Restaurant Johannes

Despite frequent trips to the Netherlands, I’m still feeling my way around in terms of finding places to eat. I haven’t found a really useful resource for Amsterdam in terms of a blog that is really helpful, there’s no Urbanspoon presence and I’m not there long enough on any one trip to really explore. To date I’ve relied on googling “Best restaurants Amsterdam” and seeing what that turns up or researching the places listed in Joe Warwick’s excellent “Where the Chef’s Eat”. In amongst all this I’ve no idea how I stumbled across Restaurant Johannes. None of my rudimentary sources talk about it.

Walking by the canals is a real highlight of staying in Amsterdam. It’s usually peaceful so long as you keep half an eye out for homicidal cyclists. Looking at the tall houses that border each canal doesn’t get old and Restaurant Johannes is a fine destination on a walk like this. It occupies the ground floor of a four storey building (No. 413) on the city-centre side of the Herengracht, the second innermost of the four concentric canals that surround the touristy part of the city.

The restaurant is open seven evenings a week and the kitchen is headed by Tommy den Hartog who previously cooked at Vinkeles, a one-star restaurant in Amsterdam. The menu changes monthly but the only choice available to diners on a visit is whether they go for four, five or six courses. The menu lists a few bulleted ingredients for each course so it’s difficult to get a measure of what they will consist of. I decide on showing some restraint and go for the 5-course option. I ask for a gin & tonic and the goldfish bowl that arrive promptly throws restraint out of the window.

Snacks are brought to the table before you have a chance to order. A small ramekin of roasted almonds is accompanied by sesame seed crusted potato and Parmesan sticks. These are the perfect way to set your mind at rest if you’re in any doubt that Johannes is the right choice. The almonds have a wonderful smoky edge and have you begging for more. They’re in the shade of the potato sticks though. It’s impossible to resist a long, thin, crunchy snack with a rich cheesy taste. I’m sold.

The amuses bouche reinforce the positive impression. A paper-wrapped croquette capped with crispy pork skin and hoisin sauce is very fine comfort food where the sweet hoisin sauce hangs around on the palate to provide a rich undertone to the pork. The dish it comes on is flipped over to reveal a small bowl of smoked eel tartare. This comes with crunchy puffed potato, ham shreds a surface layer of spinach gel and is topped with a cube of smoked eel. The creamy eel under the spinach gel has a gentle smoked flavour and is wonderful. If you want a stronger burst of smoked flavour then the cube of eel on top is there for that. Superb.

First course proper is Wagyu beef carpaccio with Dutch shrimps, lime mayonnaise, quinoa, sesame, poppy seeds and fried oyster mushroom. Beef carpaccio seems to be a staple of Dutch restaurant menus but none of the ones I’ve tried are even remotely close to this. The marbled beef is spectacular. A will of the wisp on the tongue, readily evaporating in the mouth. The crispy oyster mushrooms are inspired combining wonderful flavour with texture the dish needs. I have no criticism though. Every mouthful is a wonderful blend of flavours regardless of which ingredients you sample. This is easily one of the best dishes I’ve eaten in The Netherlands.

The next course listed as plaice, pasta, fennel, mussels, saffron is another superb mix of flavours. The dish also includes sun-dried tomato, aioli, Little Gem, lemon and tomato vinaigrette. Although there seemed to be a large number of contrasting flavours they combine really well and the mussels, tomatoes, couscous and aioli are particularly good together. The grilled fillet of plaice is a slightly understated centrepiece to the dish but the charring gives it a stronger edge to deal with the other ingredients. 

Another fish dish follows. Monkfish, grapefruit, cauliflower and hazelnut is the menu listing. There is a beurre blanc accompaniment as well as a cauliflower purée. It’s another course that works really well. The meaty monkfish is superb, reminding me of how much I like it. The hint of tart acidity in the beurre blanc is lovely with the rich fish while the cauliflower cream is a more subtle compliment to the monkfish. The green and purple cauliflower florets have a good crunch capping what is another fine dish.

The final savoury dish is listed as corn fed chicken, artichoke, potato, Ras el Hanout and it is a strong end to this part of the meal. The chicken is a great main feature particularly its crispy skin. As with other courses, it works really well with the accompaniments. The artichoke cream is superb, particularly with the mustard seeds that give it an almost salad cream like flavour. The potato crosti and onion round out the dish perfectly. The staff seem very proud of the twenty spices that go into the Ras el Hanout sauce. It’s nice but I’m not sure the dish needs it. This is a minor quibble though because it’s another fine plate of food.

According to the menu, dessert should consist of blackberries, quark, blueberry and lime. It’s obvious when the plate comes the table that there’s an awful lot more going on with the dish but it all hangs together nicely. There’s a blackberry bombe with an undercurrent that suggests sheep or goat’s milk, a wonderful airy blueberry mousse whose slight tartness zings on the palate and cheese cake crumbs that add a welcome crunch. Refreshing lime sorbet is the star of the dish and the small lime meringues add a sweet, acid touch. This was a great last course in a thoroughly satisfying meal.

But it doesn’t end there. One last treat comes before the bill. Johannes final speciality is a large “pearl” served in an oyster shell. It turns out to be a chocolate shell filled with Baileys and sets the perfect seal on the evening.

So after one more meal the list of places to recommend grows and I’ve found my favourite, at least for the moment. I’ll definitely be back although a recent blog post by the Skint Foodie has thrown up a few more places that sound unmissable.

Overall rating – 4.5/5