My favorite food is fish. If it swims, I'll probably eat it. The samples at Urker Viswinkle fish shop were a treat.
I was excited to try the traditional Dutch way of eating herring; raw with pickles and onions. The non-seafood fans in the group treated this like a Fear Factor Challenge.
The other traditional way that the Dutch eat herring, is the whole fish down the hatch. Check out the picture below, it had a poster of a little girl eating fish. I'm not sure that I could have handled that!
For the less adventurous, we also sampled fried fish. Excellent.
Next it was back to where we started the tour, Cafe Papeneiland.
Cafe Papeneiland is well known for their apple pie. At nearly four hundred years old, Cafe Papeneiland is one of the oldest "brown" cafes in Amsterdam. Here is an interior shot.
We were told that Bill Clinton had visited and was a huge fan of the apple pie. He couldn't just eat one slice. We were each given a generous slice, ala mode.
The desserts continued with Stroopwaffle Heaven.
Stroopwaffles are everywhere in Amsterdam. I had actually tried stroopwaffles before visiting the Netherlands. They are sold in prepackaged tins for gifts and Dan had brought some home to me from his previous trip to Amsterdam. Also, KLM served Stroopwaffles as a mid-flight snack on our journey over.
The stroopwaffles at Stroopwaffle Heaven were freshly made and this makes all of the difference. A stroopwaffle is like taking a waffle cone and making it into a circle, rather than a cone, then taking two circles and creating a sandwich with warm caramel in the middle. It's as yummy as it sounds.
We were given a tip for refreshing the pre-made stroopwaffles: The stroopwaffles are made to be the perfect size to rest on top of a cup of tea or coffee. You let the steam warm the caramel and make the stroopwaffle gooey again. Although it isn't quite as nice as having one freshly made, it does do the trick.
Our last stop was the Cafe De Blaffende Vis for local beer and bitterballen.
We drank the Funky Falcon from Two Chefs Brewing and learned that microbreweries are popping up all over the city.
I've blogged about bitterballen in previous Amsterdam trip reports. I ate it every single day of the trip. I didn't notice enough of a difference in the dish to where I could say "so and so has the best bitterballen in town", but I can say that it was across the board consistent and yummy. I'd never turn down a chance to eat those cheesy/meaty fried balls of joy.
A picture of our tour group. Our guide, Jelte, is on the far left. Nice people all around and a fun tour.
Here are some neighborhood pictures that I took while we walked around Jordaan.
The Eating Amsterdam Jordan Food Tour was a highlight of my Amsterdam vacation. It was a wonderful way to tour the city and get a taste of Dutch culture. Make sure to book early to avoid disappointment, this is a popular tour. And whatever you do, arrive with an empty stomach and pace yourself. This is a marathon, not a sprint!