Am exhibiting at a show at Amsterdam – a week of long hours which starts m on a Fri through the weekend into the following Wed.  Organizers didn’t seem to think this through very well.  The show was from 9 to 6pm daily – quite painful if there’s little chance of a break.

In any case, we (my colleagues and I) rented bicycles as it was a lot quicker to navigate around town compared to taxis or the tram system – with 1000’s of people for this event, it’s a long long wait for anything.

Exhibition food services were the usual overpriced fare, but actually tasty. For the tiny size of the booth, there seemed to be a constant flow of traffic, kept things very busy.

Managed to catch up with old friends one night over dinner, wine, lots of talking.

The hotel I stayed in, had just the basics, was very worn down, tight room with an even smaller bathroom (I think this hotel room is the smallest I’ve ever stayed in).  No fitness center, was about to throw myself into the canal.

From the helpful viamichelin site, there were a few outstanding restaurants that we managed to find.  A couple that stuck in my mind:

Tempo Doeloe – an Indonesian restaurant that’s constantly packed.  One tiny shop lot sized establishment.  Great food, tasty, delicious and for some dishes, extremely spicy, just the way I like it.  The rijstaffel menu gave a decent selection of entrees, although the serving sizes were in tiny bowls.

De Compagnon – This place deserves a honorable mention and is about as highly recommended as I can make it.  The food here is superb, a small hole in the wall place off the main “touristy” streets.  Located in the heart of Amsterdam, overlooking the canal.  We took the 5 course pairing dinner and every plate was excellently presented while tasting even better.  A mix of meats and seafood.  The icing on the cake was dessert.  It was called Pot au feu … ice cream in a little pot that was baked with pastry on top, just wonderful.  I will definitely be back here again the next chance I get.