Design-worthy bites and drinks during DDW

Your pedometer works overtime during a day at Dutch Design Week (DDW), and all that wandering makes you hungry and thirsty before you know it. Time to rest your legs and give yourself an energy boost. From rooftop bar to pop-up restaurant: here’s how to eat and drink your way through DDW.

Food trucks

At the food court at Ketelhuisplein, you can choose from kebab, currywurst, and other street food from RESTY, all made from mushrooms. Or go for afreshly made sandwich on sourdough from Camion, or Dutch poffertjes (small, fluffy pancakes) from Poffernoes. Kalahari Coffee & Bakery supplies the caffeine boost you need, with organic, CO2-free coffee beans.

Pop-up bars

The covered pop-up bar is back at Ketelhuisplein on Strijp-S (a former Philips factory site turned creative district), once again in collaboration with Otomoto. The Bar is the daily meeting place to catch up after a busy day full of design. Order a glass of wine, a craft beer, or a cocktail while local DJs and collectives bring the energetic beats we know from Otomoto. We can’t leave out the Otomoto Wine Bar in Area51 on Strijp-S either. Whether you’re in the mood for a Rioja, a Chardonnay, or some bubbly: at this pop-up wine bar, the wine flows freely. Look around while you sip your wine: you don’t need an eye for design to see that designers Daphna Laurens and Evelien Reich designed every corner of this space down to the last detail.

Pop-up cafés

Of course, a museum about the future doesn’t serve ordinary pancakes. At the pop-up café at Next Nature Museum in Evoluon, they arrive on your plate in blue, green, and yellow. Next up: Café ocho at the NRE site. Everything around you here, from the chairs and lamps to the vases, is part of the exhibition ‘Back and forth’ by OFFSITE. All the furniture is made from leftover industrial material. You’ll find strong coffee, sandwiches and pastries on the menu.

Special openings during DDW

Time for a well-deserved drink (or two) on the top floor of Ketelhuis. Normally you can only rent this space for private parties. During DDW, it’s open to everyone. They have a long list of cocktails, beer, and wine here, which makes it a great spot for drinks.

For dinner among the design exhibitions, go to BarBistro Kazerne. In the former military police barracks, you can taste top-notch Mediterranean dishes, such as oysters in red wine vinegar or linguine vongole (pasta with clams). The BarBistro is a new concept at Kazerne and opens just in time for DDW, but it will stay open after that too.

DAKBAR at Piet Hein Eek on Strijp-R is normally only available for private parties too, but during DDW it opens its doors to everyone. From DAKBAR on the fourth floor, you can see all of Strijp. Add a refreshing cocktail and you’re all set. Reason enough to stop by (again)!

More places to eat during DDW

It doesn’t get more authentic than this: La Cantina is the place to enjoy everything Mexican cuisine has to offer. This hidden gem sits in the small courtyard of the former match factory on Vestdijk. Meat, fish, and veggie lovers can all get their fill here with typical dishes like ceviche, birria tacos, or enchiladas, and of course ice-cold cerveza (beer) at the bar. On Keizersgracht, you’ll find RADAR, a restaurant and bar with a touch of design. The showpiece of the space is the stainless-steel bar with built-in lighting, designed by 10-4 Studio. RADAR doesn’t focus on one particular cuisine, but literally serves whatever shows up on its radar. The result? Dishes that make your taste buds dance!