In the heart of Green Community, somewhere between the desert and the end of the world, when you nearly fall of the map is Vinkers Waffles. It's small, cozy, comfy, familiar, friendly, it's so Dutch.
Vinkers Waffles sports only 3 tables inside and a few high chairs at the counter. My breakfast club took two tables, leaving a young Dutch girl sharing a table with a stranger and bonding over poffertjes. They seemed ok with it.
I started my breakfast with homemade ginger ale, served with liquorice syrup. Liquorice is not really my cup of tea, but that ginger ale was exactly what I needed to wake up. Strong ginger taste, not a lot of sugar (awesome!) and a whole lot of lemon to balance out the ginger. It was gone in 1 minute and I could see others regretting their decision of ordering orange juice.
If I had one faithful companion during my 3 years in Amsterdam, one that could bring me comfort and peace, one that was widely available at all times, that was the tosti. Filled with ham and cheese and toasted to perfection, eaten with a mix of ketchup and mayo. The Dutch might not know much about food, but they do make the best tosti in the world. When I saw it on Vinkers's menu, I didn't have to think twice. Tosti it was. And a side of bitterballen. You cannot not have that. It is a must.
The menu at Vinkers is not large, but that's perfectly all right. My friends all went for the uitsmijter - eggs on bread. We need to have some serious, grown up food, before we dive into waffles, poffertjes, pies and pancakes.
When my toast arrived, I chose to block everyone out and go back a few years. Vinkers tosti is good because it took me back to my college days. It was not burned (which is a big plus, it took me months and hundreds of tostis before nailing the timing) and the cheese was melting. It was exactly right. What I missed, but it is most probably not appropriate to serve in a restaurant, is when you press the tosti with the toaster so that the cheese falls a bit on the sides and gets burned. Yes, not many people would pay for burned cheese, I get that.
How the tosti took me back to school, the bitterballen took me back to the streets. Pipping hot, I wish one bitterball would be the size of a football ball. Minced beef, salt, pepper, butter, parsley sometimes, rolled through egg and bread crumbs and deep fried, served with a side of mustard. Vinkers's bitterballen were great. Soft and flavourful filling, perfect crisp and super hot. Tasting them is a bliss, even without mustard. I want an "all you can eat bitterballen" deal.
The uitsmijter are, simply put, sunny side up eggs on toasted bread, with cheese and ham and a side of tomatoes and pickles. Uitsmijter would not have been my first choice, I would have recommended the broodje gezond, arguably once of the most "complete" sandwiches in the world (cucumber, tomato, turkey ham, cheese and mayo). The eggs were runny and softened the bread, which was very nice to taste. Mix that with pickles for acidity and you've got yourself a decent breakfast.
The reason why we all traveled to Green Community is the "waffle". Waffles are somehow Belgium by origin, although there is no such thing as the "Belgium waffle"; there is only Brussels waffle or Liege waffle. Anyway, Vinkers's waffle was served with powdered sugar and a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top and it was good and generous. The portion can be easily shared between two. The waffle was so tasty, even I ate a bit and I am not a big fan of waffles and chocolate-free desserts. It was sweet and fluffy and hot and golden brown and oh, so perfect! And the ice cream was melting and mixing with it and it was a dream!
My choice of chocolate-free dessert was the Dutch apple pie. It is, without a shadow of a doubt, my favourite apple pie. Why is the Dutch apple pie so different than others, you ask. Well, I don't know. It might me the abundance of apples, of cinnamon or lemon juice, of sugar and nutmeg. It might be because it's served lukewarm, with whipped cream. For me, the Dutch apple pie is a celebration of apples, is a smile, a friendly hug, a kick in the ass when feeling down. And Vinkers's apple pie does exactly that. You cannot go to Vinkers and not have apple pie. You will regret it. Take my word for it.
The abundance of food doesn't stop here. Poffertjes with butter and sugar and Nutella were soon brought to the table. Poffertjes are a truly Dutch dessert, similar to pancakes (but not pancakes), fluffy, small and delicate. I love them served the traditional way - topped with butter (melting from the poffertjes' temperature) and powdered sugar. They are a caloric bomb. Every time you bite into one, you quickly do the math: how many crunches do I have to do to cover for this? how many kilometers should I run?. But poffertjes are worth it. The portion is again quite generous so make sure you order them for sharing.
Although small and cozy, don't think Vinkers doesn't have style. Order a latte and it will be served in a double-layered glass to prevent you from burning your fingers. Dutch are known for their innovation and "early adapters" behavior and I think Vinkers is no exception from that rule.
If you are familiar with Holland, you will be pleased to know that original Albert Hijn products are available for purchase, as well as The Ruyter - breakfast chocolate flakes. I bought some! You can also buy a tea cups set, sporting the authentic Delft blue. And you can buy liquorice.
But if you don't want to spend money and you fancy reading, have a look through Vinkers's bookshelf. Feel free to take what you like, but bring it back eventually or bring another book instead.
Thank you and congratulations Vinkers, for being able to take me back to a place I love through a morning culinary journey.
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