Food & Drink

The concept of "Dutch cuisine" is generally considered a contradiction in terms. Dutch national dishes tend to be ungarnished, hearty, and wholesome -- solid, stick-to-your-ribs stuff. A perfect example is erwtensoep, a thick pork-accented pea soup that provides inner warmth against cold Dutch winters and is filling enough to be a meal by itself. Similarly, hutspot, a potato, carrot, and onion "hotchpotch," or stew, is no-nonsense nourishment that becomes even more so with the addition of klapstuk (lean beef). Hutspot also has an intangible ingredient -- a story behind its name that's based on historical fact: Spanish troops besieging Leiden in 1574 left behind a stew pot when a Dutch relief force surprised them in the middle of dinner, and this became a national symbol of freedom for Holland.

Seafood, as you might imagine in this traditionally seafaring country, is a big deal. Common options, depending on season, are Zeeland oysters and mussels (Zeeuwse oesters and Zeeuwse mosselen), and herring pickled or "new" -- fresh from the North Sea and eaten raw. In fact, if you happen to be in Holland for the beginning of the herring season in June, interrupt your sidewalk strolls for a "green" (raw) herring with onions from a fish stall, or haringhuis. Look for signs that say HOLLANDSE NIEUWE (HOLLAND'S NEW). Great excitement surrounds the season's first catch, part of which goes to the queen and the rest to restaurateurs amid spirited competition. At fish stalls, you can also get snacks of baked fish, smoked eel, and seafood salads, taken on the run.

Dutch explorers and traders brought back recipes and exotic spices -- and the popular Indonesian rijsttafel (rice table), a feast of 15 to 30 small portions of different dishes eaten with plain rice, has been a national favorite since the 17th century. If you've never experienced this minifeast, it should definitely be on your "must-eat" list for Holland. Should you part company with the Dutch and "their" Indonesian food, you'll find the cuisines of China, France, Greece, India, Italy, Japan, Spain, Turkey, Yugoslavia, and other nations.

At the top of the restaurant scale are those posh dining rooms affiliated with the prestigious Alliance Gastronomique Néerlandaise. They're likely to be elegant and sophisticated or atmospherically old-world and quaint. They will certainly be expensive. Then there are the numerous moderately priced restaurants and little brown cafes. Dutch families gravitate to the restaurants, while brown cafes are cozy social centers with simple but tasty food, often served outside on sidewalk tables. Sidewalk vendors, with fresh herring, the ubiquitous broodjes (sandwiches), and other light specialties, are as popular as the brown cafes.

Terminology

The first step in getting to know Dutch gastronomy is to remember that in Holland, entrees are appetizers, also known as voorgerechten, and main courses, hoofdgerechten, are listed separately as vis (fish) or vlees (meat), and, in some restaurants, as dagschotel (dish of the day). Other courses on Dutch menus include soepen (soups), warme or koude voorgerechten (warm or cold appetizers), groenten (vegetables), salade (salad), vruchten (fruits), nagerechten (desserts), dranken (beverages), and wijn (wine).

The next step is to understand that Dutch is a language of compound words, and just as Leiden Street becomes Leidsestraat -- one word for two ideas -- the same goes for menus: Beef steak becomes biefstuk, pork chop becomes varkenskotelet, and so on.

Similarly, you'll find listings for gehakte biefstuk (chopped beef) or gebakken worst (fried sausage). Look for the following key words as you scan menus:

• For modes of preparation: gekookt or gekookte (boiled), gebakken (fried), gebraden (roast or fried), geroosterd (toasted or grilled), gerookte (smoked).
• For meat cooked to your taste: niet doorbakken (rare), half doorbakken (medium), goed doorbakken (well-done).
• For cuts of meat: -stuk (steak or, literally, piece), -kotelet or -kotelette (cutlet).

Lunch & Snack Specialties

Below are clarifications of dishes you may see on lunch menus:

Bami/Nasi Goreng & Nasi Rames -- Miniature versions of an Indonesian rijsttafel; they come in a bowl on either noodles or rice, with spiced meat and possibly a fried egg or satay (a grilled kabob) on top.

