the soupmenu

I don’t wear jewelry much, but I have a favorite ring of mine. I bought this ring two years ago during a trip to Madrid. It’s just a simple leather ring with a leaf imprinted on it. That’s not the magic of the ring though. While I love this ring, I always seem to lose it. Perhaps I’ll put it in my pocket when I wash my hands, maybe I’ll throw it to an unusual spot on my dresser after a late night, or sometimes it just disappears into the deep trenches of my backpack. The next time I wish to wear it…it is no where to be found. Every time I think to myself ‘well…I really lost it this time and will never see it again’. Yet somehow, the ring always returns. It has happened so many times that now in the back of my mind, I don’t worry.

This ring knows where its home is.

During my last few days in Amsterdam, I was able to finally go to some highly suggested burger places. yum.

Burgermeesser
The name translates to “Burger Mayor”…and no teeks, the mayor does not report to the king! Amsterdam is a burgocracy.

The place is located at albert cuypstraat 18. It’s a small place crammed in between a nail place and an Indian restaurant. The inside was clean and white with black and white pictures of cows lined along one wall. All of the equipment was stainless steel for the grill area and on the other side they had racks of baskets containing fresh vegetables. Burger messer is definitely classified as a ‘gourmet’ burger place. They use fresh vegetables and high-quality naturally raised beef. The price reflects it a little bit, but I ended up getting a burger, baked potato, and banana milkshake for 12 euro…basically the same price as a large good meal in Amsterdam. Let’s get back to that banana milkshake….amazing. You could tell that it was just simple ice cream, milk, and banana. Simplicity wins again. I think I’m just a fan of anyplace that has banana milkshakes though.

I got the messer beefburger. Lettuce, cucumber, and tomato in the basement, grilled onions, eggplant, and peppers in the attic, and a nice spread of ‘Dragon Mayonnaise’ on the toasted bun. Other than the insanely awesome name, all I know is the dragon is just the name of the spice that’s added to mayonnaise.

Overall it was a great burger…good meat quality and cooked to a great level. I think there might actually have been some seasoning inside of the meat…but nothing too strong. Of course, if anyone travels to Amsterdam soon, check it out.

Dolores
This little cute shop a short distance away from Dam square is another gem of Amsterdam. The burger alone will run you 7 euro, but you are paying for high quality beef. Their beef is also ‘biological’ (as my dutch friends liked to call it) meaning that it was naturally raised without genetically-altered feed. There were just the normal toppings on this cute, round burger. The burger itself packed a great kick. You could really taste the natural flavor of the high-quality meat. They cooked the burger to a nice juicy, yet fully cooked level. Dolores is another place to visit while in Amsterdam and in need of a quick bite.


p.s. This is where my favorite patat shop in Amsterdam is. It’s the guy who gave me some dutch hints on life. He not only gives good advice, but he also cooks a mean patat. He double-frys the patat for extra-crispiness and has his own special mayonnaise and curry sauce. Get the patat special met currysauce and thank me later.

This is why I travel.

I love getting the local experience. I was fortunate enough to travel to a small dutch farming village and partake in a local sprietlopen competition. What is sprietlopen? It’s basically when dutch farmboys get bored, throw two logs across a canal, and then try to race to the other side.

That’s me in the spotlight



Losing my balance

I had an amazing day eating great food, drinking tons of Heineken, and talking with the locals. There is truly nothing better about traveling then actually joining local people in the silly local traditions that make them who they are.