Looks, Amsterdam

After the rather old fashioned ambience of Brasserie Flo the night before, this time we decided to go for something rather more modern-looking.

Looks seemed to fit the bill, and so I duly booked a table. When we arrived we waited by the desk for some time before someone came to show us to a table, and this set the tone for what was some pretty shabby service. The restaurant wasn’t even that busy, but they must have been short-staffed or something. Everything that could go wrong with the service did, including not having menus for the first fifteen minutes or so, and half the first drinks order not appearing.

Luckily the food made up for what was lacking in the service. I started with tartar of Scottish salmon with a farm egg filled with vermouth infused sabayon, with toasted brioche. It was slightly difficult to work out how to eat this – was I supposed to pour out the contents of the egg or use my brioche like soldiers? In the end I went for the latter, and very good it was too. The tartar was also very good. The temperature was perfect, and it was cut the right size so the texture was perfect. However, it was let down by some quite strong chopped onion that was mixed with it, which on occasion overwhelmed the delicate flavour.

I then had a steak, cooked rare. This was really interesting, as the steak had been smoked before it was cooked. This left a strong smokey taste, but it worked well with the flavour of the meat. I wouldn’t want my steak to always have this treatment, but as something different it was great. It also came with a good béarnaise and chunky, yet crispy, chips, which must have been double or triple cooked. A few roasted cherry tomatoes were the perfect accompaniment.

No room for dessert after all of that. If it hadn’t been for the service I would have been raving about this restaurant, even with a few minor quibbles. It’s such a shame, and I hope they were just having an off night. I like the concept of the restaurant too. There is a weekly seasonal menu, with three changing choices for the starter and main course. Oysters for starter and steak for main are additional permanent fixtures. Dessert is a selection provided by the kitchen, or cheese.

I would definitely give this restaurant another chance, if I am ever back in Amsterdam.