Amsterdam - Small World - Foodie heaven on earth

Just a short 15 minute trot from Central Station down the Harlemmerstraat, look for the side street Binnen Oranjestraat on the left-hand side. You can’t miss the green awning that marks the corner shop ‘Small World’. A word of advice: do not get tempted by the various other cafes and bakeries in the Harlemmerstraat on the way there. For those who can resist temptation, the ultimate food reward awaits.

The shop is indeed on the small side with a shelf that serves as a counter/table along the windows with seating for about nine. When the weather is kinder, there are seats and tables on the outside. And even on colder days, the outside seating is still a necessity to accommodate the unlucky ones who spill out of the shop. However, nothing in Small World is ‘small’ when it comes to the dishes cooked up by Sean and his team. The first thing that catches one’s eye is the colorful array of cakes and pies, quiche, tortilla, oven-cooked chicken, salads and roasted veggies in the glass case. Glance to the wall on the right and there’s a list of mouth-watering sandwiches which makes it even more agonizing to come up with a decision. And there’s fresh fruit and vegetable juice to top off the gastronomic act of sin you are just about to indulge in. Since one cannot possibly eat the spanakopita, lamb burrito and the fresh tuna sashimi on ciabatta in a single sitting and live to take a bite of one of the luscious cakes, the solution may be to go with friends and share. My personal favorites are the goat-cheese-pumpkin quiche, string bean-parmesan-walnut salad, the roasted vegetables, the carrot cake and fresh orange-carrot juice with extra ginger. Yes I confess...sometimes I managed this in a single sitting.

Behind the counter, Sean and his team are in a whirl of constant motion, cooking up more to keep up with the demand.  And despite the hectic pace, there is a stream of lively banter between the customers and Sean that adds spice to the food and makes this place so special. When I was living in Amsterdam, Small World has always has been a haven of good food that kept me going after work.

https://smallworldcatering.nl/

P.S. If you live and/or work in Amsterdam, you are soooo lucky. Sean offers catering so you can treat yourself and your friends at home or in your office.

Amsterdam - Mantoe - Let the cook surprise you

Mantoe is the name of my favorite Afghani dish - a thin skinned meat dumpling topped with dollops of tomato sauce and rich yogurt. The restaurant that names itself after this humble yet delicious creation is the place for those seeking to be surprised. You can chose the number of courses you desire however there is no description of what is being served. Of course you can specify allergies and preferences like no meat or an aversion to something specific...okra in my case. However for the rest the fun is being surprised. Today my friend and I were served celeriac root soup with a hint cumin, mantoes, fragrant rice steamed with cumin and served with slivers of candied orange zest, spicy chicken with a bite of pickled pumpkin, tender stewed and mildly spicy beef with a side spinach, cabbage and string beans. The restaurant filled up quickly as the evening progressed. Thus a reservation is probably a good idea.
http://restaurantmantoe.nl/frontpage-en/

Amsterdam - Winkel - An apple cake a day...

The perfect place to rest after a stroll in central Amsterdam. Do not let the long line of customers waiting to be seated daunt you. The reason people brave the long wait for a much coveted seat is the gorgeous apple cake. I call it apple cake since it's too tall to classify as a pie. The rich buttery outside contains a bumper crop of apples with lashings of cinnamon. This was one of my favorite hangouts on a weekend. The cafe also has a great kitchen for soups and sandwiches. However, beware, when it's market day on the Noordermarkt square in front of the cafe, the menu may be limited to the apple cake. Not that anybody complains about this. I admire the energy, determination and dedication with which the kitchen staff churn out a continuous stream of fresh baked apple cake.
https://winkel43.nl/

Tokyo - Kitajimatei - Fine French Dining

I have my father to thank for discovering this jewel of a restaurant near our family home. Tucked away in the ground floor of a building near Yotsuya station, Kitajimatei indulges their guests with fine French style dining. Inside the cozy interior, there are only a handful of tables so making a reservation would be prudent. Once seated, the sous-chef Yoshikazu Ohishi emerged from the kitchen to greet us personally and explain what is available.  Kitajimatei does not have a conventional menu and the offerings differ depending on what fresh meat, seafood and produce they have that day. The menu is split into roughly 4 budget groups of approximately 30, 50 and 90 euros and the above 90 euro group. On this occasion, my father gave a cart blanche as far as cost was concerned since we were all keen on adding fois gras and the fresh asparagus to our lunch. While this is French cuisine, there are lovely Japanese touches such as the exotic shellfish served at the beginning and the shellfish which accompanied the asparagus. In both cases, I had no idea which species these were but they were delicious. The photos I took of the food do not show all the dishes. Next to the main course of the roast lamb, Mr. Ohishi showed up with an extra platter of roasted rack of lamb. The plate of home baked cookies were the extra sweets served with coffee…AFTER…the actual dessert. Calling this a lunch is a huge understatement since I counted 7 courses including the extras. This was truly an experience of gastronomical pampering.
For reservations call:  +81 (0) 3 3355 6667. 

https://gurunavi.com/en/gc7y301/rst/?sc_cid=gorp-foreign_en_bnr&_gl=1*bg3qub*_ga*Mjg0MTQwMjE1LjE3NDE5ODEzNjI.*_ga_L9BHK8C28C*MTc0MTk4MTM2MS4xLjEuMTc0MTk4MTYzMC4wLjAuMA..&__ngt__=TT165094757003ac1e4aed53RG9GvU_bjRi6Uy9_vhO970

Dusseldorf - Kikaku - Sushi fit for the Emperor

If you have a craving for excellent sushi and other Japanese delicacies but you don’t have the budget to fly to Tokyo for the weekend, this is the place to go. This restaurant was started by Mr. Ito who brought sushi to Europe in the 60s. Not only did he serve sushi to Emperor Akihito, he was decorated by the Emperor for having promoted Japanese cuisine throughout Europe. With such an impressive history, you can be sure of experiencing genuine traditional Japanese dining without the 12 hour flight. Be sure to try the fatty tuna sushi called Chu-Toro and O-Toro. This is probably one of the few places that serves this outside of Japan. Fatty tuna meat comes from a relatively small section of the tuna close to the tail and therefore is not commonly available. Also if you are planning a visit it would be wise to reserve your table in advance. The website has a convenient reservation form. We were there on a Monday evening and the place was packed! And if you happen to be in Dusseldorf airport, Kikaku also has a sushi stand there. So if you fancy a snack before boarding your flight, why not opt for a healthy and tasty sushi roll?

