“Bridges is part of five-star deluxe hotel Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam, that is part of Accor, with 4.500 hotels, located in no less than 100 countries worldwide divided over 30 brands. Michelin-star restaurant Bridges Dining focuses mainly on fish, with a surprising à la carte and Chef’s menu.”
Bridges was seemingly the only decent restaurant open in Amsterdam on a Sunday evening, a recommendation given to me by my hotel’s concierge. I made the reservation and walked over without any expectations. When I arrived, I found an unassuming restaurant tucked away off the lobby of the lovely Grand Hotel. I was the first guest who arrived so I had my pick of the dining room, choosing a cozy table in the corner by a window.
I was greeted by an overly enthusiastic waiter who was ready to tackle dinner service with a fury. I received the day’s menu and asked only for a bottle of water, as my several days of exploring the region’s bars had left me in need of a break. I was brought my bread service shortly thereafter and it was time to decide how many courses I was prepared for. I took a screenshot of the day’s menu on my phone for you because I did not take one of the physical menu for whatever reason.
I elected to have all 6 courses they were offering, sans the cheese plate, to get a more polished feel for Bridge’s offerings. They are renowned for their seafood in particular, but I wanted to see how they’d fare with veal as well. I was brought two separate plates for the amuse-bouche, a varied group of things showcasing the chef’s access to local and seasonal ingredients.
First up was a waffle with dill, crème fraiche, and caviar. This was served alongside a local carrot with fresh wasabi and sesame seeds. They made for a visually appealing pairing, but neither was particularly fun to eat. I’m strictly sensitive to spicy foods and do not care for wasabi at all, making the carrot inedible to me, but I was respectful of the quality of the components when inspecting it. The dill waffle was a strange take on a serving piece for caviar and made for an unusual combination of flavors.
The second dish consisted of capers and white asparagus with miso cream and shaved egg yolk. This was beautiful and a strangely unique flavor combination. Tender, delicate, and with a gentle pool of fluid, I was fairly confused by this dish. I don’t really have a clue what else there is to say about this…odd.
After the amuse-bouche I began to see a bit into the chef’s mind and was concerned that he and I have very different palates as I awaited my first course. My first course was a sea bass tartare with avocado cream, radish, crumbled seaweed, and cumin sauce. I am not the biggest fan of avocado, but I really liked this dish as a first course. The cool sea bass was flavorful and tender, with a solid crunch from the garnishments. A wonderfully creamy way to start my courses, to be followed by a delicate langoustine.
The langoustine is normally prepared raw, but they seared it for me upon learning that too much raw seafood and/or meat can often upset my stomach. It was served with carrot, duck liver, and granny smith apple. The chef once again balanced a delicate ingredient with strong natural flavors and a bit of a crunch in the apple. The langoustine was tender enough to crumble under my touch and a bit of sweetness from the surrounding ingredients was pleasant. An interesting, but well constructed dish.
After a solid start, the next two courses had vastly different results. The third course was imperial caviar with potato, crème fraiche, and chives. The server, when explaining this dish, mentioned that this was the chef’s take on a traditional Russian method of serving caviar and I’ll take his word for it because I’ve never had something like this. Warm, foamy, rich, buttery and with a glob of wonderful caviar on top…this was fantastic. Easily the dish of the evening, this really blew me away and is something I hope to be able to replicate myself at some point.
The fourth course was slated to be a piece of fish, the item that has made Bridges relatively well known. This evening’s fish was Halibut with white asparagus, green peas, roasted butter, and vintage soy. Unfortunately, it was horrendous. The fish was dry and tasteless and the asparagus had not been prepped properly, leaving it inedible. The waiter apologized profusely for the inadequacy of the course and we moved along to the next course.
Finally I was ready for a piece of meat after largely seeing seafood through the previous courses. The veal came out prepared simply, over a miso sauce and a simple garnish. It was a tender piece of veal with little to no seasoning and no help from the bland sauce. It was really just a shame to see a good piece of veal served like this with nothing supporting the main cast member.
The dessert finally came after a horribly long wait and I was intrigued because it was eerily similar in style to the dessert I had just had at Aan de Poel. The meringue was served this time with strawberry and white chocolate, but again failed to make any sort of impression. I only ate a few bites before deciding to ask for the check so I could finally leave.
Overall this was a an underwhelming experience for what the concierge said about Bridges, and without the caviar course it was largely a sad effort. Not to mention the issues with the food taking forever. The entire meal took about three or three and a half hours despite my constant attempts to get the server’s attention to bring out the next course. That being said, they made an effort to improve the evening by offering a drink before also reducing my bill due to the poor quality of the food. Hopefully if you give it a try, you’ll have a better evening than I did.
Cheers,
Stefano
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