27 Aug Restaurant Jansz
Continuing on our Amsterdam food quest, Mr Munch and I made our way to the Negen Straatjes neighbourhood, or ‘nine streets’. Restaurant Jansz lies on the edge of these nine parallel side streets in the city centre. This is a great area for small independent shops, the Anne Frank House and classic canal views. You’re also down the road from Urban Cacao, one of my favourite chocolate companies (I always buy some at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport) – try the dark salted almond and rosemary variety!
The restaurant is named after Volkert Jansz, a seventeenth century craftsman who supposedly liked a little bit of luxury in his everyday life. This manifests itself in the food which provides a modern interpretation of classic dishes with a relaxed attitude. Hints of extravagance dot the menu such as oysters, beef tartar and truffle laced eggs alongside homely cheeseburgers, ‘vla’ Dutch custard and homemade cookies.
Mr Munch ordered the steak sandwich having seen enticing photos of it online. It did not disappoint in real life – a classic white round bun filled to the brim like a hungry Pac-man with two onion rings, salad leaves, chives, horseradish mash and slices of perfectly pink steak. Beef and horseradish is a timeless combination, add to that the crisp onions and greenery and you can’t go wrong. I’m glad this wasn’t a brioche type of bun as it saves you from the soggy flimsy bread situation. A winner of a sandwich.
I usually don’t order salads as a main but it was quite an early lunch and I’d loaded up a bit too much at breakfast so fancied something a little lighter. Jansz’s vegetable salad must be one of the most architectural looking salads I’ve ever seen. It was beautifully presented, showing off each little vegetable with their bright colours and contrasting shapes. Very appetising! Interestingly this salad didn’t contain any salad leaves, instead there were asparagus, baby corn, carrots, beetroot, peppers and tomatoes. These sat on a goats cheese cream with walnuts and a balsamic glaze to garnish. I like how the vegetables had been prepared, particularly the rounded sweetness from roasted tomatoes. I’d prefer less balsamic sauce as it was very acidic. While this was bright and lively at first it overpowered the dish by the end. Maybe then you’d sense more of the individual flavour of each vegetable which would add dimension overall.
There was some interesting smoothies on offer so we had to try them. Mr Munch opted for the avocado and banana, super thick, rich and wobbly. Mine was beetroot which gave it an amazing deep purple colour. Blueberry and banana gave it more fruity sweetness. They’re filling drinks so sharing them might be a good idea!
Restaurant Jansz is linked to the hotel next door, the Pulitzer. You can wander through and see the peaceful courtyard space where you can have tea or sit in the garden area. It continues the trendy luxury yet cosy quirky aesthetic – more boutique hotel in feeling. If you like hotels with unique character then definitely check it out. While it’s slightly more expensive than where we stayed (more on that soon!) if you want something a little different it might be up your street.
I liked the calm atmosphere at Jansz, though I can imagine it buzzing with people enjoying cocktails by the canal at night. It’s a good place to socialise as you can drift from drinks to dinner and back again with ease. Plus if you want an instagram worthy salad, this is your place!
Thanks for reading this post, please give it a like if you enjoyed it! Next week will be the last in this Amsterdam series so stay tuned for that. In the meantime check out my instagram for summer #minnsmunchtime adventures!
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STATS
Total receipt (2 people): €58
1x Jansz vegetable salad 13
1x steak sandwich 17
1x fries 4.5
1x avocado smoothie 8
1x beetroot smoothie 8
service 7.5
Rating: 7.5/10 Trendy and tasty
Restaurant Jansz, Reestraat 8, 1016 DN Amsterdam, Netherlands
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