A Plant-Based Guide to Amsterdam: Top Restaurants, Amsterdam, Netherlands

I’ll preface this article by saying that the closest I’ve come to being vegetarian was doing Veganuary – once, a very long time ago. Despite being well aware of the environmental concerns, I am a confirmed omnivore. Not least because I’d find it very hard to be a foodie without eating absolutely everything. That said, I’m trying to become more flexitarian: eating less meat and more plants (especially at home) but never sacrificing flavour or pleasure. So bear in mind that these recommendations for vegetarian and vegan restaurants in Amsterdam are written in that context. Tastiness is top priority!

There are very few restaurants I’ll bike 7 km to get to in the freezing cold, and Betty’s is one of them. It’s on the Rijnstraat, which isn’t so far out of town if you live in the south, but if you’re coming from the north or west it’s a bit of a trek. Once you get there, however, you’ll be greeted by the friendly couple who run the place – the woman is the chef, her other half is front of house. There’s no menu – you simply let them know if there’s anything you don’t eat and wait to be surprised. On both occasions, the food I ate was a shareable feast made up of many different styles of cuisine, but all vegetarian and mostly vegan too. Think Middle Eastern mezze, spicy Indian dal, warm Italian salads, and the most indulgent desserts. It’s the kind of place where you want to order a bottle of wine, get comfy and stick around all evening. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).