Bitterballen -- Fried potato balls, or croquettes, that usually come quite spicy.

Broodjes -- Small sandwiches on round buttered rolls made with ham, cheese, roast beef, salami, or other fillings. They're often ordered in pairs and eaten standing up or perched at a narrow counter in a broodjeszaak, or sandwich shop.

Erwtensoep -- This pea soup is thick, creamy, and chock-full of ham, carrots, and potatoes -- a meal by itself. (This is a winter dish, so it may be hard to find in summer.)

Kroketten -- Fried croquettes of meat, shrimps, or cheese that may be gooey inside. They're at their best when served piping hot with a blob of mustard for dunking.

Nieuwe Haring -- Chasing herring is what got this city started, and Amsterdam folk are still in hot pursuit. Vendors sell new herring -- fresh-caught fish that's eaten whole (minus the head and the tail) with minced onion, or chopped if you're squeamish -- at stands all over town during summer; you can also eat them pickled as maatjes.

Pannekoeken & Poffertjes -- These Dutch pancakes are the equivalent of French crepes, and they're served topped with confectioners' sugar, jam (jelly), syrup, hot apples, or -- typically Dutch -- hot ginger sauce. Less common are pannenkoeken with meat. Poffertjes are small fried-pancake "puffs" coated with confectioners' sugar and filled with syrup or liqueur.

Saucijzenbroodje -- A hot dog, except the bun's made of flaky pastry and the hot dog is a spicy Dutch worst, or sausage.

Tostis -- Grilled ham-and-cheese sandwiches.

Uitsmijter -- An open-faced sandwich consisting of a buttered slice of bread (or two) topped with cold cuts and fried eggs -- tasty, inexpensive, and a good lunch choice. (The name, incidentally, is the same for "bouncer," the burly doorman at nightclubs.)

Vlammetjes ("Little Flames") -- These belong to the same family of borrelhapjes (drinking snacks) as bitterballen , but are more like diminutive spring rolls which, like Napoleon, make up in fiery aggression for what they lack in size.

Dinner Specialties

With the exception of one excellent treat -- the Indonesian rijsttafel -- the Dutch may seem to be less inventive with dinner specialties than they are with lunch and snacks. This is partly because many traditional Dutch dishes closely resemble dishes popular elsewhere in Europe and the U.S. But mostly it's due to Holland's ongoing, ever-growing love affair with French cuisine. Here, however, are a few typical Dutch options you may encounter, particularly in winter, when real Dutch cooking can be best appreciated:

Asperges -- Asparagus. The thick, white cultivated variety. Most of it comes from Limburg, so it's marketed as "the white gold of Limburg" -- but most folks just call it asparagus.

Capucijners met Spek -- Marrow beans with bacon.

Gember met Slagroom -- A sweet-and-sour dessert of tangy, fresh ginger slices topped with whipped cream.

Gerookte Paling -- Smoked eel (most of which come from the IJsselmeer -- though many are now imported). A typically Dutch appetizer.

Hazenpeper -- Jugged hare.

Hutspot -- A stew made of beef ribs, carrots, onions, and potatoes, often mashed together. This is a dish with historic significance, particularly for the people of Leiden: It's the Dutch version of the stew found in the boiling pots left behind after the Spaniards were evicted after a long siege during the Eighty Years' War.

Krabbetjes -- Dutch spareribs, usually beef rather than pork.

Mosselen -- Mussels, raised in the clean waters of Zeeland's Oosterschelde (Eastern Scheldt) estuary. Mussel season begins in mid-August with great fanfare (it runs until Apr), and the first crop is eagerly awaited. The mollusks are often steamed and served in a bit of white-wine-and-vegetable stock.

Rolpens -- Homemade sausage stuffed with meat and spices.

Stampot -- Cabbage with smoked sausage.

Zuurkool met Spek en Wurst -- Sauerkraut with bacon and sausage.