Craig and I had a chance to sneak away as part of a work trip to Amsterdam in October 2019.  We enjoyed seeing the city of canals, eating cheese fondue, eating their delicious pancakes, and visiting the Anne Frank House.  

We stayed at the Amsterdam Marriott Hotel (Stadhouderskade 12 Amsterdam, Netherlands 1054 ES). It was a great hotel and in a great location. Located on the western edge of the interior canal rings, it was very close proximity to the Van Gogh museum, the Rijksmuseum, and Vondel Park. Although we still put in many steps, we were able to access all of the interior city by foot including Anne Frank’s house and the old city (including the Red Light District).

Pub Van Dobben was listed as a locals place and rated high on trip advisor so we went inside to try out the grub.  We had been told by the locals we needed to try bitterballen (described by locals as a fried ball of dough with a slightly creamy center, similar to a croquette from Spain but creamier).  We also had heard they eat raw meat sandwiches, so we ordered the “special” which is ground beef tartare with egg, onions, and mayo. Van Dobben is probably to Amsterdam what an old time deli is to New York City.

Below, Craig reviews the raw meat sandwich for Maelle and Connor in a “Connor video style”. Craig admits he probably would not have rated the sandwich as high if he knew the video would be used for a general audience.

There was a great little pancake house right across the street from our hotel, De Vier Pilaren, where we tried the little Poffertjes, small puffy little pancakes.  They were incredibly delicious and we sat with views of one of the canals right next to us.  We chose to have ours served with strawberries, powdered sugar, butter and a side of sausage. I actually went here a second time (while Craig had to go to a work event).

In the evenings we tried to eat local cuisine.  One night we spent in the old city area, not far from the red light district, eating at a delicious fondue restaurant called Het Karbeel (do call ahead, even that day, to make a reservation).

The following night we tried an Indonesian Restaurant, Puri Mas (for which we also called and made a reservation). The Dutch people controlled Indonesia from the late 16th century until the end of World War II, so there is a heavy influence of Indonesian food in Amsterdam. We ordered the traditional Rijsttafel, which means rice table. The Rijsttafel originates from the Netherland’s colonial past when spices were brought back from Indonesia and enjoyed in a large spread of dishes.

We also walked around the city trying out all the “famous” foods – chocolates, cheese (goudas), Heineken beer, waffles, stroopwafels, and herring (a little more adventurous!). While you can take part in the Heineken Experience, which Craig did, our taxi driver from the airport (let’s call this a fancy taxi – he wore a suit and drove a Tesla) told us he uses Heineken to wash his car (and that he won’t drink it)! He referred us to another local pub which has a ton of local beers on tap called Biercafe Gollem, a short walk away from the center of town from the Marriott. We were not disappointed in our nice taxi driver’s recommendation and went there two times in our four nights.

Below, Craig and I review the local herring for Maelle and Connor in our “Connor video style”.

We did do some things beyond eating in Amsterdam.  We did a 3 hour bike ride our first day as part of a tour which was a great way to see the city.  We learned about the canals and history of the city. We booked through Mike’s Bike Tours on Trip Advisor.

80% of Anne Frank Museum tickets are released 6 months in advance and sell out very quickly.  As we had just planned our trip a few weeks earlier, we did not have any tickets.  We did read 20% of tickets are released at 9am daily.  We both got on our phones at 8:30am and got in the queue for the tickets.  We opened multiple browsers and kept refreshing.  The goal was to get to the head of the queue right at 9:00am.  Magically, our strategy worked and we secured 2 tickets to the Anne Frank House Museum that day.  The museum walks you through the actual hiding space that the Frank family occupied during World War II.  Their story is moving and a must do for any visitor to Amsterdam. Tickets can only be bought through their official website.

One last important stop for us in Amsterdam was the Van Gogh Museum.  For this museum, I bought my tickets online the morning of my entrance.  You need a timed ticket to enter the museum.

We very much enjoyed our time in Amsterdam in October.  We would highly recommend this city to anyone looking for another beautiful European city to cross off their list!