Current mood:

longing

*rumbly in the tumbly*
Quotes from my guidebooks about food in the Netherlands:

• "Amsterdam isn't the food Mecca that other European capitals are..."
  


• "Don't neglect traditional Dutch cooking: while it may not be high cuisine, here you have a unique opportunity to try it." (Wow, what a recommendation: it's here... it's not very good, but it's here.)
  


• "Traditional Dutch cuisine concentrates on filling the stomach rather than titillating the taste buds..."
  


• "Dutch food and Amsterdam restaurants are the butt of a lot of jokes -- only some of them deserved."
  


• "Unlike Italians or French, locals dining out here avoid local food..." (emphasis original)
  


• "Dutch pancakes are the sort of comestible brick that has given Dutch food a bad name... the less said, the better."
  

Don't look at me, I'm just quoting. And that last one is one of those undeserved jokes -- it's not at all like a brick. It's more like cardboard, much easier to chew than a brick. Which is good, 'cause you usually have to.


I am *so* looking forward to Christmas...

Steak, medium-to-medium-rare, tender and juicy, with a baked potato on the side. Maybe two of them (steaks, that is.) A cheeseburger where the meat isn't half bread-and-herb-filler. Baked ham and sweet potatoes. Pepperoni pizza. Lasagna (I won't even discuss what a disappointment the local lasagna is; Laurie can do that.) French onion soup. Steak, I did say steak, didn't I?

Sourdough pretzels. Soft pretzels. Real New York-style bagels. Bread that isn't stale the second day and moldy the fourth (better living through chemicals.) Pancakes. Waffles!