroeders Hartering
Amsterdam4.6
Brothers Paul and Niek Hartering run a neighbourhood restaurant on Peperstraat, at the edge of Amsterdam's old centre, that draws as much on Dutch directness as French technique. Paul leads the kitchen; Niek oversees the wine programme. The daily changing menu follows what the market offers, and most dishes pass over a charcoal grill that lends each plate its defining character. Starters arrive family style, and the room, spread across two floors with an open kitchen, blends the warmth of a brown cafe with the precision of a white tablecloth bistro. The kitchen works nose to tail, treating whole animals as a starting point rather than reducing them to prime cuts. Courses are built from few components, favouring clarity over complexity.
Twenty Six
Amsterdam4.8
TWENTYSIX occupies the 26th floor of the VALLEY building on Amsterdam's Zuidas, placing vegetables at the centre of a refined dining experience. Chef Peter Lute draws on global culinary techniques to compose dishes that treat plants as the main event, with meat and fish offered only as optional additions. Floor to ceiling windows offer a panorama across Amsterdam, with the skylines of The Hague, Rotterdam and Utrecht visible on clear days. The interior, designed by Vincent Van Duysen, pairs Molteni&C furnishings with a relaxed, cosmopolitan tone that balances sophistication with warmth. A significant share of the kitchen's produce comes from the Lute family's own land in the Noordoostpolder, where vegetables, herbs and a botanical garden supply the restaurant directly. The sky bar serves cocktails made exclusively with Dutch spirits.
Bonboon
Amsterdam4.7
Bonboon is a fully vegan fine dining restaurant set inside Hotel Mercier in Amsterdam's Jordaan quarter. Chef Aitziber Renteria builds each tasting menu around seasonal vegetables, presenting dishes that look like colourful paintings against a backdrop of contemporary art and atmospheric lighting. The five course menu changes every eight weeks, drawing on flavours from across Asia, Europe and the Middle East. Dishes use fermentation, precise seasoning and layered textures to let vegetables speak for themselves, without relying on meat substitutes or imitation products. Founded in 2018 by Daphne Althoff, the restaurant relocated to the Jordaan in summer 2023. The ground floor cocktail bar serves vegan interpretations of classic drinks alongside light bites.
Nomad aan het Ij
Amsterdam4.6
Nomad aan het IJ sits on the Amsterdam waterfront at IJdok, offering a five or six course surprise menu that travels through cuisines from around the world. Chef Denisa Kacirkova brings a philosophy rooted in whole-ingredient cooking and a zero-waste kitchen, where nothing is discarded and every component is made to serve the dish. The format is deliberately unpredictable. There is no printed menu; each course draws from a different culinary tradition, and the sequence can vary between guests at the same table. Vegetarian and fully vegan tasting menus are available by default, not as afterthoughts. The dining room looks out across the IJ river. The space is contemporary and measured, designed to let the waterfront setting and the food do the work.
Café De Klepel
Amsterdam4.7
Cafe de Klepel occupies a narrow ground floor on the Prinsenstraat in Amsterdam's Grachtengordel, where a brown cafe interior of worn wood and low light sets the tone for unhurried evenings. The kitchen sends out a different three or four course menu every night, built around whatever the chefs find at market that morning. Wine is the other half of the identity. The list runs to more than 300 French bottles, drawn largely from small, organic and biodynamic producers, with around 25 poured by the glass on any given night. Star Wine List awarded the selection Gold in the Best Short Wine List category for the Netherlands in 2021. Oysters, charcuterie and a well regarded cheese course anchor the lighter side of the menu, while mains lean on French bistro tradition: roasted poultry, seasonal vegetables and buttery sauces.
Helling 7
Amsterdam4.6
Helling 7 sits at the highest point of a former shipbuilding slipway at Amsterdam's NDSM wharf, where vessels once launched into the IJ. The kitchen works without gas or conventional stoves; every dish is prepared over open flame, from crudo to grilled meats and charred vegetables. Head chef Carl Gast and his team keep preparations direct, letting fire and ingredient quality do the work. The dining room is constructed entirely from reclaimed shipyard materials: steel hull plating, boat deck timber and vintage industrial lighting. Floor to ceiling glass frames views of cranes, container ships and the open water beyond. A spacious deck terrace extends the experience outdoors in warmer months. The wine list, recognised by Star Wine List, pairs local selections with international bottles. Each course offers a vegetarian option, with vegan adaptations available on request at booking.
Restaurant Alba
Amsterdam4.6
Alba pairs a rotating seasonal kitchen with one of Amsterdam's most distinctive natural wine programmes. Located on the Wibautstraat in Oost, the restaurant blends Greek and Dutch culinary traditions into refined small plates that prioritise flavour over formality. The ethos centres on lots of flavour with little fuss. The kitchen is built around monthly menu rotations driven by seasonal Dutch produce. Vegetables are given equal billing alongside carefully handled proteins, and techniques like fermentation and pickling extend the reach of each ingredient across the seasons. The dining room has a relaxed, arty feel, complemented by a 130 square metre terrace that catches sun from morning to evening. Guests choose between a set menu, a chef's tasting menu, or a casual glass at the wine bar.
Roux Amsterdam
Amsterdam4.9
Roux opened in June 2024 on the Westerstraat in Amsterdam's Jordaan neighbourhood. The open kitchen, led by head chef Sebastiano Guglielmucci, blends classical French technique with global accents. Dishes are à la carte rather than locked into a tasting format, and the atmosphere balances polish with a neighbourhood bistro warmth. The wine programme, assembled by sommelier and co-founder Allon Niesen, runs to more than 300 labels with a focus on France and Italy. Bar seating at the kitchen pass gives guests a direct view of preparation. Ingredients are sourced through named Amsterdam purveyors: Het Kaasatelier for cheese, Oesterij for Zeeland oysters, Jamoneria by Rick for Ibérico ham, and Zagt Amsterdam for specialist produce.
Restaurant Fyr
Amsterdam4.8
Restaurant Fyr takes its name from the Swedish word encompassing the four elements that define chef Elian Muller's kitchen. Each course is built around one element: North Sea fish for water, seasonal vegetables for earth, poultry for air, and the wood fired oven's intense heat for fire. The space on Czaar Peterstraat carries a warm, understated character, with an open kitchen that draws diners into the rhythm of the service. Tasting menus of four to six courses shift with the seasons, and a full vegetarian sequence runs alongside the classic menu. Muller, who trained at Vinkeles and Fosbury & Sons, grounds his cooking in local produce from the Lowlands, working with farmers and foragers to trace the seasons through each plate.