2023 update - sadly, the owners of Kikaku decided to close the restaurant during the covid pandemic.

Nijmegen - Wally - They care about burgers

Wally is not kidding about how serious they are about their burgers. ‘We care about burgers’ is stated prominently on their web page. And more importantly their obsession about burgers is what you taste. Some people might balk at the price tag. A typical burger here was going for 9.50 euros when I was last there. And that’s without their delicious fries, the side salad and the proverbial ‘five-dollar milkshake’. That adds up to around 20 euros for the complete meal. So it’s not the type of place you should go to if you’re nursing your last bit of cash at the end of the month. And yet in their defense, they don’t make any compromises when it comes to quality. And quality can only be had with a price tag.

I have never been let down by them. Just the first bite in the succulent juicy burger oozing with their mustard-mayonnaise and melted cheese is such a treat. 

http://www.restaurantwally.nl/

Nijmegen - De Hemel - Is heaven a biergarten with good food?

The name ‘De Hemel’ translates as ‘Heaven’ or ‘the sky’. Religious connotations aside, I prefer to think of this name refers to the space this brewery occupies, so near to the bustling central square of Nijmegen yet tucked just a street away in a cocoon of peace. And of course, there’s the beer and food that graces this heavenly sanctuary. My first visit was for a coffee with a colleague in the evening under the blooming cherry trees.  The cherry blossoms lit up by the party lights strung in the trees gave the terrace a lovely dreamy quality. Then returning on the King’s birthday with a friend, we sat down in the sun for a lunch comprising of a grilled cheese sandwich, jalapeno burger sans bread and steak fries. The rich juicy burger is shown here without the bun because I personally need to avoid bread. So I missed out on testing the quality of their bread. However, my friend who had the grilled cheese sandwich testifies that the bread they serve is excellent. He also enjoyed the glass of ‘Luna’, one of the De Hemel beers. Not being a beer drinker myself, the brews are lost on me. However, beer-drinking friends all appreciate the various brews which are listed on a dedicated menu page. It is also possible to book special beer tastings and tours of the brewery.  Note: the brewery building actually houses another restaurant that hosts lazy weekend brunches as well as serving lunch and dinner. When the terrace is open and you have a preference for the one restaurant or the other, make sure you are sitting in the correct section of the garden. The terrain is divided between the two establishments and the boundaries are not that clear.

http://www.plaats1.com/

https://restaurantdehemel.nl/nl/

Goch (Asperden) - Swan - Good ol' traditional German food

Traditional German food, hearty and generous, sums up the Swan. My favorites are the Haxe which looks like something Astrix and Obelix would feast on and the Holzfeller steak. For those of you not familiar with German food, Haxe is roasted ham hock, the lower part of a pig leg, just above the ankle. Because the haxe is roasted, the inside is tender meat and the outside crispy crackling. Typically this appears on the menu at the time of the October Fest season. The other favorite, the Holzfeller steak, literally is the lumber jack steak. It’s a tasty pork chop topped off with a mountain of fried crispy onions. If this is not what you fancy, no worries. What German village restaurant would not have schnitzel? And of course there a several choices for seafood lovers as well as salads.

http://www.zum-schwan-goch.de/

Goch - Steak Brothers and Kox - Dry-aged beef and more

The Steak Brothers are serious about meat and proud of it.  Since they also run Kox the butcher shop down the street from the restaurant, the shortest line from supplier to table is guaranteed. At Kox they sell quality meats, hams and sausages as well as traditional soups like pea soup. Actually the French word Charcuterie better describes their shop since there’s a lot more than just pork chops and cuts of beef. If you don’t feel up to preparing the meat yourself, the Steak Brothers can serve everything from insanely large juicy burgers to prime steak. And this is not just any kind of steak but proper dry aged beef. My personal favorite is the rib eye steak.
http://www.fleischerei-kox.info/
http://www.steakbrothers.de/

Kevelaer - Thai Rin Raum – Freshly prepared Thai curries to go

Sometimes authentic Asian food can be found in the weirdest location. Just outside the Edeka parking lot in Kevelaer, there’s a small mobile restaurant with fresh Thai curries and noodles. Yes, literally in the middle of nowhere by the road. And yet, people flock to this place from far and near to get their Thai dinner take out. There’s some seating next to the caravan with protection from the elements but most customers go for the take out. On a sunny summer day, we sat down for a Thai road side picnic. I usually alternate between Pad Thai noodles and a Thai curry. They also have a mean tamarind sauce stir fry. Everything is prepared on the spot as you wait. And for all this quality fresh Thai home cooking, they don’t charge an arm and a leg. Seriously is there anywhere else where you can have a generous serving of steaming hot Thai curry with rice for around 11 euros? I’m not kidding. Check out their online menu.

http://www.thairinruam.de/thai-rin-ruam.html

2023 Update: They changed to take aways only.