Last Culinary Crawl

Oh say it isn't so......

Kroketten with bread and salad

We’ve been past La Fontaine a few times while walking around Heerenveen and loved the vibe coming from this place. We got a table for two outside to enjoy the sun and watch the Saturday Market crowds. I had already planned ahead by looking at the restaurant’s menu online and was excited to try the Groentekroketten (Vegetarian) and while we were there, Tim decided to try the Rundvlees kroketten (beef). Tim said it’s similar to the Bitterballen he tried before, a crunchy fried coating on the outside filled with a soft creamy inside, almost like mashed potatoes and gravy. We had a choice of bread or fries. Oh My, We each ate the whole thing. I rolled away from that dining experience more than satisfied, I think I over indulged.

Stampot, mashed potatoes with vegetables served with a side of meat

We’ve frequented this particular butcher shop several times to purchase some Stampot (potatoes mashed with other veggies and topped with smoked sausage) another dish the Dutch are famous for. This butcher shop was like visiting the deli, all these wonderful sliced meats and prepared foods on display behind the plexiglass counter offering as little or as much as you want. This shop was near to all the other shops and the staff was so friendly every time we went in (Tim mostly drooling). But one time we were ready to try stampot and they were completely sold out and another time they had four different flavors but none without meat. Finally we saw some pre- packaged at the market grocery that we could take home and microwave. And look, we’re writing home about it.

Tim’s analysis, “ I can see why this is a comfort food in the winter months and how it would be easy to have lots of variations. The one I chose was carrots mixed with potatoes and rookworst (smoked sausage) on the side. The potatoes seemed a little bland and the rookworst was too salty for my taste.”

Roomboter Picolientje

I kept seeing these little mysterious pastry puffs and curiosity got the best of me. I used google translate at the store to see what these were. Translated “butter picolientje” It had me at butter. Yum! Turns out it’s a cookie lightly flavored with a hint of almond hiding a delightful surprise filling, equally as light and charming as it’s shell, they don’t suck. I have not had one single thing from a bakery in the Netherlands that I didn’t absolutely love. Just saying.