Hotspots

Hotspot: at Bepita, your wildest pita dreams come true

We’ve already tipped you off about our three Food Department favorites, but I’d like to add a fourth: Bepita. Where all your dreams of fluffy pita bread, liters of tahini, zhug, hummus and harissa come true.

Foto van culinair journalist Steffi Posthumus

door Steffi Posthumus

We walked in and then

Had to look around for a moment. The Food Department is on the second floor of Magna Plaza, which means: two escalators up and then Bepita is exactly on the other side. Or take the lift and then turn right. Or was it left? No, right. Yes, right.

Most expensive wine on the menu

Bepita itself doesn’t sell drinks. Just like the other places in the food hall, actually. For drinks, you need to go to The Food Department’s own bar, which, conveniently, is right next to Bepita. The most expensive wines are the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir (€6 per glass). Delicious, but the cheapest one is definitely worth it too.

Cheapest wine on the menu

That would be the Pinot Grigio (€4.50 per glass), refreshingly fruity and dry. More in the mood for red? For the same price, you can also get a Merlot or a summery rosé.

Most striking dish

The chef recommends the pita with herb omelet (€5.50), but we’re headstrong and opt for the pita with grilled lamb kebab (€9.50) and pita sabich (€6.50), with fried aubergine. Both are delicious. The bread is soft and fluffy, the kebab well seasoned, and the fried aubergine beautifully thinly sliced and wrapped in a thin, crispy coating.

Interior

Clean, practical and entertaining: wooden benches, high tables and a large open kitchen where you can watch the chefs at work. Also nice: through Magna Plaza’s large windows, you can happily watch the hustle and bustle of the city centre.

Intimacy factor

This isn’t the place for a romantic dinner for two. But for a relaxed quick bite before wandering along the canals or catching a film, it’s a great spot.

Ideal for

Hummus and tahini fans. And anyone who wants to eat well between (or after) shopping without having to leave the city centre.

We’ll be back for

The sweet, helpful chef and—without a doubt—the grilled cauliflower (€5.50). Man, is it delicious: perfectly cooked, and the combination of tahini and grilled flavour is fantastic.

Value for money

A big thumbs up. Two, actually. In Amsterdam city centre, you can quickly pay through the nose for sandwiches that even your two-year-old niece could make better, but at Bepita you get your money’s worth. In both flavour and quantity. Rolling home. Mmm.

Bepita
Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 182, Amsterdam