Goodbye nature, I want to go city walking with food and drink

Okay, I do genuinely love forests and beaches to walk in and along. But from a culinary perspective, things are often pretty dire (in your backpack, with that soggy cheese sandwich). And is there anything more fun than wandering through the city with a bite from a great café or restaurant in one hand and a drink in the other? Well, yes: sitting or hanging out on the terrace or inside that café or restaurant at the bar, with friendly staff pampering you all afternoon or evening. But as long as that isn’t possible, we’re more than happy to settle for a take-away walk!

You may have seen it popping up already, or even taken part yourself, and it has to be said: the culinary walk is genuinely one of the few good things to have received a boost from that stupid coronavirus. We did one, and we absolutely loved it.

No need to think, just go

The concept is simple: you walk past a number of preselected cafés and restaurants, picking up something tasty at each location. Then you walk on a little, settle down on a city bench or wall or whatever (or simply keep walking) while you tuck into your haul, and then off you go to the next stop. The practical details may vary; some organizers only sell a map with a walking route but handle the communication with the cafés, after which you collect your order and pay on the spot, while with others you pay for everything in advance and only have to pick up your order there. You aren’t required to buy a (take-away) drink at the cafés, but of course it does support them, and honestly, part of the fun is the shameless day-drinking.

Tasty Walk

We did the Amsterdam walk by Tasty Walk in De Pijp and Oost. But there are several providers/organizers offering more or less the same concept with different cafés and restaurants, in lots of different cities. We paid around 36 euros for a walk of approximately 8 kilometers, and in return we got to pick up something tasty at 6 locations. And tasty it was…

Advanced-level drinks and snacks

Keep in mind that everywhere you’ll get something that would normally appear on a drinks-and-snacks menu, so no complete main courses or anything like that. But believe me, after stop 5 I was so full that I took the sandwich from the final round home; I just couldn’t eat another bite! Here are the details… Incidentally, my walking companion chose the vegetarian options, which she also found very tasty.

Tour de Pijp (and Oost)

We could choose the order of our route ourselves, and started with a masterful brownie from FavorFlav favorite Waldo. Waldo is a fantastic pastry chef, and it was extra fun to see him working in the shop himself. With that gigantic brownie (and the included juice plus a coffee in the sun), we had a solid foundation, and so we headed to Boca’s by Sarphatipark, where we got one of the tastiest bao buns I’ve ever eaten (so soft! So fresh!). When my walking companion asked whether I wanted something to drink with it, I had just swallowed the last sip of coffee and automatically said no, but then I saw her meaningful look, with one eyebrow raised. Aaahhh right, something to “drínk”? And so things began gently with a hard seltzer.

On to the next one. At Fête de Soul I got perfectly fried chicken thighs with something I’d never tasted before but now crave intensely every day: banana ketchup… more on that later, I promise. Next stop: Blooker, a beautiful, cozy little building among an otherwise rather impressive skyline, where it was also lovely to sit in the sun. Delicious pumpkin soup, and is that wine in that cardboard cup? Who’s to say…

After that, it was a bit of a hike on to Oost, and by then it was hardcore drinks-and-snacks time. More people had had the same idea, because there was a long line outside The Cottage (with everyone neatly following the rules). But even waiting in the sun with a drink was no punishment here, and before long we were sitting a little farther on, on a bench with brilliantly delicious homemade sausage rolls. And my first alcoholic ginger beer ever; insanely delicious.

Life isn’t fair

The final treat, a substantial wrap from Café de Duvel, had to be wrapped up and taken home (not exactly a hardship either), because as I said, by then I was absolutely stuffed. And we needed to pee. That last part is a bit of an issue, but I find it difficult in general during this era of mandatory take-away. I would love to buy all sorts of things from cafés to eat outside on the street (or in the car), but the fact that you can’t use the toilet at every café remains a challenge (though you can at some, for which thanks). And why is it still so outrageously unfair and unequal in a city that men can stop at a urinal or something similar every few hundred meters, while that’s impossible for women? I pay municipal taxes too, for goodness’ sake?! But anyway, I’m getting distracted. This calls for an article in the form of a letter to the municipality, I can already feel it, so back to the subject: the culinary city walk – one of the things we’d be happy to see stay forever, even once the hospitality industry reopens.

So choose a culinary walk through your city online, put on your sneakers, eat a light breakfast, slip a bottle opener into your pocket (because officially cafés aren’t allowed to open beer bottles and the like for you) and go on a snack walk!

Also read:

• You won’t get any closer to the hospitality industry than at this chicken stall
• This is the tastiest doughnut right now, and here’s where to get it
• When a trip around the supermarket is just as much fun as a festival or weekend away