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G’vine Wijn | Bier | Lounge – Almere

Ratings : F-D – 4.0/5 | TripAdvisor – 4.5/5 | Facebook – 4.8/5  | Google – 4.7/5

A popular spot for food-drinks.info to relax is G’vine (George’s Vineyard) in Almere. We frequent this place to enjoy some of the great wines, beers or gin tonics served by George.

George opened G’vine in Juni 2016 and managed to get a nice group of loyal customers. That combined with the occasional visitors and tourist makes it a nice mix.

Besides a drink you can also have a snack at G’vine. They serve the famous Dutch ‘bitterballen’ from De Bourgondier, make a mean set of pinchos or you order a cheese or meat platter. All combinations are possible. Another option is to get something from the surrounding restaurants of Belfort to be served at G’vine.

Inside you can sit at the bar, at the bar tables, the lounge chairs or in one of the cozy corners in the back. Outside there is a nice terrace on the Belfort.

Often on Fridays and Saturdays G’vine offers live music and throughout the year there are various events scheduled such as wine or beer tastings.

Maybe we see each other at G’vine!

G’vine Wijn – Bier – Lounge | Belfort 130 | 1315 VD Almere

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Lou street food bar – Almere

Ratings : F-D – 4.0/5 | TripAdvisor – N/A| Facebook – 5/5  | Google – N/A

Earlier food-drinks.info informed you that Lou street food bar is opening on August 11 in Almere. We promised you to report back after our visit.

Lou has a great variety of street food and an extensive choice of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The interior has an industrial look and feel with plenty of seats. Outside you’ll find a big terrace where you can sit and relax under the big screens with heating and light.

When you visit Lou, for a drink, a snack or more, simply take a seat and a staff member will be with you soon to take your order.

Food-drinks.info visited with a company of three. We enjoyed a gin tonic, a Brugse Zot Dubbel (draft beer) and a Coca-Cola while making a choice from Lou’s food menu. We decided on the Taco’s Gamba’s, a Black Jack’s Hotdog (by Brandt & Levie) and the homemade fries with Beef Stew.

The food is very nice presented in real street food style, on cutting boards, grease proof paper and recycled (kraft) containers. Everything tasted great and fresh. We already decided to go back soon to have a go at one of their burgers made with Angus beef.

Lou is a welcome addition to the Almere eateries. Without any advertising they simply opened the door and started. The public of Almere is drawn to the place because of it’s location and the inviting look and feel. Of course the moderate prices are a big help too.

Food-drinks.info understands Lou will be open 7 days a week from 11.00 till 23.00 and in the near future on Fridays and Saturdays till 05.00.

Let us know what your thoughts on Lou are by leaving a comment below!

Lou street food bar |  Grote Markt 84  |  1315 JJ  Almere

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Blushing – Blaricum

Ratings : F-D – 4.0/5 | TripAdvisor – 3.5/5 | Facebook – 4.5/5  | Google – 4.3/5

Food-drinks.info visited Blusing in Blaricum. Blushing is wel known in The Netherlands mainly because it’s owned by Gordon Heuckeroth, a singer/presenter and TV-personality.

Gordon opened his first Blushing in July 2014 in Blaricum, the place he used to live. Blushing has expanded and can also be found in Amsterdam (since May 2015) and Rotterdam (since June 2017).

Blushing stands for ‘blushing and glowing with health’. They offer alternatives for the overly fat and sweet products usually served in these types of establishments.

Blushing serves breakfast and lunch and you can enjoy coffee, tea, superfood & shakes.

Bert enjoyed a lemon meringue pie (sweetened with stevia) and a latte macchiato with curcuma. Both very tasty.

I had a Pzalm 50 (smoked salmon, cream cheese light with chives, avocado, rocket salad, chopped red onions and capers) on a slice of very nice dark sourdough bread. The salmon was plenty, fresh, tasty and not to thin sliced.

Good food, in combination with a friendly staff, a nice location in Blaricum and a cozy terrace made for a nice lunch.

Blushing  |  Huizerweg 4  |  1261 AW Blaricum

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Eighteen restaurant lounge – Enkhuizen

Ratings : F-D – 3.0/5 | TripAdvisor – 4.0/5 | Facebook – 4.5/5  | Google – 4.5/5

We were in Enkhuizen. A small touristy town in the north of North-Holland. One of the main streets is the Melkmarkt, where you find numerous restaurants and places to snack. We decided to go for lunch at Restaurant Lounge Eighteen.

