Food

Kapsalon goes international

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Whether it’s the aluminium foil container, the fries, döner, cheese, iceberg lettuce, garlic sauce, the 1,800 calories or the combination of all of it, we don’t know. But one thing is certain: kapsalon is going for world domination.

Foto van culinair journalist Steffi Posthumus

While they’re still figuring out in Amsterdam how to make an own version of it, the original version — created in 2003 when Nataniël Gomes, the owner of a hair salon on Rotterdam’s Schiedamseweg, had a lunch dish put together at a shawarma shop located a little further down the road, containing all his favourite ingredients — is already available on three different continents.

1. Nepal

Let’s start with the most exotic success right away: Nepal. Yes, really. Nepalese chef Xuneel ate his first kapsalon during his holiday in the Netherlands. He did so in The Hague, admittedly, but he was immediately sold, and now he serves the dish in his restaurant in Kathmandu. Successfully, too, because it turns out to contain the three favourite ingredients of many Nepalese people: fries, chicken and cheese. He leaves out only the aluminium container.

2. Germany

If there’s one place with a large Turkish community, it’s Germany. So it’s not surprising that kapsalon — with its Turkish döner — is a welcome fixture on many a German snack bar menu.

3. Poland

Was it the Poles who worked in the Netherlands for a while who brought kapsalon to the menus of Warsaw, Pznan and Krakow? Or is the heavy dish simply something the Poles could have come up with themselves? Who knows, but it is being sold.

4. Morocco

‘The Netherland specialty’: that’s how kapsalon (with a choice of spicy or béchamel sauce) appears on the menu in Morocco. Oh well, it’s something different from a meatball with apple sauce.

https://twitter.com/LamyaeA/status/1032383918563971072

5. Czech Republic

Most Czechs appreciate a glass of beer and a hearty meal. So it’s not surprising that this döner shop in Prague is also promoting the dish — and in a mega version, too.

https://twitter.com/jisroel/status/1032308320860872705

6. Spain

Are they Dutch tourists in Spain? Or Spaniards who fancy something other than patatas bravas for a change? Either way, you can get the Rotterdam classic at this cervecería in Valencia.

7. Hungary

If your dish has made it to Hungarian provincial towns, you know it’s doing well.

https://twitter.com/MarieHemelrijk/status/1027182917993357312

 

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