Asuka N.
Yelp
Choux was our last dinner in Amsterdam over the long weekend, but it was one that my wife was quite excited about. You might be wondering what part of town it is in when you are wandering behind the train tracks coming out of Centraal Station, but once you step inside, you're in (what feels like) an old industrial space that has been retrofitted as a vibrant restaurant that is nicely done-up but still feels pretty casual. We had our choice of seats despite having made a reservation (a nice option), and we went for the table that was underneath the staircase to (what looked like) an event space upstairs that was not being used. The lighting, though, ended up giving the table some shadows, adding a bit of a quieter feel to what was a lively ambiance. The explanations of the food from the servers was quite good, and our main waiter enjoyed chatting us up about our experiences in Amsterdam, as well as the food in NYC - a pleasant way to pass the time in between courses.
The food here, it should be said, is not going to be for everyone. Places like Contra and Piora in NYC remind me a lot of Choux's menu, where untraditional ingredients are used in courses where you may not think they belong. Here, though, Choux is able to integrate a lengthy number of ingredients (despite the EMP-esque menu that lists a few ingredients, without a clue as to what your dish actually is) into dishes that harmonize so well with each other - and without feeling crowded, which tends to be the cardinal sin of dishes that feel jam-packed with every last possible herb or sauce. You can choose from 3 or 4-course meals, along with the 'Demi-Choux' and the 'Choux' courses. We went with the full enchilada (the Choux), which was basically a 7-course dinner with almost every dinner item on the menu served. The amuse bouche was more traditional - a butter bean fried tempura-style and served with a lightly-infused lavender sauce (light but delicious and floral), alongside cream of celeriac with a tapioca chip, radish and seaweed, where the texture of the cream was such it tasted like - and felt like - you were eating a vegetarian version of an oyster...very interesting and tasty. But the adventure starts after that...kohlrabi served with kohlrabi ice cream(!) would not be how you expect to start off dinner, but the frozen/chilled vegetable plate, served with white strawberries (very slightly sweet) and kefir shaved to resemble feta was a very refreshing start to the meal. From there, thin strands of squid served with oyster and rhubarb-infused vinaigrette, along with chards and golden beets, was another light, refreshing dish (although there could have been more squid, IMO).
The next 3 courses would be more along the lines of mains, and when the weakest one was a tastefully-marinated veal ribeye with a dusting of clam powder and served in a rich au jus - you know you're eating a delicious meal. The best was definitely the lightly seared trout, which was served in a miso-infused beurre blanc sauce dotted with a generous serving of trout roe and with a whole egg yolk that gave the sauce even more richness and depth. Each bite was an umami bomb to be savored. The spelt risotto was perhaps a bit less absorbent than your regular arborio rice, but sitting in a pool of parsley-colored, garlic-infused veloute and topped with rehydrated morels, it was a perfect earthy interlude between the fish and the meat course. Unsurprisingly, dessert veered back towards the experimental - seeing string bean ice cream topped with dandelion petals and various greens atop a bed of goat cheese was an interesting beginning to the end of the meal, but despite being very much like the kohlrabi course at the start, this worked due to the nuttiness from the macadamia nuts and a lightly sweet piece of veggie-infused cake. The last course was a color bomb to match the flavors - a vibrant scoop of blood orange sorbet served with pistacio, sliced carrots, carrot poppy cake and poppy-dotted chips. It was definitely a dessert course, but the mixture the poppy with the acidity of the orange, along with the pistachio - it all worked well together despite being flavors you would probably never think to have in one place.
If you are not adventurous when it comes to food, Choux is not the place for you. But the execution of what are some of the most imaginative plates I have ever eaten here is incredibly well-done. Despite the cool, rainy weather at this time of the year, this meal really made you feel like you were enjoying the bounty of the year's first harvest. Phenomenally executed and definitely the most memorable meal of our time here during our visit to Amsterdam - and highly, highly recommended. The only thing that would make it better is having a beer selection - but the wines are quite solid as well.