Café de Klepel

Wijncafé de Klepel is a well-known institution in Amsterdam and its surroundings. Here, food is cooked in French bistro style, and the fantastic wine list features exclusively French labels, many of which are available by the glass. Every day, a changing menu is cooked using seasonal produce, and dietary preferences can be accommodated provided they are communicated at the time of booking. The atmosphere is charming, and you could easily imagine yourself in the heart of the French countryside. Maître Nina Schoolenberg welcomes us, and soon a board piled high with freshly sliced charcuterie arrives at the table, accompanied by sour pickles, crusty baguette, and salted butter. We then begin with the first course. Beautiful, delicious, and full of flavor is the plate of mackerel served on a rich red pepper cream, surrounded by wild garlic oil and purslane, finished with slices of cedrat lemon. Also noteworthy is the dish of grilled green asparagus with egg yolk, laver, anchovies, and peas. It’s sunshine on the plate. For the main course, we have orange chicken on lentils with kale and a rich foam sauce made from porcini mushrooms. We pair it with a soft, fresh Bourgogne Roncevie that offers notes of red fruit on the nose and a fine, pure Pinot Noir character on the palate. Santé.

Stepping into Café de Klepel feels instantly familiar. The wooden floor creaks softly, the staff greets you cheerfully, and from the bar you have a view of the entire place. The atmosphere is already great even before your first drink is poured. The ca...

At Café de Klepel, you feel as though you've stepped into a hidden gem in France. Cozy, honest, filled with cheerful guests, and brimming with a great, informal, high-energy vibe. The restaurant’s subtitle is 'wine and food'. This, combined with the fact that the establishment employs seven (!) sommeliers, makes it clear that wine takes center stage here. The wine list is a visual delight, featuring a French selection that is simply outstanding. The wines are predominantly organic or biodynamic. Sommeliers Bart van Ham and Niek Beute have curated the list. Notably, the wine pairings are explicitly detailed. Two new chefs, Robbert-Hein van Oppenraaij and Rudolf Brand, are now at the helm, while maître d' Nina Schoolenberg maintains calm and order in the ever-busy venue. The ordering process is straightforward: choose three, four, or five courses. There is no à la carte option; it is a fixed tasting menu. After an alcohol-free beer beautifully poured into a wine glass, we begin with raw salmon prepared herring-style. Pickled in vinegar, it is served with carrot, buckwheat, sea aster, and eye-catching ice plant. The young, fresh Touraine from the Loire boasts a rich, oily profile that pairs perfectly with the salmon. The monkfish with three varieties of tomato and tomato broth leans toward the milder side, though an abundance of summer truffle imparts a deep, complex flavor. A magnificent Bourgogne Chitry pours elegantly into the glass. The cheese course arrives on a simple sheet of white paper atop a wooden board, featuring three French soft cheeses alongside a hard Twente hay cheese. Do not overlook the white chocolate mousse with fresh elderflower blossom, which is paired with the Dubreuil Savoie wine. Coffee and tea accompany a simple, yet absolutely fresh cookie. Here, the French wine bell truly tolls, and everyone knows exactly where the clapper hangs.

Unpretentious, delicious food, excellent wines, pleasant and informal service. That pretty much sums up an evening at Café de Klepel. You do have to put up with the crowds and cramped tables, but this big-city atmosphere is ultimately quite charming. The Klepel is packed night after night, with regulars, day-trippers, and tourists coming to sample its French-inspired bistro cuisine and exclusively French wines. Tonight we are enjoying a three-course menu, which we supplement with the daily special: langoustines with fennel sauce, curry spices, and white beans—a fantastic dish. Pricey, admittedly, but certainly worth it, and above all generous. The latter applies to all the dishes and is nowadays a rarity given the trend toward minimalist plating. The vegetarian starter of smoked almond cream and three types of roasted beet, served with a beet salad and herb oil, is highly successful thanks to its surprising flavor combinations. The same goes for the two main courses: halibut and pollock, each served with its own sauce or jus, and crispy chickpea flour fries. The dessert of blueberries, lemon curd, mixed berry sauce, and almond crunch perfectly rounds off the evening. But what is also truly special are the wines, which are described by sommelier Niek Beute with passion, expertise, and enthusiasm. And poured generously. Every single glass is a delight, particularly the Chardonnay from Domaine Bachey-Legros in Burgundy: full-bodied and rich, and perfectly suited to the hearty langoustine dish. Very pretty.

Book well in advance, as this Amsterdam wine café is always packed. Here you can enjoy French-inspired dishes paired with surprisingly complementary wines. The kitchen works exclusively with fresh, seasonal ingredients. A daily rotating three-course menu is available, which can be extended with a cheese course. The establishment serves exclusively French wines from a highly extensive wine list boasting over 250 labels. These are sourced from small artisanal estates that often practice organic or biodynamic farming. There is also a wide selection of high-quality wines by the glass. The aperitif, a Muscadet Sèvre-et-Mane 2019 from the Loire, is excellent. We skip the à la carte snacks—such as charcuterie, escargots, and pâté—and start with a chilled white asparagus soup featuring raw corvina, pickled cucumber, capers, finely sliced Taggiasche olives, and a delightful herb oil. An absolute flavor bomb! The main course is venison fillet, cooked to perfection. The accompaniments of grilled onion, green asparagus, and shelled garden beans are expertly prepared, and the house-made rich, syrupy jus is simply irresistible. Our hostess and oenologist, Aukje Wouters, pours a Domaine Jamet 2016 Rhône, a 100% Syrah bottled in magnum format. It reveals fresh aromas of raspberries and cherries, leading to a long, satisfying finish. To conclude, we enjoy crème chiboust with candied rhubarb, strawberries, and sugared almonds. Excellent! The bill is fair for the food served; however, the wines are quite pricey.

