Bloesem

After some difficulty getting our hotel concierge to understand that we just wanted «good food,» and a prior recommendation that left us seriously doubting his standards, my wife and I decided strike out on our own to find a delicious dinner in Amsterdam. A hotel porter provided a useful walking tip (head towards the upscale residential Jordaan neighborhood), and off we went.
The sign outside of Bloesem explains (in English) that they don’t have a menu, just a concept: market-​fresh seasonal food done well into a constantly-​changing five-​course menu. This was exactly what we had been looking for.
After an amuse of watermelon soup and some bread with a fruity olive oil and fleur de sel, our meal started off in earnest with two fish courses: (1) plaice with olive purée, bean purée, and a foam whose contents have been forgotten; and (2) a halibut with Pedro Ximenez sauce, pear purée, and artichokes. Both fishes were cooked to perfection, and all the sauces and other components were delicious. (My wife thought the artichokes were undersalted. I disagree).
Next came the best asparagus I’ve ever tasted: thick white ones with chives, fresh earthy morels, and lardons. (They accommodated a religious objection to pork by doing this without the lardons and in general seemed very accommodating to such requests. They will do vegetarian dishes for each course if asked.)
The main course was a perfectly-​cooked and melt-​in-​the-​mouth tender beef tenderloin with walnut sauce, cocoa sauce, and pumpkin purée. The components worked incredibly well together, although this dish contained the one ingredient all night that was off — some peas that were mealy and underseasoned.
The chocolate and berry cake for dessert was good, but the savory dishes are clearly Bloesem’s forte.
We had put ourselves entirely in the hands of our funny and personable waiter/​sommelier (I think his name was Bruno). This led not only to the full five-​course meal, but also to very well-​matched (and quite delicious) wine pairings. I had five glasses, my wife cut herself off at two, but drank some of mine going forward.
In the end, this was probably one of the top 5 restaurant meals I’ve ever eaten. Sure, there were one or two missteps, but the vast majority of the bites simply soared with perfect flavors. The price was right, too: the whole thing came in under 130 euros (about $ 200) — a lot less than you could pay for a similar meal including wine flights in the States.
So, what’s keeping Bloesem from a five-​star rating? Timing. We were there for over three hours. Sure, we had been warned that we were at the back of the line given our late arrival, but the slow pace (especially at the beginning — it took about an hour for our food to begin arriving) detracted from the experience. And diners who had arrived before us didn’t seem to be faring any better. Bloesem could probably benefit from timed seatings or fewer tables. That being said, if you’re in Amsterdam, have 3 hours and $ 200, and want one of the best meals you’ll ever have, Bloesem is the place to go!

Restaurant Bloesem serves a three or four course surprise menu of an amazing quality with good value for money. It’s just a bit hidden from the trendy Haarlemmerstraat in the Jordaan area, so you won’t find many tourists here.
Kitchen is not a very typical style, I guess you could call it International or Mediterranean with sometimes an eastern twist ;)
I’ve had fantastic fish & meat here but also pasta’s, risotto, japanese tataki, etc.
Ofcourse you can say what you can’t eat or don’t like, they will make you something else then.
Service is very good, so is the house wine and the wine list. The atmosphere in this small to mid sized restaurant is cosy, relaxed and — if you bring the right person — romantic. You can definitely bring a date here but it’s also very suitable for a group of friends (for which they have a nice round table).
Three course meal is 32,50 euro excl. drinks.