Yotam Ottolenghi is returning to a city he left three decades ago. He lived and studied in Amsterdam in 1995, long before his name became a global byword for generous, vegetable-forward cooking. Now he is back, not just to visit, but to open a restaurant.
The new establishment opens its doors on March 19, marking the chef's first venture in the Netherlands. It finds its home inside the Mandarin Oriental Conservatorium, a hotel situated in the city’s Museum District. The location places the new Ottolenghi kitchen in conversation with cultural landmarks like the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum, suggesting food as part of a broader cultural experience.
This opening continues a partnership that began in Geneva, but the Amsterdam project feels more personal. It represents a full circle for Ottolenghi, a return to a place that was part of his story before the cookbooks and the London delis. The restaurant itself takes cues from his London spot, ROVI, with a focus on grilling, fermentation, and seasonal produce.
The Menu
The food is a blend of the familiar and the new. Well-known Ottolenghi dishes like the celeriac shawarma with pita and fermented tomato are on the menu. They sit alongside creations developed specifically for Amsterdam. One dish, a Hong Kong-style French toast with tahini and sweet hawaij, was created as a direct nod to the restaurant’s partnership with the hotel group.
Other plates show a commitment to bold flavors and textures. The all-day menu includes beef carpaccio with pickled Jerusalem artichoke, lamb chops with grated tomato and cumin salt, and fish kofta in a tomato caraway sauce. Desserts follow a similar ethos, with offerings like squash and pear fritters or an apple mille feuille with calvados butter.
Local Roots, Global Name
For a global name like Ottolenghi, the execution is rooted in the local. The menu is built around Dutch produce. Dairy and cheeses come from Over Amstel Boerderij. Salads are grown by TopKrop Farm. Aubergines are sourced from the Zwinkels, a family of growers an hour outside the city. It is an effort to ground the restaurant in its new home.
The team reflects a similar logic, blending new talent with established experience. The kitchen and front of house are run by Executive Chef Neil Campbell and General Manager Marisha Wilson, who have a combined eighteen years at Ottolenghi's London restaurants. Wilson has relocated to Amsterdam to lead the new venture, ensuring the brand’s specific culture is present from day one.
The drinks list complements the food, with a selection of natural wines and signature cocktails. A Shatta Margarita uses green chilli, while the Ottolenghi Martini is infused with nori and preserved lemon. A local touch appears with a sour made from jenever, the Dutch gin.
The opening is more than just a new dining room in a major European city. It is a story about homecoming. It asks whether a global brand can feel truly local, and whether a chef can, after thirty years, bring his world back to a city that was once his.
Read more about travel here.