Restaurant Barracuda Amsterdam — Restaurant in Amsterdam

I had been longing to come. It is a stretch away by public transport but glad I finally arrived. Big space, friendly staff but you have to understand their concept. Because staff don’t come to your table to take your order, only to serve. You stand often times in a queue to place order by bar/cashier after you are directed to your table. You look at menu/place order by paper w/table number, walk to cashier for payment then wait to be served. Food comes relatively quick as its fried most stuff. I ordered calamari/fish mix and a side of fries. Fries were very good! Calamari wasn’t a hit. All in all its not bad. Ot was during Sail weekend and I attended a birthday drink celebration so it was ideal to combine. Oh, and they work with reservations, which I didn’t have. So was seated as a single on bar area on the plateau above which overlooked the entire venue. Meaning if you are not OK with climbing very steep stairs, don’t go. Or hopeful you get seating at lower ground. Also when I was there there were quite a few little people watching tv sitting on stairs. So kinda of annoying having to pass there 5 times asking them to excuse so I can pass.

Would I do my best to return at this venue. No, I can have fish/seafood elsewhere. If i’m in Noord and crave...

We absolutely LOVED the Barracuda. We came across it when we crossed over the ferry from where we were staying in Amsterdam on the advice of our hosts. And oh my. We were not disappointed.

The Barracuda is one in a whole parade of the hippest lovelyest restaurants and eateries I have seen. There's a sauna too (note. Something to come back to on a nice day to pair with a dip in the water). And one with a cinema.

But we chose the Barracuda. Because we fancied seafood. It had a great atmosphere and a warm welcome from the person who showed us to our table. It was efficient and delicious. The barman had amazing advice for us and was so sympathetic. And , best of all, highlight of the weekend. The lovely waiter with the side burns managed to arrange a little robot with an actual face to deliver our desserts to us bearing a sparkler. It was lovely and hilarious and I tried to video it but did one of those videos where you actually only press 'record' when you're pointing your camera under the table and so get a video of your feet.

Thank you to you all. Especially the waiter with the sideburns and the barman with the afro. You...

We had reserved in advance, but unfortunately, our experience started off poorly. The person who greeted us was rude and unprofessional, which immediately gave us a bad impression.

There’s no table service—you order at the bar, and they bring the food to you. That wouldn't have been an issue if the food had been good. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

We ordered a salad, spinach, and mussels. The mussels were small, bland, and completely lacked flavor. However, the worst part of the meal was the fritto misto and the kibbeling. They were clearly not fresh—likely frozen—and drenched in oil. It was so unappetizing that we left the €30 dish untouched.

In total, we spent €75, and it was absolutely not worth it. I'm honestly surprised this place has any reputation for good food—perhaps it appeals to people who don’t know what quality cuisine really is.

A very disappointing experience. I will not be returning and do not...