A family feel at Polly Goudvisch
By Seger Abels
Buiksloterweg 3-5, 1031 CC Amsterdam
BOOK NOWA ferry ride in Amsterdam is a magical thing. My favourite ride is the one between Amsterdam CS and the NDSM wharf as it takes just long enough to clear your head and get an instant shot of holiday dopamine. Another favourite of mine, for a different reason, is the ferry that takes you to the brand-new Polly Goudvisch; it comes and goes every 5 minutes, offering an ongoing flow of people travelling to and from the city centre. Polly has an amazing terrace with a top-notch view of the ferry, making it an amazing spot to do some good old people-watching. This hobby, of course, is a hungry and thirsty business and for that, Polly Goudvisch offers a tasty array of solutions.
When the sun is out, you can follow the ferry’s trail from dusk till dawn from not one, but two big-ass terraces. Good to know; when the sun is being a bit “Dutch” once again, the immense canopy covers 90% of the terrace, allowing you to continue your time out there. Not that you wouldn’t want to sit inside as the interior, designed by studio Modijefsky, is a thing of beauty. Its many windows let the light in beautifully and the wood, tiles and granite details will wrap you up in a ‘gezellig’ atmosphere. But let’s not avoid the elephant in the room… Yes, Polly is part of 3WO. But, just as is the case with their kin from the ‘Goudvisch family’ (Bar Bonnie, Arie, Moos and De Neef van Fred) Polly has a distinctive soul and identity of its own. A big part of this comes from the two amazing owners (we see you Omar and Thijs) and their dedicated team. Since the day Polly opened, it has been busy from morning till late in the evening/night. As it’s on our bike ride home, we pass by it often and it’s always tempting to join the crowd and stop for a ‘goudgele rakker’. Their website describes a visit to Polly as akin to visiting your own family, and we totally get that!
This, in a way, is also reflected on the menu. On a regular morning a nice piece of apple pie (patisserie Kuyt) with your coffee and, for the little members of the family who they never forget to cater to, peanut butter or jam on a slice of casino white is available. On a day with something to celebrate, I suggest oysters and crémant. On our last visit, we took a guilty pleasure trip down memory lane (just how a family meal should be). Classic shrimp cocktail as a starter, steak frites with béarnaise as a main and good old chocolate mousse to finish it off. It was everything we wanted and more.
At Polly, you won’t feel the need to act like the hipster you’re not. Just feel welcome in the open arms of this heartwarming restaurant and, for an hour or two, watch the world pass you by with views of the ferry coming and going, spitting out loads of stressed people on their malfunctioning e-bikes. You’ve got your ‘natje en droogje’ and the team of Polly will make sure it stays that way…
Polly Goudvisch
The Place: New-age meets old-school brasserie.
The Space: Designed by the masters of Studio Modijefsky, and it shows.
The Base: €50-60 pp
The Face: Young locals mingling with tourists staying in the North.
The Ace: Have something to celebrate? Ask about their private terrace space!
The Veg: Yes! This chef knows his way around vegetables.
Opening Hours: Sun – Wed 09:00-00:00, Thurs 09:00-01:00, Fri-Sat 09:00-03:00
Images from polly.goudvisch.nl, ©Polly Goudvisch
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