We enjoyed the terrace overlooking this rather busy street. Service is very prompt and friendly. We had our cappuccino’s and checked out the menu.

Bert deciden on the tomato soup that, according to the menu, has an asian twist to it. The waitress said the mention of asian is because it is rather spicy. I decided on a steak sandwich with steak strips, mushrooms, onions, paprika and HP Sauce.

The tomato soup was served in a big soup plate. We couldn’t find anything asian about is. It wasn’t spicy, and the added zucchini and rocket salad are definitely not asian. You wonder why the description on the menu doesn’t match the product.

The steak sandwich contained plenty of steak. Unfortunately just a few onions and mushroom. The tast of the HP Sauce got lost because of the salad on the sandwich.

All in all nothing special. Fair product for reasonable prices. Next time I visit Enkhuizen I’ll try another restaurant.

Eighteen restaurant lounge  |  Melkmarkt 4  |  1601 HC Enkhuizen

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PorterHouse – Naarden

Ratings : F-D – 4.5/5 | TripAdvisor – 3.5/5 | Facebook – 4.5/5  | Google – 4.0/5

PorterHouse is a wonderful modern and contemporary restaurant with a casual atmosphere. It’s located at the marina of Naarden.

The porch overlooking the marina functions as a terrace and is a perfect spot to enjoy a nice dinner or some bites with family and friends while enoying  the harbour.

The interior of the restaurant has a great industrial look and feel, with a big bar and an open kitchen.

Maybe you can get a spot at the chef’s table and enjoy watching your food being prepared.

The menu is based around steaks, but they also serve rotisserie farmhouse chicken, burgers, salads and fish. Except for the burgers, which comes with fries, you can order all side dishes separate. They are big enough to share with your other guests.

For an enjoyable time with just some nice wine and smaller dishes the PorterHouse  menu contains a section of bites. Perfect for sharing!

We enjoyed the crispy onion rings with lime aioli and the chicken wings with herbs and garlic from the bites menu as starters. As our main we had the ladysteak and a premium bavette. Both were perfectly grilled and very tender. The steaks are served standard with a sauce based on Madeira. For the bavette I chose the chimichurri that is prepared at the table.

The good habit of asking for specials that are not on the menu resulted in us being the first guests to enjoy the new dessert based on coffee with orange.

It is like Grand Marnier on a plate. Very tastefull and I can highly recommend this as a great way to finish your meal.

 

The staff at PorterHouse is very friendly and welcoming. Service went smooth and the timing between courses fitted our expectations.

PorterHouse is a very popular restaurant and I advice you to book a table before going there.

PorterHouse  |  IJsselmeerweg 6  |  1411 AA Naarden

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De Kooi – Bunschoten-Spakenburg

Ratings : F-D – 3.5/5 | TripAdvisor – 3.5/5 | Facebook – N/A | Google – 4.3/5

During our trips through the Dutch country side we often passed De Kooi. It’s a big venue a bit isolated just outside the village of Bunschoten-Spakenburg. It never really appealed to us, but everytime we said we should find a moment to stop and visit.

On friday the 21st of July we decided to have a lunch at De Kooi and check it out. We parked at the back and entered the big terrace. The tables were clean but the chairs a rather bulky plastic and difficult to lift. They produced a lot of noise scraping over the surface of the terrace.

Staff is friendly and quick. We enjoyed a cappucino and a latte machiato, both with milk that was heated properly. Bert had two slices of bread with warm meat and a peanut sauce. Big portion of meat, good regulare sauce and very tasty and fresh bread. I had a club sandwich with was supposed to be smoked chicken. It’s always dissapointing when served with chicken roulade instead off a thicker sliced chicken breast.

De Kooi  |  Zevenhuizerstraat 1  |  3751 LC  Bunschoten-Spakenburg

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Wilma’s Place – Almere

Ratings : F-D – 3.5/5 | TripAdvisor – 4.0/5 | Facebook – 4.9/5 | Google – 4.3/5

Very  close to our house is Wilma’s Place, located in a industrial/business zone very typical to Dutch cities. We have visited this place for the first time years ago. We were thinking about a place for a quick lunc and Wilma came to mind.

We sat at the terrace on a round, threelegged table that required some searching where we would be able to lean without tipping the table. Finaly we found a more or less stable position.

