Toronto Star

Dutch dining puts planet first

Restaurant­s in Amsterdam keep focus on sustainabi­lity

- DIANE DANIEL

The Dutch, packed into a small country that lies mostly below sea level, are known for their experiment­ation and ingenuity. For a long time, that was not necessaril­y reflected in the traditiona­l culinary offerings, which have relied on comfort foods such as bitterball­en bar snacks, sweet or savoury pancakes, and raw herring. For sure, you should indulge in those specialtie­s, as well as try an Indonesian rijsttafel, or “rice table.” You can still come for the sugary stroopwafe­ls, but stay for the recent focus on sustainabi­lity. In the Netherland­s’ capital of Amsterdam, where the most innovative and accessible projects can be found, more restaurant­s are showcasing zero-waste practices and creative reuses of buildings and materials. In some cases, even the ingredient­s are secondhand.

At Moer Restaurant (conscioush­otels.com), inside the Tire Station, a hotel under the Conscious Hotels brand, breakfast-goers can enjoy a buffet (about $23.45) that is unlike the typical Dutch hotel offering. Instead of multiple tables covered with meats, cheeses, bread and sweets, where you’re pretty sure half the food will be tossed, Moer has set up a small but lip-smacking spread of all-organic offerings. The restaurant’s choices, and its plant-filled decor, are in line with the hotel’s philosophy of sustainabi­lity and reuse. That includes the building, a former Michelin tire shop, as well as the serving pans, made from old train tracks. Tangy juices are sourced from Dutch orchards, and dairy and egg products come from a farm north of the city. The crunchy, homemade granola and chewy, flavour- ful breads are enhanced with grain and beer waste from brewery Gulpener.

When you arrive at Café de Ceuvel in North Amsterdam, your first thought might be, “wait, you’re telling me to eat here?” Absolutely. The setting, a former commercial shipyard at the end of a canal off the IJ river, is an urban experiment in sustainabi­lity. Inside the cluster of beached houseboats, topped with solar panels and connected by a raised wooden walkway, are work spaces for artists and eco-forward entreprene­urs. The rambling wooden building fronted by a porch filled with homemade picnic tables and fully built of reused materials looks suspect. But step inside and you’ll find immediate gezellighe­id, or cosiness, and a limited menu of outrageous­ly delicious dishes. The spring lineup includes a cauliflowe­r salad (about $14.80), with well-seasoned florets, Romanesco broccoli, fresh herbs, strips of tangy caramelize­d rhubarb, locally sourced goat cheese and dates filled with almond cream cheese.

Instock started in 2014 as a pop-up with a brilliant concept, using only surplus food for ingredient­s and wasting nothing. Since then, the non-profit restaurant has gotten smarter and larger. The unused food comes from Albert Heijn, the country’s largest supermarke­t chain. So much of it comes in that Instock has set up its own wholesale distributi­on centre to serve other restaurant­s.The four-course prix fixe menu (about $46) on a recent visit was an all-around winner. The starter was a well-seasoned pumpkin and sweet potato soup topped with crunchy veggie chips made from the peels. For the second plate, we had a beautifull­y arranged profiterol­e, or pastry puff, filled with fermented tomato juice and rested on creamed smoked mackerel, surrounded by sauce made from green-bean juice. The main course starred flavourful fen- nel sausage with crunchy roasted veggies and creamed peas. Bananas populated the dessert — a banana waffle served with banana compote, a burned banana, perfect meringue and a sprinkling of toast crumbs.

The cherry on top: It’s a nice feeling to do good while eating well.

 ?? LIDA LADWIG ?? Inside the eco-forward Café de Ceuvel, you’ll find immediate cosiness and outrageous­ly delicious dishes, such as the spring lineup’s cauliflowe­r salad.
LIDA LADWIG Inside the eco-forward Café de Ceuvel, you’ll find immediate cosiness and outrageous­ly delicious dishes, such as the spring lineup’s cauliflowe­r salad.

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