We received a golden tip: have dinner at Over-Amstel. A restaurant on a historic farm just outside Amsterdam, hidden among the meadows of the Duivendrecht polder. Only reachable by boat or bike - and believe us, that only makes the adventure more fun. Saskia booked a table for two at the themed dinner ‘Autumn in the Kitchen Garden’ and caught the boat in Ouderkerk aan de Amstel. What followed was an evening that can safely be counted among the highlights of her culinary year.
Truly an outing: a visit to Over-Amstel
Over-Amstel is not just another restaurant, it is a working farm with a mission. Here, everything is about local, seasonal and homemade. Vegetables come from its own vegetable garden, cheese from the cheese dairy, bread from the bakery run by a French baker. In short: everything is produced with care and attention, with respect for nature and the rich history of the place. So here you literally eat what the garden and surroundings have to offer at that moment. The farm is located on the Amstel, in the Duivendrecht polder, and is officially only accessible by bike or boat. You can get there by car, but parking is not possible. This is deliberate: they want to keep the traffic pressure low. Might sound like a diversion, but it actually makes it extra fun. You really get somewhere.
Our experience at Restaurant Over-Amstel
And then the dinner. The ‘Autumn in the Kitchen Garden’ themed dinner started with a roll of beetroot and fresh goat cheese, accompanied by a basket of warm, fresh-baked bread - mais oui - with a trio of butters, including a beetroot butter that seemed to have come straight from the garden. On enquiry, it turned out to be so. This was followed by a dish of onion with ripened cheese from their own cheese factory: a super-flavoured onion soup served in an onion, with the skin serving as a bowl. Caramelised leeks on a velvety hazelnut paste (labelled by us as the Dutch version of Ottolenghi's signature dish with aubergine and tahini), crispy cavolo nero and a pumpkin soup with miso and dukkah that was finished at the table. The cream was added at the table and melted with the warm pumpkin soup. A ten! Then a vegetable tart of carrot, parsnip and other tubers that unexpectedly stole the show.
By the way, the service also deserves kudos: attentive, enthusiastic and very knowledgeable about what's on your plate. A carefully chosen wine was served with each course, right up your greener alley, with surprisingly fine wines from the Netherlands. And those who prefer not to drink alcohol could opt for an exciting tea-based arrangement.
When you think of seasonal food, you quickly think of summer vegetables or a winter dinner where there is still a bit of gecheat should be because it is such a difficult period in terms of supply. Not here - and that is precisely what made this ode to November so special. The dessert? Verveine from our own garden, blackberry from our own garden and buttermilk from our own farm. A finale entirely in keeping with the restaurant's mission. Around 10pm, the boat will take you back to Ouderkerk, leaving you a little rosy after everything you have just experienced.
Put it on your greener list! Over-Amstel Farm: coffee, lunch, farm shop and fine dining restaurant.
Come and have a look at Over-Amstel too
And if that is not enough, there is much more to discover at Over-Amstel. The farm shop, cheese dairy and bakery are open from Friday to Sunday. You can also go there for breakfast, lunch and - as we did - a special themed dinner. And don't feel like going home after all that deliciousness? Then book the B&B on the farm and roll right into bed after dessert.
Want to know more? Check out the website of this special place!
Address: Binnenweg 17, Ouderkerk aan de Amstel.
More tips in the area
- Also see: Vineyard the Amstel Garden.
- Also see: The boot market at the Ouderkerkerplas.
- Also see: Game picking walk in the Amsterdam forest.
Photo credits: Over-Amstel.
