Bar Kantoor in Westerpark is a lovely place with exclusively organic dishes on the menu

Bar Kantoor is the restaurant of Conscious Hotel Westerpark. Sustainability is at the heart of everything here. You can come here all day, from breakfast to after-dinner cocktails. The menu consists of 100% organic dishes, from burrata and Caesar salad to sea bream and ravioli – prepared in the 100% electric kitchen and bar. It’s wonderful to spend time on the sun-drenched terrace, and it’s lovely inside too. But there are a few points to note.

Sustainability is important here, and you can see that reflected in the menu and the eclectic interior; the restaurant is furnished as much as possible with second-hand, recycled or biodegradable materials. The bar at the entrance is particularly striking: it is made from old apothecary cabinets—beautiful! We therefore begin here with a mezze platter: a selection of snacks to share (for 24 euros).

Delicious Mezze

And the platter not only looks delicious, it tastes very good too. All products are sourced locally and seasonally wherever possible. Hummus with pita, flatbread and dukkah, a bowl of olives, butter beans in smoked chili oil, falafel, burrata with tomatoes and roasted aubergine salad with Greek yogurt, spring onion and pomegranate: a perfect start, especially if you’re with four people.

Guilty Pleasures

Bar Kantoor isn’t exclusively vegetarian, but vegetables are central. If you’re craving meat or fish, you’re welcome here too; they are listed on the menu under the heading ‘Guilty Pleasures’. You might almost feel ashamed of eating meat when you order the entrecote (‘from the plancha with spring onion, mushrooms and chimichurri’)… This dish costs 29 euros and is served with large oven-baked potatoes. Fries with mayonnaise are listed separately as a side dish for 5 euros.

We have to ask for a steak knife after initially struggling somewhat helplessly with the regular knife. Fortunately, Max—quick shout out, because what a wonderful employee he is; friendly, fast, helpful, super!—brings a Laguiole steak knife. The entrecote is well prepared, medium rare, but it has too much fat, and for this price we expected somewhat better quality—organic or not. The oven-baked potatoes are large and dry; the fries, on the other hand, are deliciously crispy.

Sea bream with corn velouté

The grilled sea bream with the courgette salad on top is very tasty (22.50 on the menu). The sea bream is perfectly prepared, and the courgette salad gives the dish a fresh kick. The soft and creamy corn velouté is slightly too rich, but it does have a good flavor. This dish also comes with a generous portion of oven-baked potatoes.

Staff shortage

As in almost everywhere else, they are also dealing with a staff shortage here. Despite that, the evening runs smoothly. The service is friendly and fast, although it is sometimes not entirely clear who is part of the serving team and who isn’t. All in all, Bar Kantoor is a lovely place in lively Westerpark, where you can work comfortably at one of the quiet tables behind the bar or relax on the sofa, at the bar or at a table—or, of course, on the spacious, sunny terrace.

Bar Kantoor, Haarlemmerweg 8, Amsterdam

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