Pino opened his store on Haarlemmermeerstraat about a year ago. He started by offering a great selection of Italian wines, built through many years as a wine supplier to many great Italian restaurants in the Netherlands, and then also made available directly to consumers.

I was very happy when Pino added freshly prepared take-away pasta to his selection, providing quality meals at a very affordable € 5,= per person. Next to good food, there was always a great story to be shared and some excellent wine to be tasted and I quickly became a regular. Little did I know that things would get even better.

Two weeks ago I went for pasta and ended up with an amazing burrata, imported directly from Italy by Pino along with tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella and all the other ingredients he needs for his pasta. Since burrata must be fresh, it’s not available every day. But make sure you ask for it when you stop by!

Last Friday, Pino added two pizza ovens to the kitchen and hired a pizzaiolo to work alongside the pasta chef. Which means you can now also enjoy freshly made take away pizza. Starting at € 6,50 there is a number of standard pizzas like margarita and funghi, as well as more interesting varieties like San Daniele with cured ham or Buffalina.

I’m very happy about this and as you can see from the photo, Pino is very proud of his pizza ovens and peel!

There will be an exhibition as well as many workshops. The exhibition features a mix of Italian wine stores, delis, equipment vendors, book and magazine publishers, cooking schools and even food tourism operators. There will also be wine and food tastings as well as small cooking lessons, although several of the workshop already seem fully booked.

Loods 6 is a former dock that has been transformed into shopping and office building with a professional event center. It has an industrial feel to it and should be a great venue for the event.

I was glad to see that two of dutchgrub’s best Amsterdam restaurants are listed in the guide as ecologically friendly: De Kas and De Witte Uyl. Both restaurants are committed to local produce and have a seasonal menu.

Best of all, both private dining experiences came at a very reasonable price of between € 45,= and € 60,= per person plus tip, including food, wine and all other drinks! Less than you would pay at many of the better restaurants in Amsterdam.

Carlo di Luca

The first private dining option in De Pijp is Carlo di Luca on Gerard Doustraat 224. Carlo has lived in the Netherlands for many years, but you can feel an Italian heart beating inside him as soon as you enter his little shop. There is Italian food everywhere, an iPod playing Italian classics and a large dose of Italian hospitality.

Carlo served us a *lot* of food. We started with a nice glass of Prosecco and some snacks while everyone was arriving. And with the antipasti already out on the table making everybody hungry, we quickly sat down and started on bruschetta, polpo salad with chickpeas and a really good fried polenta with lardo. And that was just the start…

We had dinner downstairs in the kitchen, which was cozy and fun with lots of pots and pans and cans of food on the shelves and Carlo behind the stove. The downstairs area seats 6 to 8 people on one large table with high bistro chairs. Carlo also has a larger room upstairs for private dining of groups of up to 20 people. We had prearranged the menu with Carlo, opting for a mix of our own favorites and Carlo’s suggestions of specialties from Abbruzzo, his home region.

After the antipasti, we had oven cooked gnocchi with a spicy tomato sauce and lots of Parmesan cheese. After that we were starting to feel slightly full, although the main course hadn’t even arrived yet. There were different options, an eggplant Parmesan for the vegetarians, a salted baked dorado for fish eaters and leg of lamb Abruzzo style for the others. All were very good and washed down with plenty of white and red table wine.

It was getting late, but there was more merriment to be had. A great double dessert of tiramisu and espresso with ice cream, followed by several shots of limoncello and grappa. We left our private dining room very happy at almost 2am the next morning.

Carlo also has a little coffee house where you can try his own home-made espresso and does catering.

Het Magazijn

Another option for private dining is Het Magazijn on Frans Hals Straat, not far from De Witte Uyl, one of dutchgrub’s best Amsterdam restaurants and Da Portare Via, one of dutchgrub’s preferred pizza places.

Much like Carlo’s, Het Magazijn is all about one man’s passion for good food in a relaxed ambiance. Owner Tony is Dutch and has traveled around the world, doing many different jobs, finally settling on his real passion, food, and returning to Amsterdam to set up a small take away shop with a large table.

The main business of Het Magazijn is take away and many of the locals living in de Pijp on or near Frans Hals Straat drop by after work to pick up a freshly prepared dish. The menu is Mediterranean, a mix of Spanish tapas, Italian pasta and other dishes.

Tony also has a large table where you can sit with other guests enjoying the dishes, a few good glasses of house wine and have some fun discussions or catch up on the latest scoop of De Pijp. We decided to rent out the entire shop for a week night and had a great time sitting around the large table.

The menu of the evening was tapas and pasta. For starters there were several nice cold cuts like serrano ham and chorizo, an incredibly flavorful truffle mayonnaise, Spanish tortilla and olives. The main course was a choice of pasta, either vegetarian or chicken alfredo. We washed it all down with nice wine and a limoncello at the end and had a great evening for € 45 each.

Private Dining Amsterdam

Here are the details of the suggested private dining locations:

Carlo di Luca
Gerard Doustraat 224, 1073 XC Amsterdam
Phone: +31-(0)20-421-0052
Web: www.carlodiluca.com

Het Magazijn
Frans Halsstraat 68, 1072 BV Amsterdam
Phone: +31-(0)20-675-3506
Web: www.hetmagazijn.nl

And also restaurant Momo, the hot spot for the cool kids now has a private dining room.

I just got word from De Witte Uyl, one of dutchgrub’s best Amsterdam restaurants, that they have three specials with fresh white truffles on their menu. So I thought I’d pass it on to you to encourage you to head over to De Pijp for some grilled scallops with white truffle, carpaccio of venison with freshly grated white truffle, or an oven dish of spinach and egg served with freshly grated truffle.

