NENI Amsterdam — Restaurant in Amsterdam

AS A VEGAN this is 3.5 restaurant food wise, this is only relevant to the vegan dishes.

We were there Celebrating a birthday dinner- in terms of the atmosphere and the service it was 10/10, the people were very very nice, the restaurant looked very good and just in general it felt great to sit there and get to enjoy our dinner there.

But in terms of the food, there is room for improvement. We ordered the balagan menu for 3 which comes with starters mains and deserts.

The starters were awesome, there was a good variety of different dishes and they all tasted good with bread and without. The cauliflower was great and both salads were tasty. We were all happy about it, as vegans sometimes it feels that the vegan options are either Just “without cheese” dishes or letdowns but here it felt very thoughtful.

The same cannot be said about the mains. I would say that the mains were a disappoint for two big reasons and one small one:

Repetition of ingredients, we already had hummus in first so having it as a main with mushrooms and veggies as main was not exciting, if it had vegan meat it might have been more interesting, but the mushrooms were not cooked good and in general it lacked taste. and those same mushrooms and veggies came in another main, the lahuh dish could’ve been nice if the hummus dish did not have the same ingredients, but it felt like just the base changed and a bit of spicy sauce was added.

No diversity in tastes, most of the mains felt sweet, the hummus was pretty sweet, and the grilled vegetables too, the rice dish included sweet ingredients and the root vegetable with pea sauce was also sweet. I would’ve wanted some radically different main to switch things up a bit, maybe a bit sour? Salty? It just felt blend all together.

I respect an approach of not using any substitute and to rely only on vegetables to achieve a vegan meal, but it requires to either have classic and very well done dishes or inventive dishes, and both were not there, and so if there was at least one meat substitute dish as part of the meal it could’ve made a big difference, especially when the restaurant almost always smells with good smells of fish or meat it feels that you are left out.

I feel like with a bit of tweaking to the vegan offering this could be a great place to celebrate special occasions or just have a once in a while dinner, but as of currently I’m not sure if I can truly recommend it to...

Last week we had one of the best dining experiences at Neni Amsterdam. First of all the interior was modern, light and refreshing. The space felt very lively, and we were surrounded by guests clearly coming to Neni to really connect over some of the amazing food they serve here. All this without needing the unnecessary candles or decorations to create a fake sense of intimacy, it results in a very real intimate atmosphere where you can actually see one another and enjoy the company. The service was impeccable, we were taken care of to the fullest by the most friendly cast of staff members. Our host, Chris, deserves a massive thank you for his amazing attentiveness and for really giving us an authentic version of himself, connecting with us without being overbearing or invasive. With an open kitchen and many colorful and joyful characters actively “running” around the space it was easy to make contact with the people who work hard to make this restaurant experience so great. There was a very vibrant and positive vibe, which in my opinion makes the food- which I’ll address next- taste even better. It’s not often that the main course is overshadowed by the appetizers, but at Neni - where we had a closed menu, so we got to try almost every dish they serve - we were blown away. Although the steak was maybe the juiciest and well cooked bite of the evening, the cauliflower that came as part of the starters was by far the most memorable dish of the day. The flavors at Neni are balanced and comfortable. I’d say the combination of plates came together in a harmony of sweet, savory, fresh and rich dishes. The freshly baked sourdough and pita amongst the other baked goods from the Neni bakery seal the deal, who doesn’t love bread.. Some desserts may have been a touch too sweet for our taste, and as a woman I’d rather not walk through neon light in front of a huge window in Amsterdam to get to the restrooms- however it doesn’t take away that Neni is 100% worth visiting and I cannot wait to go back in a few months to see what the menu has...

First impression: favorable. friendly reception, large space, pleasant surroundings. Good parking next door under the Olympic Stadium. We were seated at a high table on bar stools between the kitchen and the bar. We ate a shared menu with three courses of several little dishes. The food was good to very good and surprising, at least for those not familiar with middle Eastern cuisine. I just thought they might have cut off the tips and stalks of the green beans. My final espresso was the tiniest amount of coffee I have ever been served in a restaurant, maybe 15 millilitres. Was it good? To be honest, I couldn't really tell, there wasn't enough of it to taste properly.

The ambience is very noisy though, and it can be hard to hear what your tablemates are saying. This is in part because the place is very echoey, and in part because there is a constant background noise that cannot be called music because it consists of just a drum set and a bass guitar, with all the high notes filtered out, playing at a beat of about 80/ min. This gets very tiring after an hour and a half maximum. Also the hard wooden chairs/barstools get very uncomfortable after the same period of time. It's almost as if they don't want you there any more after you've eaten and paid... The service can only be described as attentive, with a lot of servers walking around to take care of the customers. The toilets are upstairs and were very clean.

Would I go back for the food? Most certainly, but only if they changed the soundscape and...