Be who you are. That is really all you have to do to enjoy dining at Vinkeles. If you are taking out the kids for a taste of excellent food, just want to fine dine in your t-shirt or are dressed up celebrating some special event, then Vinkeles is there. Vinkeles is not dressed up which a lot of the other fine dining places in Amsterdam are, no jacket required, it is more a relaxed be yourself restaurant.
Vinkeles, like most fine dining restaurants in Amsterdam is situated in a hotel. But compared to the others the Dylan Hotel Amsterdam is a small characterful boutique hotel which explains the character of the restaurant. The building is a wonderful old seventeenth century house situated in a prime location just by the quaint Keizersgracht canal. In the back of the hotel you will find Restaurant Vinkeles in an old eighteenth century bakery. You will dine in a smart and relaxed setting surrounded by the original ovens facing a timeless courtyard. There you will be in the informal and professional care of Restaurant Manager Casper Westerveld.
Head Chef of Vinkeles is Dennis Kuipers. He has worked for several top restaurants including a short period at Lucas Carton in Paris. His base in cooking is still quite French, but often combined with fresh produce in season. You might enjoy fresh hop shoots with some egg yolk and truffles. The base is probably more in the traditional French combinations such as seafood and saffron or pommes du terre and caviar. These combinations are made contemporary with modern cooking techniques and sometimes Dutch produce. So saffron can be with smoked local eel or the caviar can be with pommes du terre and some crème fraiche ice cream. The classical tastes are also modernised with sensations from rediscovered herbs and oriental spices. Really nice is the living menu which changes a couple of times per week reflecting what the Head Chef and his Sous Chef find inspiration for and is in season. But one thing is for sure, the cooking is honest, you will get what you order, the ingredients are not reshaped.
For a more nautical sightseeing dining experience it is possible to enjoy the dishes at a very unique on-board chef’s table. Vinkeles has a nineteenth century wooden saloon boat where the dishes are prepared and served live while you enjoy a tour of the Amsterdam canals.
Written by Joakim