We both had the meatball sandwich. One dressed with salad, baby mushrooms, bean sprouts and peanut sauce. That was one of Wilma’s weekly specials. The other regular. Nice meatbals, with nice presentation and everything to taste. Good place for a quick lunch.

Wilma’s Place  |  Markerkant 1123  |  1316 AK  Almere

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Eethuisje “de Heuveltjes” – Voorthuizen

Ratings : F-D – 3.0/5 | TripAdvisor – 4/5 | Facebook – 4.6/5 | Google – 4.6/5

We passed it before, this cosy looking dinner Dutch style. This time we decided to stop and check it out.

The menu indicates a marked up chips shop with some addition so they are able to do plate service. Everything with chips (fries) and mayonaise. Nothing fancy, but they are around for over 50 years so they must be doing something good.

Nice place to sit on a sunny day, with big bulky wooden furniture and adequate service.

We both had a milkshake made with their soft ice cream. Bert had a decent pancake with bacon and I had the fries with beef stew. Nicely presented but judging by the taste from a tin.

Eethuisje “de Heuveltjes”  |  Apeldoornsestraat 36-1  |  3781 PN  Voorthuizen

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Restaurant De Hanninkshof – Usselo (Enschede)

Ratings : F-D – 4.5/5 | TripAdvisor – 4.5/5 | Facebook – 4.9/5  | Google – 4.2/5

Restaurant Hanninkshof is located in the small village of Usselo that is a part  of the municipality of Enschede.

Hanninkshof is located in an old building that dates back to around 1800 when it was already in use as the local cafe. It has convenient parking right in front of the restaurant.

Entering through the hallway you are in the lobby and are welcomed by one of the staff members. If you like you can enjoy your aperitif here seated in the comfortable Chesterfield chairs.

The interior has a warm feel with a nice mix of classic and modern furniture and decoration.

The food can be described as classic French taste with a modern twist. Hanninkshof works as much as possible with Dutch products in accordance with the season. They source from small farmers and producers and know exactly where the products came from. The herbs used in their dishes are homegrown.

You can choose between 3,4 or 5 course menu, eat à la carte or go for the 4 course sharing dinner.

Our party of six was at Hanninkshof to celebrate, so what better way to do that then with the sharing dinner? We were surprised with a nice amuse bouche of asian style mussel and salmon that paired wonderful with the Champagne (Bernard brut tradition premier cru) that we enjoyed before starting our dinner.

What followed were three perfect courses of various items from the menu supplemented by more delicious food that isn’t offered standard. My host had done some wine pairing beforehand and checked his choices with the staff to make sure everything combined. I can tell you that we enjoyed great wines that evening.

Last but not least we were served a great variety of desserts, served by the very young, and very capable, pastry chef.

The staff at Hanninkshof is young, well trained and very impressive. Of course the are mentored by the chef and owner Jojan Kersbergen who has worked at Librije (Food on Tour), Dorset in Borne and Mooirivier in Dalfsen and Sabine Hof (hostess and sommelier) who worked as hostess at ‘t Zusje van Librije, Dorset and Mooirivier.

I have to mention the sous chef of Hanninkshof, Gert Bakker. Only 23 years old and already capable to manage the kitchen. Gert featured on Chefsplateform with an interview.

Our whole party enjoyed this culinair adventure at Hanninkhof. I can highly recommend Hanninkshof for an intimate dinner with your significant other or for dinners with more then just the two of you.

Restaurant De Hanninkshof  |  Usselerhofweg 5  |  7548 RZ Usselo (Enschede)

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Roast It – Borne

Ratings : F-D – 4.0/5 | TripAdvisor – 4.5/5 | Facebook – 4.7/5 | Google – 4.4/5

During our second visit to Roast It in Borne the weather was nice and we were able to get a table outside. Friday night and nice weather so they were very busy  this friday.

A bit understaffed with one friendly waiter being able to take orders with his handheld divice and one runner for the terrace.

We were able to order and had the spare ribs and hamburgers from the grill. It all took some time, more then necessary. The food was what you can expect. Nice meat, nothing more, nothing less.

We nagged a little about the lack of service staff and tried to explain it’s costing them money. They didn’t seem to realize.

When paying the bill, Olivier, our friendly waiter, had written on the ticket “Thanks for everything and your understanding!” – Olivier

Roast It  |  Doresetplein 4  |  7622 CH  Borne