It doesn’t get any more French than this. At the small and exceptionally atmospheric Café de Klepel in Amsterdam’s Jordaan district, an evening out for dinner guarantees a journey of discovery through France. Don’t expect any frills here; the menu is straightforward. A few tasty ‘à grignoter’ snacks are listed on the menu to enjoy with a good glass of wine at the bar. And an apparently simple three-course menu, which can be expanded with a plate of cheese for enthusiasts. The wine list, on the other hand, is very extensive and – naturally – entirely French. We make things easy for ourselves and let ourselves be advised by sommelier Niek Beute. Passionately, he shares his knowledge and accompanies each glass with a lovely anecdote. On the plate: dishes from the French bistro kitchen. We taste a flavorful veal and foie gras terrine, served with some pickles and a beet salad. The chicken supreme lives up to its name and is served with a beurre blanc, watercress, and artichoke. The dessert is a true ode to summer. Fresh strawberries and poached peach. Accompanied by strained yogurt, meringue, and a strawberry coulis. The sommelier pours a glass of Prémices 2019 from Jasnières by Domaine de Bellivière. Normally a bone-dry wine, but the 2019 vintage contains quite a bit of residual sweetness. A perfect match!

A little gem in the heart of Amsterdam that you’d rather keep all to yourself. ‘De Klepel’ is a wine café with a French-inspired bistro kitchen. They pour exclusively French wines from a highly extensive wine list. More than three hundred labels are featured, sourced from small artisanal estates that often practice organic or biodynamic farming. In addition, there’s a generous selection of wines by the glass. A true treat for wine lovers! Your taste buds are sure to be thoroughly delighted. Open seven days a week, you’re welcome to visit for a light dish paired with a fine glass of champagne, a daily special, or a more substantial dinner. Since the pandemic, alongside the fixed three- or four-course menu, you can also order a *plat du jour* to take home and enjoy. Many regulars know exactly how to find this small but oh-so-wonderful spot. Fellow chefs frequently stop by to enjoy the relaxed atmosphere, genuinely warm hospitality, and, last but not least, the friendly prices for both food and wine. Voilà!

Many regulars know how to find this former brown café, now a wine café, run by Kees and Maureen van den IJssel in the Jordaan. It takes some time to secure a reservation, and once we finally get seated, we understand why this restaurant is so popular. This is due to an extensive wine list featuring over 300 French wines from small artisanal estates, many of which are farmed organically or biodynamically. There is also a wide selection of wines by the glass, along with bottles opened specifically for the evening to serve as paired accompaniments. A true feast for wine lovers. Instead of a fixed menu, they offer a daily rotating three-course menu. We start with a veal and foie gras terrine accompanied by a beet salad. Prepared in the traditional French style, the terrine is beautifully shaped with clearly visible layers of meat. The foie gras is seamlessly integrated throughout. Well executed! The accompanying vinaigrette is made from balsamic vinegar, mustard, and maple syrup. We pair it with a barrel-aged Chardonnay from Domaine des Trois Dames in Saint-Véran. Next, we enjoy duck breast fillet served with Puy lentils and veal jus. The duck is perfectly cooked, with crisp, golden skin. Another quintessentially French dish, executed flawlessly. We accompany it with a full-bodied, rich 2012 Corbières from Domaine Les Promesses de la Terre—a wonderful pairing. The cheese course, however, falls slightly short. The flavors lack sufficient development, and the rinds are too thick to cut through easily. Fortunately, the recommended white wine from Château Pierre Bise in Anjou makes up for it! Kudos to the service staff, who are attentive, deeply knowledgeable about the wines being poured, and respond with excellent judgment. Merci!

Book well in advance if you want to dine at the small eatery run by Kees and Maureen van den IJssel in the heart of the Jordaan, otherwise you'll be turned away. Sommelier and host Job Seuren expertly guides guests through the nearly 300 predominantly French wines on the list, providing outstanding food-and-wine pairing advice. We start with a Burgundian Chardonnay aperitif, accompanied by a small bowl of delicious Lucques olives from southern France. Executive chefs Pieter Damen and Ewout Lindenhovius prepare a daily rotating three-course menu seven days a week, with a choice of meat, fish, or poultry for the main course. The flawless cooking of every dish, rooted in classic French cuisine, proves their culinary mastery. We enjoy the starter: a rich beef terrine with goose liver, alongside a crisp celery salad. The main course features skin-seared cod served with a robust porcini-based sauce, accompanied by carrots, artichokes, and a silky potato mousseline. It harmonizes beautifully with a Mâcon-Villages Les Sardines. The dessert is equally classic: a delightful open pear tart with frangipane and a crisp base, complemented by a quenelle of vanilla yogurt for a refreshing contrast. A true gem, this place!