The Noordermarkt in Amsterdam

If you find yourself in Amsterdam on a Saturday morning in need of a break from the musea and canal boats or if the mere sight of the queue for the Anne Frank house made you realize that you will need some sustenance before joining it, make your way to the Noordermarkt organic market in the middle of the popular Jordaan neighborhood.

Start with “koffie verkeerd” (warm frothy milk with a little coffee) or peppermint leaf tea and freshly baked “appeltaart met slagroom” (apple tart with whipped cream) at Café De Winkel located on the corner of the Westerstraat at Noordermarkt 43. Many say this is the best apple tart in Amsterdam and the terrace is perfect for people watching.

When you are all sugared and caffeined up, head over to the market and make your way through the alleys with delicious Dutch and foreign cheeses, fruits and vegetables, savory mushrooms, fresh seafood, crusty bread and pastries, just baked quiches, thin crepes, olive oils, various kinds of pesto, herbs, spices and nuts. Try the "Leidsche kaas" (cheese with cumin seeds) and if it is in season, toward the middle of May, “gras kaas”, which is a hard cheese made from the first milk obtained after the cows reenter the pastures following a long winter indoors. Organic red currants, goose berries, medium sized disks of sheeps cheese with thyme and rosemary, pear juice and soft raisin rolls called “krentebollen” are perfect for an afternoon snack along the canals or, if you are going a bit further into town, a picnic in the Vondelpark.

The market is open every Saturday from 9 am until about 3 pm and is approximately 10 minutes by foot from the Westerkerk and the Anne Frank House and approximately 15 minutes by foot from Centraal Station. Alternatively, you can take trams 3 or 10 and get off at Marnixbad from where it is approximately a 10 minute walk to the market.