“Knowing a city like your vest pocket”, that is an old name for a wonderful condition: to find the right way without problems. Have an orientation in a familiar environment. Yes somehow also a luxury feeling, which gently carries the soul, while strolling through the streets of a big city. Often, however, this feeling is restricted to one city only. Hamburg, my city, I know undoubtedly so well. And thanks to a wonderful friendship with a Amsterdamer, I have the same feeling in the Dutch capital during every visit.
This summer I again spent a few days in the northern city with the thousand canals, and of course, I felt so comfortable. Not with a thousand but with a lot of articles Amsterdam is already widely represented on the blog. Here follows another one with the topic of going out for a meal: one recommendation more chic, the other more casual, but both food spots simply delicious!
From the first culinary discovery I can not report you without telling a little history: More than a year ago, I discovered with my Amsterdam friend a small shop named Sir Hummus in the trendy neighborhood De Pijp. The founders behind Sir Hummus, the name suggests, have completely devoted themselves to the perfect hummus. Since 2013 they creat the oriental specialty of chickpeas, tahini, fresh lemons and a few other ingredients. And this – to the great pleasure of the author of this blog – in such a special way, that it simply tastes incomparably good! A visit to Sir Hummus is for me therefore for every trip to Amsterdam firmly.
The team behind Sir Hummus started by the way with a simple market stand. At the end of 2014 the first own store in De Pijp followed. And right there, during my last visit, I spotted a little note with the latest news from the Sir Hummus Cosmos: There is now a second store! A clandestine expansion? Yes but not totally right.
A new specialty has been discovered therefor from the owners – one thats fits perfectly to hummus: Falafel! For this the kitchen, which was outsourced already some time ago, has been converted to a food place. On the menu of the new spot named Sir Hummus – Kitchen is only one creation: delicious falafel in a pita, for take away or for eat on site.
“And why exactly just a quiet opening of the Sir Hummus – Kitchen?” I ask one of the founders while I ate my first falafel here (of course, I had to follow the little note). Because they took two years to hone their hummus till they where totally satisfied. Currently they just want to make the Falafel creation finally perfect, he answered. My Falafel here already tasted great, so I am curious about the next. For later trips to Amsterdam, there is only one question for me: Is this the beginning of a second tradition?
In contrast to the first recommendation the following one and its surroundings were totally new to me. Even though it is just a few meters from Amsterdam’s main railway station! At the Dijsgracht, near a large climbing hall, is the Mediamatic Biotoop situated: a ground where art and design meet with Life-Sciences – and the whole is combined with good food.
The Mediamatic ETEN restaurant with its waterside teerace is thus only one part of the exciting projects that have their place at the waterfront in the Mediamatic Biotoop: several greenhouses and cultivation areas are located around it, as well as a co-working space and an urban agriculture system in which a water cycle with fishes and plants is used to sustainably produce food. It is also creative by many art installations on the premises.
In the restaurant local, sustainable, organic ingredients are used in addition to locally grown food. From Sunday to Tuesday you can order pizza from the wood-fired clay oven. From Wednesday to Saturday there is a menu, which can also be ordered completely vegan. And what could you enjoy next to to the delicious food and the beautiful water side view at a sunny day? Maybe an Amsterdamer Craft Beer, which the restaurant also offers.
If this is not a nice perspective for the next Amsterdam trip? You can find the complete collection of all Amsterdam tips by the way here.
This blog is about tips for great coffee spots, concept stores and more in Hamburg and other metropolises. Some places are located in the hip scene districts and others are explored off the beaten tracks... Enjoy exploring!