Rijks - A Dutch Masterpiece
Rijks is no ordinary museum restaurant. With Executive Chef Joris Bijdendijk at the helm, Rijks is a Michelin-starred Dutch Masterpiece inside the beautiful Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.
Rijks takes pride in his Dutch heritage and the Low Food movement serving dishes which feature local Dutch ingredients including Zeeland oysters, dry-aged duck from a local farm and Simmentaler ribeye. Chef Bijdendijk along with Chefs Ivan Beusink and Yascha Oosterberg, introduced Low Countries’ cuisine, which is rooted in Dutch produce yet inspired by global flavours that has influenced Dutch cuisine over the centuries.
Low Food is an initiative of Joris Bijdendijk, Joris Lohman and Samuel Levie. It is an open platform for new ideas and insights. Low Food believes that food culture lies not in the past but in the future.
Upon arrival at Rijks you will notice the impressive shelves and jars of homemade pickled ingredients. For hundreds of years, pickled fruits and vegetables have been staples of Dutch cuisine and are cleverly used in each of the dishes on the Rijks menu.
You will also find some lovely home cured charcuterie meats on the menu. A lovely charcuterie and cheese sharing platter to start your meal or as a tasty accompaniment for your wine.
There are many mouth watering dishes to choose from on the menu. We ordered a few of the small dishes to share as starters. The scallops were the first to arrived. Sliced raw scallops with pickled radish, codium, langoustine and kingfish.
Next arrived the Confit of Cod served in a vichyssoise with sorrel, blanched green peas and a platter of Oysters with shallot vinegar.
The Ceviche of grey mullet was served in a coconut bisque topped with cured carrots and fresh cape berries.
We ordered a few of the signature platters to share as our mains. Both the dry-aged farm duck and Simmentaler rib-eye are simply divine. The dry-aged duck is comprised of four small dishes using duck breast, leg, heart, tongue and duck egg and served over two courses. A very creative way to present to present these various components of this tasty duck dish.
Alas the long awaited 8 week dry-aged Simmentaler rib-eye. A succulent rib-eye served with roasted bone marrow, celeriac, golden fries and bearnaise sauce. The rich bone marrow was a nice accompaniment to the rib eye.
Rijks Restaurant is well worth the visit whether you are popping in to see an exhibition at the Rijksmuseum or looking for a lovely contemporary dining experience. Make sure to request for a table on the beautiful terrace to take in the beautiful gardens and surroundings of the Rijksmuseum, weather permitting of course.
LOCATION
Rijks Restaurant
Phillips Wing of the Rijksmuseum
Museumstraat 2, Museum Quarter
Amsterdam, Netherlands
HOURS
Wednesday to Sunday
Lunch from 11:30 am to 16:30 pm
Tuesday to Sunday
Dinner from 6 pm
RESERVATIONS
Advanced reservations recommended online, by phone at +31 20 6747555 or by email.
MOST RECENT VISIT
June 2019