New in NL: Peking crêpes

Since last year, there has been a kiosk on many street corners in Amsterdam. Most sell coffee, smoothie bowls, juices, wraps and other familiar single (lunch) products. But on the square at the beginning of Westerpark, Peking crêpes have recently been cooked right in front of you. The first in the Netherlands. Definitely worth going.

‘Dumplings’ is the name of the kiosk, with a red lantern on either side. It belongs to Yu, a chef from Beijing, and his sister-in-law Fang from Guangdong. He had already been cooking in Asian restaurants in the Netherlands for ten years, while she had worked as a beautician for years. Now Yu cooks Chinese crêpes (jianbing) on the spot, like those that originated in Tianjin in northern China, but are also a popular on-the-go breakfast in the streets of Beijing.

Crêpe

Jianbing is a thin crêpe made partly from wheat flour, which, like its French equivalent, is cooked on a round griddle. It is then covered with a raw egg, spread over the crêpe with a stick and cooked. It is topped with hoisin sauce, spring onion, black sesame seeds, coriander, and sometimes some pickles and lettuce. Before the crêpe is folded several times and chopped in half, one or more slices of fried wonton dough are added.

Jianbing has different textures and flavors in a single bite

As a result, a fresh crêpe has all the textures and flavors you could wish for in a single bite: soft, crispy, chewy, and sweet, savory, sour. With this, Yu brings Beijing to the streets of Amsterdam.

Besides the vegetarian option, Yu makes versions with Peking duck, roast pork, bacon and sausages. Such a crêpe takes a little while. Nevertheless, the following of fans has been growing rapidly since the kiosk—with its own terrace—opened. The address is being passed from hand to hand, especially among Chinese people living in the Netherlands. And what does the kiosk’s name, ‘dumplings’, refer to? To the handmade Beijing-style dumplings (jiaozi), which are also more than worth waiting in line for.

Dumplings kiosk
Westerpark corner Nassaukade
open Tue–Sun 11 a.m.–8 p.m.

Image: Marjan Ippel