Bistrot Neuf

The Haarlemmerstraat's proper French bistro, pouring forty wines by the glass since 2009.

Two minutes from Centraal, at the unglamorous top of the Haarlemmerstraat, sits the most Parisian room in Amsterdam: white tablecloths, a zinc-ish bar, waiters who actually know the wine list. Neuf has done this since 2009 and recently sharpened up under its bar-à-vin banner without losing the plot: soupe de poisson from Marseille, escargots, steak with proper frites, a seasonal chef's menu when you can't decide. The killer feature is 'service continu', the kitchen runs all day from noon, seven days a week, so you can eat a real lunch at 15:30 when everywhere else has surrendered to toasties. Forty wines by the glass means the sommelier will happily walk you through Jura weirdness or safe Burgundy, and Gault&Millau's 13.5 points hang quietly on the wall. Book, or just take the bar with a glass and the borrelkaart.

Start with the Marseille fish soup, rouille and all, then order the caviar snack if you're celebrating anything at all.

Photo: Bistrot Neuf

Photo: Bistrot Neuf