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A Boutique Hotel With a Hint of Old Dutch (Amsterdam)
| 2009-03-16 By Myra Prinsen With a hint of Old Dutchand a contemporary restaurant offering Dutch cuisine with a twist, a luxurious design hotel in Amsterdam is also a unique training centre for hotel and catering industry students. Four years ago, a beautiful 19th century school building in a superb location in Amsterdam’s Zuidas areawas transformed into luxury hotel. The architecture of the former MEAO School guaranteed the hotel instant status as a stylish destination, with interior walls and ceilings finished in different coloured brickwork and a central staircase featuring magnificent stained glass window installations. The conversion project, involving several architects and interior designers, was to earn the hotel a coveted European Prix Villegiature design award not long after its 2005 opening, described by the prize jury as a subtle match of classic and contemporary design. Although the decor is undoubtedly modern a number of elements are instantly recognizable as Old Dutch.For instance, the lobby with its gold leather wall covering and the use of glossy black paint on all of the old doors and frames.Bedrooms are separated from adjoining bathrooms by the kind of sliding doors that were once commonplace in many Old Dutch houses. Small details mirroring the more or less obsolete interior designs of times gone by emerge unexpectedly throughout the Hotel.Tasselled room keys,bar chairs finished in an unfashionable dull pink that suddenly doesn’t seem quite so uncool and bar tablesdecorated with tasselled taffeta tablecloths and adorned with distinctive old Delft tulip vases.  © The College Hotel Dutch Delft BlueThe former MEAO gymnasium with its timbered roofhas now been converted into the hotel restaurant and, once again, the design inspiration is a nod to the past, not least the use of blue Delft china dinner plates. Under the supervision of Chef Pepijn Schut the hotel students produce traditional Dutch dishes with a twist, a concept conceived by Schut’s predecessor, Schilo van Coevorden. According to Schut, Dutch cuisine has endless delights to offer: "Snert [Dutch pea soup] is a delicious dish but is difficult to present in a restaurant. It’s something you would eat at home or in cold weather." The College Restaurant kitchen, however, has devised a slightly fancier variation with a terrine of all the vegetables traditionally used in snert, along with smoked fois gras - in place of the traditional smoked sausage. The terrine is served in a deep plate with a very light pea soup poured over it and is accompanied with a slice of pumpernickel bread. Flavours of the past reintroduced in a different context. Pearl barley also makes a comeback in the College restaurant in the form of a risotto with roasted pumpkin, poached egg and wild mushrooms. Asparagus is cut into thin trails, served with a light creamy sauce and presented as a variation on spaghetti carbonara. And for dessert, what about asalty liquoricesorbet with poached pear and a sabayon served with a glass of lemon brandy? Or a stroopwafel [thin Dutch waffles with a syrup filling] soufflé with advocaatijs [soft ice cream topped with advocaat]. The finale of the meal, the sweets trolley, brings home made snoepgoed [sweets ] with coffee. Guests can choose from a range ofgoodies includingspekjes [vanilla marshmallows], gevulde koeken[almond filled cookies], advocaat cream toffeesor fruit lollies.  © The College Hotel A hotel bar and neighbourhood hotspotAlthough The College Hotel was set up as a learning centre for hotel and catering students, it has also developed into an extremely sound commercial business.The thinking was to create the hotel in a location where the city really needed it and itsproximity to the city’s Rijksmuseum and luxury shopping streets make it the ideal choice for tourists. Hotel Manager, Isabelle van Ouwerkerkhas strived to position the College Hotel as a neighbourhood destination."Once a month we have live jazz music on Sunday. On other days, the bar has become a hotspot for the neighbourhood crowd. There are many people who live or work nearby and, of course, this helps to encourage international guests to use the bar. We’re really pleased to attract this mixed audience as most overseas visitors enjoy mixing with local people during their holidays." Following a few years of experimenting, the hotel now has the right balance between experienced and trainee staff. Over the course of a year around 80 students from various disciplines including hotel management, front-of-house, catering and pâtissiers will learn their trade. Understandably, given the youthful inexperience of the team, there is the odd occasion when things go wrongadmits van Ouwerkerk. "But this happens in all workplaces and we always work hard to resolve any issues as quickly as possible. The advantage is that these people are very young. The age range is 16 to 23 years and they are bright, motivated and focused. We have no slouchers or know-it-alls here." The hotel clearly has its fair share of young talent including the shaking and stirring Dutch champion cocktail bartender and a pâtissier who won a European competition whilst still serving her apprenticeship in the College Restaurant. The College Hotel & The College RestaurantRoelof Hartstraat 1 1071 VE Amsterdam Tel. 020-5711511 |
