by Martha Andrus

In the Netherlands you do not find fast food restaurants on every corner as you do in the U.S. Familiar to Americans are the McDonald's, Burger Kings and Kentucky Fried Chicken, which you can find in most large cities, with a few sprinkled about on the freeways. Fast food here is also called 'Food from the Wall' and it is literally that. In all shopping centres and on the streets of most cities are places that sell food from the wall. They consist of vending machines, much like what Americans encounter in a hospital vending area. But here there are many more choices and such places are always busy. There is no seating, so you will see people standing around eating their 'food from the wall'. This I have not tried and have no plans to do so.

Restaurants here are plentiful but, unless you find a freestanding restaurant, in most cities they are located right in the city centre. This involves finding a parking place, which is not usually convenient to the restaurant, so you do a lot of walking to and from your car, which is not always a bad thing before or after eating a meal here.

You will not find a typical 'Dutch' restaurant, but rather those that specialize in all types of cuisines. Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Mexican, Italian, and Argentinean are just to name a few of the choices. The service is not as accommodating as it is in most American restaurants. In fact, when you are ready to pay your bill, you have to ask your server for the check. And refills on drinks are not easy to obtain. But the food is above average and the portions they serve are as large or larger than in most U.S. restaurants.

Dining out is not the way of life here as it is in the U.S. An average Dutch couple might dine out once or twice a month. The reason for this is mostly because it is so expensive. Since the conversion of the Dutch Guilder to the Euro, the prices of all goods inflated drastically, so this has made it hard for most Dutch to be able to afford to dine out very often. It is more of a routine to have your evening meal cooked at home during the week - at weekends you snack or dine out if you are lucky. Also the convenience of driving to a restaurant, pulling up in the parking lot in front of the restaurant, getting out and going in is not a familiar sight here in Holland. Mostly, as I have said, you are discouraged from driving in the cities and finding a parking space is far from easy. If you do find a parking space, you must pay to park, so that adds to the cost of an evening meal out.

Lunch here is not as large a meal as it is in the U.S. Most of the Dutch take their own sandwiches to work. Dutch sandwiches consist of two pieces of bread, either sliced bread or a bun, which you have to slice open yourself. On the bread, the Dutch use butter and then one very thin piece of meat. If you dine in a restaurant, you would most likely order a 'tosti', which is toasted bread with either some type of cheese or a thin slice of meat. And of course, the usual French fries with mayonnaise. But, if you want mayonnaise or ketchup on your French fries, you will pay extra. It is not included in the price.

Soft drinks here are served without ice. They might or might not be cold or even a little cool. You can get ice if you ask and you will be lucky if you have a cube or two in your glass. And the concept of free refills is unknown. A lot of coffee and cappuccino (and I mean A LOT) is consumed here and you will see many people in the afternoons sitting around the bakeries and restaurants with their coffee and pastry.

Pancake restaurants are very popular here and my first encounter in a pancake house was quite an experience. I anticipated pancakes to be much like what we have in the U.S. and they do have those, but they are not what is most common among the Dutch. Either you have a pancake that is more similar to a pizza with meat or cheese toppings or else 'poffertjes' which are small, half dollar size pancakes served with powdered sugar or some kind of jam or fruit. Both are delicious and filling and you will find them served with coffee, Coke or wine and eaten at all times of day except for breakfast.

Breakfast consists of another sandwich and at the weekends you might have eggs with it. Bacon can be found but it is much thinner, the slices are shorter and it never cooks to a crispy consistency. Pork sausage is unheard of, but you do find ham and Canadian bacon.

Martha's partner, Jac, provides specialist tax advice for expats in The Netherlands. He can be contacted at:

Multibreen BV
Individual and Corporate Tax Consultants
Located in Leiderdorp, The Netherlands
Phone: 071-541-9220
Email: multibreen@xs4all.nl