Rijsel — Restaurant in Amsterdam

Overall score: 4.0 ⭐️ TLDR: Great food and wine. Cozy old school ambiance. Slightly overpriced wines. Will not disappoint.

Food: Rijsel offers a selection of classic, really well executed dishes with a Flemish/French influence. Good size portions. If you are looking for delicious classic dishes- this is your place.

Wine: The sommelier was super friendly and his recommendations were on point. They have a wide selection of wines by the glass and by the bottle. If you’d like to be surprised, just ask. Compliments on the wine selection. They also had a lovely alcohol-free Negroni. Props to that.

Service: I went to Rijsel on a Wednesday evening, in the earlier shift. When we got there the restaurant was still relatively empty yet it took a while for someone to notice us and seat us. It was hard to get the waiters attention- but perhaps that’s because we were seated in a corner table. Will give the benefit of the doubt. They also accommodated dietary restrictions for a pregnant woman, even though they had to ask around what was ok to serve and what not.

Ambiance: The ambiance matches their food. It is a classic restaurant and the decor is on par. There is something really charming about the coziness and comfort of this place. However there was nothing about it that was surprising. My advice? Just go and check it out.

Price/Quality Ratio: Had 2 appetizers, 2 mains, 5 drinks in total and the bill was ~130€. I found the wine to be overpriced. After the meal I looked up the price for each bottle, and the markup at the restaurant was incredible. Charged 9€ for a glass of a bottles that retails for 15€. That’s a bit too much in my opinion. Food was reasonably priced, but was disappointed with the wines. I understand that beverages generate good margins for restaurants- but this seemed a bit too much. Hence the half star.

Nonetheless, a really great experience. Thank you and I hope to be back for some more comfort food!

Food: 1 ⭐️ Wine: 1 ⭐️ Service: 0.75 ⭐️ Ambiance: 0.75 ⭐️ Price/Quality...

We had a phenomenal dinner at Rijsel. The staff really took care of us, and the food was excellent in every respect. It’s classic cuisine in an old school setting that nevertheless feels fresh and energetic because everyone seems so happy to be there—everyone seemed to be celebrating and laughing and talking.

Quick rundown of what we got: Chicken liver amuse bouche: lovely, rich, red-wine-y chicken liver pate. White asparagus with ham and poached egg: delightful classic, with richness from the egg and sauce—recommended with ham. Bonito — delicate, aged Bonito straight from Japan. Lovely, clean, and mild in the way great fish often is. Fish soup: classic Southern French soup. Rich, umami flavors, very comforting and gratifying. Pied de cochon: probably our favorite. Incredibly rich, comforting flavors of lentils and carrots and the melt-in-your-mouth pork portion, crispy on top. Spring chicken: so juicy, tasted like a rich chicken soup at times. Excellent bird, cooked rotisserie style. Cote de boeuf: from a mature cow, beautiful fat with a classic béarnaise, really excellently executed. Rhubarb cake: the perfect way to finish it all off.

I’d recommend stuffing yourself to the gills like we did and then going...

A routine Bib-Gourmand recipient Rijsel occupies a former school, the 3-course prix-fixe proving extremely popular with locals in search of simple French fare made with good ingredients in a bustling bistro atmosphere.

Located at Marcusstraat 52, windows open for Summer when guests pour in beginning at 18h00, Rijsel approaches French Food with a Flemish accent while servers push Wine hard throughout a service clearly focused on turning tables.

A sort of Canteen in front of an open kitchen, complimentary Gazpacho hitting the table with Sausage and Bread before orders are taken, Rijsel’s menu sees specials added depending on the Chef’s whim, on this day a classic Terrine that outpaced Octopus that was less tender than “chewy.”

Opting for two Prix-Fixe plus Ribeye served rare, each Entree proving quite sizable, Spring Chicken comes whole on the bone with a simple Bean preparation while Black Leg Chicken arrives sliced with thin Morel Sauce at an upcharge.

Pre-paying a deposit, all of which was spent but only a portion credited due to one ill guest who stayed in, Dessert featured Clafoutis with whole Cherries and Ice Cream alongside a dome of Chocolate surrounding Mousse...