Prinsengracht 377, Amsterdam
I just got back from a great dinner experience. Actually, the word "great" doesn't really do it justice. It was more than great, I just don't want to say amazing, outstanding, fabulous, incredible or fantastic, because I'm not here to toot anyone's horn with large sounding praise words. The truth is this: I had a full three course meal which was entirely satisfying in every possible way known to myself. And it consisted of the following.
A beautiful location. Right on the Prinsengracht in front of a canal, a small and unnoticeable door led the way into what seemed to be an old style Amsterdam pub/cafe. We went in and sat in wooden stools that had a slightly raised edge around the seat, just so you could feel that extra bit comfy and properly seated in them. I love those. A round of beers was ordered and then came the bitterballen, vegetarian loempias and cheesy snacks which I sinfully had a couple of. They were piping hot and were just the right thing for easing the cold we had just brought in from outside, it's now winter and the air has an extra chilly bite to it, and so the evening began.
The atmosphere was great. After the round of beers and snacks we walked deeper into the restaurant and found ourselves in a multi-roomed space separated by a step or two, with wooden floors and old tables which gave the place a very classic and warm feeling. The lighting was dim, but not too dark, absolutely perfect. The tables were lit with candles, and as we sat down I already had a very good feeling about what was yet to come.
The food was delicious. We ordered starters, I opted for an interesting sounding artichoke mustard soup with dragon croutons and smoked trout. I had no idea that the soup I would get would be beautifully textured, light and fluffly, and have a perfectly balanced set of flavours. It had a distant taste of lemon, a very present artichoke and trout flavour, and the dragon croutons turned out to be a single piece of spiced toast floating on top. I admit it wasn't much to look at, but the taste was absolutely perfect. Then we ordered mains. I chose a pan fried cod with potato fennel quiche and a creamy padron sauce. Excellent choice. The piece of fish was quite thick, and the presentation pretty impressive. The fish lay on top of a bed of boiled carrots, string beans and broccoli. All of this, was covered with a whitish sauce, and next to it sat a slice of quiche. The texture of the fish was again, perfect. it was lush and juicy meat which flaked away gently at the touch of a fork. I enjoyed every single bite. The quiche too was special, it was layered with mashed potato, scrambled egg, and something unidentifiable and yet delicious. Super. And then to top things off we ordered desert. Upon the recommendation of a colleague, I ordered an Irish coffee. I could not have had a better recommendation. It was elegantly served in a thin wineglass, with a dollop of whipped cream on top. Perfect. The mixture of coffee and whiskey was just right, giving an equal flavour of both which really was unique combination for me (first time trying this apparently famous dessert) and was a very good way to wrap things up, to say the least.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Friday, September 5, 2008
Touch of India
September 4th 2008
Touch of India
Postjesweg 91 Amsterdam
Touch of India is an Indian-Nepalese restaurant that has recently opened in Amsterdam. I would highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for reasonably priced, yet very good, Indian food.
I went with colleagues, and amongst these there was an Indian guy who actually chose the restaurant. He ordered plenty of food for everyone so we could all get a taste of what he thinks were the best dishes.
The first thing that was brought to the table were baskets of crunchy Papadums with 3 sauces: minty yoghurt, tamarind, and something unidentifiable and spicy. These kept us busy until the first of what was ordered arrived.
The official starters then came and were Samosas, onion Pakoras, and spicy mini chicken wings. The Samosas were slightly on the doughy side, although the filling was as delicious as can be and tasted great with the tamarind sauce that was on the table. The Pakoras I can't say much in favour for, since the batter was so heavy (and also on the doughy side), that I couldn't make out the flavour of what was inside. The chicken wings must have been yummy because Stefan had about 5 of them.
When we finished the starters we ordered rounds of beers and I had a Chai tea with milk. I can honestly say the Chai was possibly the best I've ever had, with the perfect amount of sweet and spices. Absolutely delicious. It even had a little skin of milk on top, perfect.
A good while later (this could have been due to the fact that we were waiting on another person to join the party), the food arrived. Plates were put on the table containing lots of different things. There was a large plate with what looked like fried yellow rice with large shrimps mixed into it and was covered with spices and thinly sliced almonds. Another dish contained a very red curry sauce with chicken pieces. There was also a dish with a similar red curry and shrimps. Another curry was a very dark red verging on brown, lamb curry. As I mentioned that I don't eat meat, there was also a plate with a mix of vegetables all cooked together in the same spices along with blocks of homemade Indian Paneer cheese. There were also bowls of Daal (yellow lentils) and yoghurt raita which is excellent for putting out the flames in your mouth caused by a very spicy dish. On the side we also got a large bowl with white rice with some spices on it and freshly made Naan bread.
