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Broodje Van Kootje, Amsterdam, Netherlands,  Tasted on March 26, 2004 — We really only had 24 hours in Amsterdam before we came home to the states. And honestly we didn't have good intel on where we were supposed to be eating. After wandering around downtown and rejecting the recommendations that our concierge made (super touristy yuck  - literally they had a special menu for tourists) we happened upon a little fast-foodish chain called Broodje van Kootje.

This odd little establishment served what appeared to be Dutch street food (we saw many stalls serving the same kind of fare) - a variety of sandwiches with all sorts of different fillings. Each sandwich served on fluffy sweet rolls is served with a dollop of butter. I'm always pretty positive on any cuisine where butter is a baseline ingredient. We ordered a bunch of different sandwiches to get a sense of the variety and quality.

We got one with tiny prawns and mayo. We also had one with raw beef, onions, salt, and pepper. It was like yummy fast food steak tartare served (of course) with a hard-boiled egg. The sausage with mustard sandwich was simple and slightly spicy.

The pea soup with sausage was also hearty and quite good tasting. They had their own variation of pizza too. Debbie was (of course) at first freaked out by the carrot and celery - though she seemed to accept the fact that the main ingredients were ham and cheese. But once she took a bite, she loved it. The bread was chewy and light, and the sauce had a slight bbq citrus curry quality. Quite good.

Want a hot mashed potato (I think) croquette? How about as a sandwich with butter? This was also enjoyable especially when dipped in the Indonesian soy sauce that was like a concentrated soy sauce.

This little two location chain is cute and serves yummy street food under a roof. And if your tired of traversing the city, checking out the museums, or wondering why so many Europeans seem so stuck in the '80's musically, then stopping in to Broodje van Kootje is the right thing to do.