All sounds great to me, especially if finished off with De Witte Uyl’s trademark chocolate bord!

I went to Broodje Bert to get sandwiches for me and the others at the office. The logistics were a little difficult as Bert has no web site or menu online otherwise. He also only does take away and no delivery. So I cycled over, took a picture of the menu and sent it back to the office. Thank god for the mobile interwebs! I placed the order and had a good time with the others in the store, pretty much all of which seemed to be regulars knowing exactly what they wanted. You can also sit inside, at a small counter behind the large window and look out at the many bikes crisscrossing by.

The sandwiches were large, messy and good. Broodje Bert is known for its grilled chicken sandwich which I tried. It’s a large, thin slice of chicken breast, grilled briefly, with lots of marinade. It’s blackened from the marinade going up in flames when turned over on the grill. The sandwich is garnished with lots of crunchy lettuce, corn and other greens, and  drenched in lots of yummy garlic sauce. The healthy ham sandwich and the BLT with freshly sliced, crispy bacon also looked very good! And the burger with lamb meat on Turkish bread seemed very popular with the regulars.

Broodje Bert is located on Singel 321, Amsterdam and open daily from 9am to 5pm.

Not surprisingly, the Jordaan, the most authentic of Amsterdam neighborhoods, is full of eetcafes and bruin cafes. And Cafe De Reiger – Dutch for the heron – is a great option for spending a typical Amsterdam evening.

Start by strolling through the narrow Jordaan alleys, look at the small boutiques and galleries and discover the hidden ornaments and court yards of the 17th century houses. Then check into Cafe De Reiger for steak and fries. And hang around for a few typically Dutch biertjes and mingle with the locals.

The vibe is busy and informal. The dining room is usually packed and tables are close to each other. The decor is simple with basic chairs and tables and a wooden floor that has survived many busy nights. You will be served bread and beer quickly and can choose your dishes from a large board. Next to classics like steak and spareribs, De Reiger has some daily specials, a fish and vegetarian dish as well as some salads.

De Reiger is an eetcafe. I go there when I’m up for meat, fries and beer and usually stay away from the other options.

Cafe De Reiger is located on Nieuwe Leliestraat 34, near the Westerkerk and Anne Frank House. Food is served daily from 6pm to 10:30pm. They do not have a web site, so you might want to call at (020) 624 74 26 to make a reservation.

So when I recently discovered the “I hate Albert Heijn” blog I thought I should share it with you. It might sound crazy that – as the blog states – stores are filthy, day-to-day items are frequently out of stock or that AH forces you to buy their own label and keeps phasing out your trusted brands. Unfortunately it’s true and I have even seen the pigeons in the store as depicted last week’s post.

I think Amsterdam is a great destination for Valentine’s Day with its pretty canals, little bridges and picturesque old houses. Not surprisingly, the tourist industry is doing its best to promote the event pitching visits to the flower market, horse carriage rides, dinner cruises on the canals and diamond factory visits. And also not surprisingly, these are rather fake than romantic.

Since I got several questions and also a comment about my Valentine’s day recommendations for Amsterdam, I decided to post a few more genuine and naturally food oriented suggestions for some romance in the Dam.

As always, my list of best Amsterdam restaurants is a great starting point. While De Kas is big and classy and Balthazar’s Keuken buzzing and packed, both De Witte Uyl and Marius are small, personal and intimate and hence good options for a great and romantic Valentine’s day dinner. Marius has a cute enclosed patio in the back. You might want to get a table there. And De Witte Uyl might be able to put together a special menu with inspiring champagne and wine suggestions.

A classier but nonetheless heavenly option would be restaurant Ciel Bleu, decorated with two Michelin stars and located on the 23rd floor of the Okura hotel. The vibe is a typically French and formal Michelin star experience, but the evening view of the city’s lights from high above is amazing. If you want the altitude but not the restaurant bill, you may want to consider a glass of champagne in the adjacent Twenty Third Bar.

Another possibility that meets all the criteria for Valentine’s is Koevoet. It’s located in a typical old Dutch house and very cozy. It’s small and intimate. And it’s Italian. What more can you ask for? Well, most importantly the food is very good! And since I wanted to include at least one restaurant located on a boat, I will suggest De Odessa. De Odessa is docked east of central station opposite of Java island. It’s slightly bigger than the other suggestions, but seated in the body of the ship, just above the water, you will enjoy a nice view of the IJ and the boats passing behind central station.

Since February 14th happens to be a Sunday, Lovefood Amsterdam must be on my list. Lovefood is a weekly brunch that serves the ultimate comfort food on Sunday from 11am until 3pm in Cafe Bax, Ten Katestraat. There are plenty of varieties of eggs on the menu, culminating in THE BEAST, the “ultimate breakfast taking inspiration from the Irish Ulster Fry and the English Full Monty”.

Finally, head over to Puccini Bomboni on Singel and get your sweetheart a large bag of Amsterdam’s loveliest chocolates!

The problem is that very few top notch restaurants participate. And for the vast majority of restaurants that do offer a restaurant week menu for € 25,=, it’s just not such a great deal. Furthermore, the few available tables of interest seem to be booked long before the public has access to the booking site.

Initially I thought that the solution was to join DiningCity, the organizer of restaurant week. Members get access to the booking site two days in advance. I tried but only found out that all good tables were already taken. Some dutchgrub readers commented about the possibility to have even earlier access through one of the sponsors. And indeed there are special booking page for American Express and also Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf. Booking through sponsors is possible a week in advance.

A friend tried to get a table through the American Express booking page. But even then the top choices of Michelin star Ron Blaauw and De Kas, one of dutchgrub’s best Amsterdam restaurants, were already fully booked.

Seems like the best option is to skip restaurant week.