Troef — Restaurant in Amsterdam

Blown away. This is a truly excellent restaurant that delivered perfectly from start to finish. An experience of the highest standard that is everything you want from modern dining.

To be greeted by a host who shakes your hand and smiles like an old friend, is as warm a welcome I have ever experienced for dinner. The service continued all night long in the same vein. Our waitress was a delight - friendly, professional, relaxed, genuine, passionate and attentive. The same went for our interactions with the other wait staff and the brilliant somm.

The cooking was close to perfect all night. Whilst the chicken thigh, and oyster “bites”, the eel and potato starter, and the prawns were all exemplary, the star of the night was the eel and mussels on brioche - an absurdly good plate of food you hope never ends. The Madeline served for a desert was all we could manage after a big meal, but it was the perfect partner to the end of our bottle of Riesling.

The wine list is extensive and covers all price points - and there is good selection of interesting options by the glass. Including a GOOD red burgundy, that didn’t break the bank - rare in London, where we live.

Thank you to the owners of this restaurant for creating an environment we want to come back to forever. Keep doing what you are doing.

In my view this restaurant is worth visiting...

Hold tight people, I'm about to wax lyrical.

For anyone that knows the Amsterdam food scene, you'll appreciate that the city is in the grip of a small plates epidemic. Odds are, if you enter a restaurant with a one word name, you're guaranteed a menu with 10-15 plates of varying sizes, of which you're "strongly advised" to choose 3-5 per person, and pay around €60 a head (plus wine...).

As a person with a fairly healthy amount of expendable income, I don't mind this phenomenon in principle. But when every place is serving the same sort of food, executed to the same standard, it gets a bit repetitive.

Enter: Troef.

Yes, it's another plates restaurant. But executionally, these guys are on another level. I've been fortunate enough to dine in a few Michelin list and star places over the years, and it wouldn't surprise me to see these guys up there soon. Like, really soon.

The best oyster I've ever had? Check. Immaculate, attentive, and considerate service? Check. A wine selection that makes you wish daddy had given you his credit card for the evening? Also check. But to be fair, the lower end bottles were still accessible and delicious.

For a restaurant that has only just opened, they're operating with a smoothness and quality that is genuinely surprising. Costs are a little higher than the city average, but trust me - it's worth it.

6/6 on...

We had an excellent dinner here. The welcome was extremely warm and friendly. We had comfortable seats at the bar, so we were able to watch the kitchen staff work their magic.

The food was great throughout. We started with potato rusti with caviar and pork cheek bites. Both were tasty. As starters we then had the smoked beef loin and the eel. Again excellent dishes. For the following course we had the langoustine and the scallop. Both were great but the langoustine was one of the best things i ve ever eaten. Our main courses (oxtail and winter cod) were delicious as well. We finished with the almond and 'boerejongens' desserts. They were nice but a bit too heavy on the alcohol for our taste.

Service was very attentive throughout. Our waiter Tijmen asked us for preferred timing of receiving our next dish and was able to give some good advice on wine pairing.

The ambiance, look and acoustics of the restaurant are also great. Highly recommend for a...