The last time I was in Copenhagen, I got chatting with a bloke at one of the restaurants we went to. Said bloke happened to be a chef who was like us doing a culinary tour ( except he got a table at Noma, I won't hold it against him), and his restaurant happened to be in Amsterdam.

So a month later finding ourselves at a loss for somewhere to go for lunch we headed to BAK thinking that if the chef who cooks here is a foodie who is a fan of the Scandi movement, then the food might be worth a bash.

The ethos behind the restaurant is that they feature local, organic and more importantly seasonal food, the menus read like a shopping list of a chef that has thrown random ingredients together that give you no clue as to what to expect, but I like that, it adds to the element of surprise.




Bak is about a 20 minute walk from Amsterdam centraal and is situated in one of the converted warehouse buildings overlooking the Ij and a very nice view it is too, you have to buzz to get in and when you do climb the flights of stairs you are greeted, by a very stripped down decor reminiscent of BROR in Copenhagen, the walls are decorated by Art by the Head chefs girlfriend and the top shelves behind the bar are full of various pickled veg.







So now for the important bit, what did we eat...

We started with the pickled beet which was paired with herring roe and  horseradish cream, there was also the addition of some sharp apple and the horseradish was quietly subtle and added a good background kick. I was surprised that the beet was pickled, as it is rare to find that in dishes these days, many chefs go for roasted  or raw, but you had the earthiness and the piquancy which accompanied by the saltiness of the herring roe came together as a well balanced dish.
All in all a good start.

Next up was white chicory which was char grilled and accompanied by red chicory with pear and accompanied by a parmesan buerre blanc, very simple but elegantly done.

The main was wild duck nicely roasted pink and paired with a jus and pan fried wild mushrooms, all good earthy flavours.

For dessert we had blackberries paired with a nutty crumble and a white chocolate ice-cream. The blackberries were unadorned by sugar which contrasted nicely with the sweetness of the ice-cream and the crumble gave that well needed texture as well as the balance.

And for the second Dessert, yes there was a second dessert, I had mentioned to the waitress earlier on that we had met one of the chefs and so as a treat he sent up an extra dessert (thank you!), this was pumpkin ice-cream and sea buckthorn sauce, which was lovely.

The wine pairings were really good, we opted for a glass to go with each course and one of the pairings was a French sparkling cider which went well with the second dessert. I forgot to make note of what they were and also forgot to take pics of the food, but promise, that next time and yes there definitely will be a next time, I will take some shots.