In 2026, after our Rhine River Cruise, we spent six days in Amsterdam. Joanne, recovering from a fall in Lyon, was using a cane but still managed to enjoy our time together. The city was bustling with construction projects, reinforcing bridges and areas near the canals. We toured again with Marten, learning about Amsterdam’s history during World War II. Our first au pair, Sabine, spent a day with us, bringing her son Jacob for the first time. We took the Pulitzer boat canal tour and had a delightful meal at Sebastian’s. We last saw Sabine in 2015. We also visited the Riks Museum and took a train to Rotterdam to meet Joanne’s cousin Linda and her husband, Johann. We explored Vondelpark and discovered several new restaurants. We also returned for meals at Bussia and Jansz.
In 2024, we returned to Amsterdam after our trip to Rome. We stayed at the Pulitzer, enjoying its comfort and convenient location. We dined at Bussia, trying the Asian rice table -Long Pura (one and done) and the cozy traditional Dutch restaurant, The Pantry, which offered delicious food and a charming neighborhood filled with restaurants. We made it a point to eat apple cake every day, our favorites being Winkel and New Dutch Amsterdam. We toured with Marten from With Locals, taking a wonderful walk around town and learning about Amsterdam’s rich history. We also visited the Van Gogh Museum to see an exhibit on the Impressionists.
Restaurant Bussia – Our favorite restaurant in 2015. Near hotel in the 9 block corridor. The restaurant served Italian food with a French influence. This is accompanied by an impressive choice of fine Italian wines. The food was well prepared with great service. We missed this restaurant in 2017, but made it back in 2019. We had a very personable Italian waiter who carried on a conversation with us in Italian. The meal was delicious; they are starting to get a little more upscale, there were several waiters serving the dinners, and a few starters magically appear at your table which are artistically created. We had a burrata, tomato and beet salad to start, I had the gnocchi with black truffles; Joanne had beef ravioli. We each had different shared entrees, one beef and one fish. All were paired with Italian wines. This is still our favorite place in Amsterdam. We returned in 2026 and were not disappointed. We cauliflower salad, lamb ravioli and veal loin. The owner was very nice and gave us limoncello to finish the meal.
Lucius – Seafood restaurant. We ate there our first night in 2017. It was good seafood, but we can get better seafood in Seattle.
La Oliva Pintxos y Vinos – Ate there with Sabine and her 2 daughters. Very nice restaurant and atmosphere. Great selection of pintxos and some tasty dishes are served as well.
Nooch – Nice Asian restaurant near hotel that delicately fuses modern Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian and Thai kitchens. There were a nice variety of dishes with different spice levels. In 2017 we visited Nooch 3 times. We had two lunches there and dinner with Joanne’s cousin Linda and Johan. In 2019 we found the popularity of this restaurant is growing. We had a nice meal here, but the place was packed.
Jun – Ate dinner here our first night back in Amsterdam in 2017. It is an Indonesian rice table restaurant. The food was very good. I started with delicious chicken soup and then they brought small portions of food paired with rice. Nice experience.
da Silveren Spiegel This restaurant was recommended by the concierge at the Pulitzer. It was on the edge of the red light district in a historic canal house. The meal was good and worth going back but they seemed to try too hard to create unique dishes such as the starters which were; mushroom pastry puff, chicken liver w/chocolate, and onion bob bon. The main meal was 4 course – Dutch trout, vegetable flan, partridge (Joanne), aged steak (Rob), and stewed pear for dessert. The setting was great, and the food was worth another try.
De Belhamel – Ate there for the first time in 2026. Located in the Jordaan between two of Amsterdam’s most beautiful canals, the Brouwersgracht (“Brewers’ canal”) and the Herengracht (“Gentlemen’s canal”). It is one of the city’s prettiest spots, and only a 10 minute walk from the hotel. We ate gnocchi with morels and sirloin steak with mashed potatoes. It was very good.
Roux – Ate there in 2026 for the first time. It was suggested by the Pulitzer concierge. The service was warm and attentive and the food was creative, and high-quality with a bit of a flair. I enjoyed it thoroughly but Joanne thought it was a little too fancy.
Black and Blue – Ate there for the first time in 2026. It is very close to the hotel. We enjoyed a pleasant meal with good service. They are known for steak which I had and Joanne had the guinea fowl.
Sebastian – Ate there twice in 2026. It is very close to the hotel. We had a pizza and salad lunch and later we had diner there with Sabine and Jacob. We had nice service and surprisingly good carbonara.
Van Puffelen – Down the block for the hotel. A great option for lunch.
Jansz – This is the restaurant at the Pulitzer and it is very good. Very nice setting and certainly convenient. We ate here in 2017, 2019, and 2026.
Blue – this is a sleek, glass-fronted cafe & bar at the top of a modern shopping complex, for panoramic city views which cannot be beat. We had a nice lunch here in 2019 and got to watch a rain storm rollin and move out. A must stop on our next trip (found on Pinterest).
Buffet van Odette – We had a lovely lunch outside in 2019. We were on our way to a museum and the concierge recommended this restaurant.
Look into: Toscanini, L’invite, Carsten’s, Foodism, Gerb Hartering, Cafe De Klepel, Kaagman & Kortekaas (Lunch)
