Asian cuisine in Amsterdam is very much dominated by Indonesian and Thai restaurants. To the point where it’s hard to find a good Chinese, available on each corner in many other large European cities. So we were very excited when we learned about a Vietnamese restaurant having opened doors.
Xinh is located just off the corner of Elandsgracht and Prinsengracht, in one of those locations that have become known for failing restaurants, having seen a series of bad restaurants going out of business, most recently Waldorf. Xinh did a great job of giving the inside a very different look, sparsely lit, coolish with a touch of 70s atmosphere.
Xinh has both an a la carte menu as well as a three course tasting menu. There are few surprises on the menu but all the Vietnamese favorites such as summer rolls, grilled meat on a stick, Vietnamese crepes, Pho, or dancing beef. The tasting menu is a good choice for those not very familiar with Vietnamese cuisine. It starts out with a fresh salad with shrimps and chilli sauce, and then as main has a combination of dancing beef, lemongrass chicken and caramel pork.
The highlight of our dinner was probably dessert, where we were allowed to switch the banana pudding for ice cream, one of which was durian flavor. At that point we briefly felt like being in Asia!
We weren’t blown away but liked it enough to come back. And we don’t think it will go out of business soon!
www.xinh.nl
Elandsgracht 2
1016 TV Amsterdam
Tel.: +31 (0)20 6240308
Public Transport: Trams 13, 14, 17 to Westermarkt or trams 1, 2, 5 to Spui
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Neighborhood: Jordaan
Vibe: Cool