The faveourite has to have been the lamb curry, it got eaten so quickly that we had to order another round. I personally would vote for the vegetable mix with Paneer. The cheese was of perfect consistency and taste, and it made an excellent addition to the well cooked and spicy vegetales. The Naan bread must be spoken of also, it was fluffy and had just the right amount of garlic and oil, which wasn't much, to give it an extra special taste. I had 2 whole pieces. Yum.
When we had finished there was so much food left on the table I felt pretty guilty. We had eaten already so much though, that there was not much we could do. We all watched sadly as the waiters cleared the table. We sat around smiling and feeling full for a while. Before we knew what was happening, desert was being laid before our eyes. Small bowls of Kulfi, or Indian ice cream, were served. I was so full I thought I would never be able to even come close to eating half of the dessert. I couldn't have been more wrong. The taste was unbelievably delicious. The spices mixed with sweet and swirled into milk and cream, all frozen, was more than I could ever imagine. I ate the whole plate. And then had some of Stefan's.
I must say, the ride home on the bike was quite a feat, considering that I could barely move without feeling so full. Nevertheless, it was well worth it.
Touch of India
Postjesweg 91 Amsterdam
Touch of India is an Indian-Nepalese restaurant that has recently opened in Amsterdam. I would highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for reasonably priced, yet very good, Indian food.
I went with colleagues, and amongst these there was an Indian guy who actually chose the restaurant. He ordered plenty of food for everyone so we could all get a taste of what he thinks were the best dishes.
The first thing that was brought to the table were baskets of crunchy Papadums with 3 sauces: minty yoghurt, tamarind, and something unidentifiable and spicy. These kept us busy until the first of what was ordered arrived.
The official starters then came and were Samosas, onion Pakoras, and spicy mini chicken wings. The Samosas were slightly on the doughy side, although the filling was as delicious as can be and tasted great with the tamarind sauce that was on the table. The Pakoras I can't say much in favour for, since the batter was so heavy (and also on the doughy side), that I couldn't make out the flavour of what was inside. The chicken wings must have been yummy because Stefan had about 5 of them.
When we finished the starters we ordered rounds of beers and I had a Chai tea with milk. I can honestly say the Chai was possibly the best I've ever had, with the perfect amount of sweet and spices. Absolutely delicious. It even had a little skin of milk on top, perfect.
A good while later (this could have been due to the fact that we were waiting on another person to join the party), the food arrived. Plates were put on the table containing lots of different things. There was a large plate with what looked like fried yellow rice with large shrimps mixed into it and was covered with spices and thinly sliced almonds. Another dish contained a very red curry sauce with chicken pieces. There was also a dish with a similar red curry and shrimps. Another curry was a very dark red verging on brown, lamb curry. As I mentioned that I don't eat meat, there was also a plate with a mix of vegetables all cooked together in the same spices along with blocks of homemade Indian Paneer cheese. There were also bowls of Daal (yellow lentils) and yoghurt raita which is excellent for putting out the flames in your mouth caused by a very spicy dish. On the side we also got a large bowl with white rice with some spices on it and freshly made Naan bread.
The faveourite has to have been the lamb curry, it got eaten so quickly that we had to order another round. I personally would vote for the vegetable mix with Paneer. The cheese was of perfect consistency and taste, and it made an excellent addition to the well cooked and spicy vegetales. The Naan bread must be spoken of also, it was fluffy and had just the right amount of garlic and oil, which wasn't much, to give it an extra special taste. I had 2 whole pieces. Yum.
When we had finished there was so much food left on the table I felt pretty guilty. We had eaten already so much though, that there was not much we could do. We all watched sadly as the waiters cleared the table. We sat around smiling and feeling full for a while. Before we knew what was happening, desert was being laid before our eyes. Small bowls of Kulfi, or Indian ice cream, were served. I was so full I thought I would never be able to even come close to eating half of the dessert. I couldn't have been more wrong. The taste was unbelievably delicious. The spices mixed with sweet and swirled into milk and cream, all frozen, was more than I could ever imagine. I ate the whole plate. And then had some of Stefan's.
I must say, the ride home on the bike was quite a feat, considering that I could barely move without feeling so full. Nevertheless, it was well worth it.
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