As some of you will know, I recently went on my fourth trip to Amsterdam earlier this year. However the difference this year, is that I'm now a proud vegan! This was the perfect opportunity to visit some of the most talked about vegan spots the city had to offer. But, when I was researching the best vegan restaurants in Amsterdam, I struggled! I mostly used Instagram and Facebook to find recommendations, as Google didn't have much to offer. That's why I decided to curate this one-stop list of all the food we ate on our little weekend away.
Day 1: Vegan Junk Food Bar
The day we arrived, our plane had been delayed and we landed much later than anticipated. We were STARVING but we had left it far too late to find anywhere in the centre. This lead us to the Vegan Junk Food Bar close by our hotel. They have several locations across Amsterdam, and we visited the newest of the locations: Eerste Van Swindenstraat 389, 1093 GB Amsterdam, Netherlands.
We arrived 5 minutes before the kitchen closed, but the staff were so accommodating and said we could order if we were quick. Because of this we picked the first things we could see on the menu, and let me tell you, the food here was insane. INSANE.
We had the 'Notorious Sumo' burger (a 'double plant-based beef patty, cheddar, fried onion rings, lettuce, tomato, red, spring & fried onion mix, pickles, jalapeños, VJFB sauce') (pictured 1st), loaded fries, with mock chicken, bbq sauce and crispy onions (pictured 2nd) and my partner had the 'Daddy Mc Chik'n' burger (a 'double plant-based Chik’n, cheddar, lettuce, tomato, red spring & fried onion mix, pickles, daddy sauce')(pictured below). I must admit I had that horrible thought that he picked better than me, but we ended up sharing anyway. They were both delicious and exactly what we needed after a long day of travelling. We ended up crawling through the Oosterpark, barely able to stand because we were so full. Worth it though.
Day 2: Toastable
On our second day, we didn't have a plan food-wise, we decided to try and find somewhere out and about while we were exploring. We spent a while searching and eventually settled on a little cafe with a couple of vegan toasties on the menu in the window. We ordered a peppermint tea and fresh lemonade, which were delicious and refreshing, then we ordered the only two vegan options on the menu: the 'Californication' (a mexican inspired toastie with guac, salsa, spinach, nachos and jalapenos) and the aptly named 'The Vegan' (hummus, roasted vegetables and and smoked almonds).
We split our half and half so we got to taste both, and both were surprisingly delicious. I say surprising because honestly we didn't expect much as this place wasn't mentioned on any of my vegan lists, but it was perfect for a cute lunch date. (Obviously Oli couldn't wait until I'd taken the picture).
We ate dinner at the 'Meatless District'. I had pasta and my boyfriend had a burger, but honestly neither of these were particularly memorable and we both thought it was slightly overpriced for what it was, but the meals were tasty but nothing I haven't eaten before.
We also visited the 'Vegabond' raw vegan cafe at some point during the day, although this experience is a bit blurry. I can remember that I was pleasantly surprised by the raw vegan cakes on offer, I had the 'cheesecake' and Oliver had a raw apple pie, that tasted better than it sounds.
Day 3: ....
I obviously forgot to photograph anything we ate today, can't think how that happened.
Although I vividly remember eating the best chips I have ever tasted. This was at 'Manneken Pis', just down the road from the sex museum. They served vegan mayo and chips in a cone. That is all.
We also had dinner at 'Mastino V' pizzeria, that was exclusively vegetarian and vegan. I had the four cheese pizza, which was incredible considering it didn't actually have any real cheese on. The bases were all gluten free too, if you're into that.
Day 4: PANCAKES!
Today was our last day, so we stayed close to the train station in the centre and searched for things to do. After aimlessly wandering around for a couple of hours, we saw the giant 'PANCAKES!' sign and obviously walked straight past. Obviously pancakes can't be vegan? Wrong! I hopefully googled to see if there was a vegan pancake house anywhere in the vicinity, and PANCAKES! popped up. This holiday was full of happy little food surprises.
Although the vegan menu was quite small, it still had my tried and tested favourite - lemon and sugar. Oli decided to create his own with banana and maple syrup, which looked equally yummy. Although we only popped in for a snack, they really filled us up and we decided to call this lunch. Plus you get the cute little clog key-ring as a souvenir.
Overall, Amsterdam was so full with vegan options that we didn't have chance to visit everywhere we had planned. We are still to visit Mr and Mrs Watson and experience the vegan cheese fondu, but I am sure I will be back, even if it is just for the historic chips and mayo....
