Restaurant
Librije’s Zusje
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Restaurant Librije’s Zusje is the gastronomic restaurant of the new Waldorf Astoria Hotel Amsterdam, an exclusive five-star hotel that opened its doors in May 2014. The hotel is an exceptional place where history, luxury, architecture, art and elegance blend together into one of Amsterdam’s finest and most exclusive hotels. The property is located in the heart of the city just next to the famous canals.
To extend its exclusive character, the Waldorf Astoria opted for a high-end gastronomic restaurant right from the start. The management chose to work with one of The Netherland’s most famous chefs: Jonnie Boer from De Librije. They adopted De Librije’s Zusje, the sister restaurant from De Librije, that was previously located in the same building as the current De Librije in Zwolle. After the closing of De Librije’s Zusje in 2014, the restaurant made its move to Amsterdam. A (re)new(ed) culinary queen was born.
Restaurant Librije’s Zusje is located on the ground floor of the hotel and guests enter through the hotel lobby. From the dining room, diners enjoy a great view on the gardens of the hotel. When visiting the place in the tulip season, one will be astonished by the colourful beauty of the garden. An interesting note: on the roof of the restaurant the team also keeps their own beehives to cultivate fresh honey. The interior is in line with the rest of the hotel: luxurious, classical and elegant. Comfortable, yellow leather chairs and spacious round or square tables give diners an optimal environment to enjoy a high-end meal. Blue, white and golden colours, big mirrors, and lots of wood, provide a relax atmosphere.
To offer a top-quality experience from the very first day, the management attracted a highly skilled staff to operate in the restaurant. In the kitchen, Executive Chef Sidney Schutte is responsible. Sidney worked at De Librije for ten years and moved to Hong Kong afterwards for a two-year during career at the famous Amber restaurant. In the dining room, Restaurant Manager Sascha Speckemeier receives the guests in style. Sascha has an international experience as well, working in top restaurants such as La Vie in Germany, Palais Coburg in Austria and Ultraviolet in China. Sascha manages a team of skilled staff members, resulting in an impressively professional service.
Executive Chef Sidney Schutte learnt the cooking profession from some of the world’s best chefs and this is translated into his dishes today. From De Librije in Zwolle he brings a love for locally sourced ingredients, from Amber in Hong Kong he imported an international twist. He combines these two elements to create fine dishes, where top-quality and recognisable products prevail, served with an eye for details and with a creative twist. The chef’s menu consists out of eight courses and is highly recommended to get a good view on the Chef’s cooking philosophy. As a starter, young mackerel is combined with beetroot, sesame, bay leaf, smoked haddock liver and baked mustard seeds. A beautifully balanced dish, fresh yet greasy, with a smoky flavour. Another starter is the preparation with Carabinero, which looks somewhat simpler, but excels in terms of flavour. The Carabinero is combined with short rib, roasted bell pepper, ginger, watermelon, and X.O. Cream. As a dessert, taco is served. It is made with sweetcorn, popcorn, butter, jalapeno and lime. Creative, international and delicious.
Wines are served by Assistant Head Sommelier Floris Altink. He and his team do a tremendous job combining liquid gold with the chef’s culinary explosions. An array of international wines is served and even the most demanding guests will be surprised by the knowledge and suggestions of the team.
In just a few years, Executive Chef Sidney Schutte, Restaurant Manager Sascha Speckemeier and the whole team managed to create a fine-dining hotspot that cannot be missed when visiting the capital of The Netherlands.
Written by Sven & Frank
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Librije’s Zusje
Herengracht 542-556
1017 CG Amsterdam
The Netherlands