Image by Anne-Marie Ros

Kwiezien is one of my favourite restaurants in Rotterdam South and I keep going back there in different settings, celebrating my b’day, meet up with a colleague or dine with my friends. It’s suitable for each occasion.

The atmosphere in Kwiezien is nice, the interior is modern, the chefs are passionate cooks and the waiters give excellent service. You will not regret going here, but book in advance! Most of the time they are fully booked.

Kwiezien’s food is French International and the concept is unique. They only serve small portions for €8,00 each. They suggest a 3, 4 or 5 course but you can order as many different things as you feel like trying. My experience is that 4 dishes are enough and if you are a big eater just order a side dish.

Creative cooking, delicious, fresh and all homemade. Excellent wines you can order by a full or half glass. Do try their cheeses!

My favourite spot is at the bar (2 ppl). It makes you feel part of the kitchen and they will spoil you with little extras;)

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Kwiezien Restaurant | Restaurants (French/Intern.)
Delistraat 20-22 | Zuid | +31102151440
Tue – Sun 18:00 – 22:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rotterdam

Image by Trendbeheer RawBridge

Over the last couple of months I have checked so many times if I could make a short cut on my bike. On Wednesday Feb 8th, 2012 the new Rijnhaven bridge for cyclists and pedestrians will connect Wilhelminapier with Katendrecht. 

This gives you the opportunity to make a new walk starting at the Erasmus bridge. Explore the Wilhelminapier with the Photomuseum, the Rotterdam by Rem Koolhaas and other sky scrapers like Montevideo by Mecannoo and the world famous Hotel New York, great for a drink. Next to Hotel New York on the south side of the pier you find the little harbor with the water taxi and the new bridge.

When you cross this bridge you get to Deliplein with nice places like the shop Iszomooi, restaurant Kwizien and theatre Walhalla. If you pass Deliplein and continue on Sumatraweg. At one corner you’ll find Warmoes Market, a small supermarket and canteen. A nice local meeting point where you can have a good coffee, sandwich, soup and more.

Turn right and keep heading straight towards the end of the pennisula where you’ll find SS Rotterdam, the big steamship with hotel rooms, restaurants, bars and a shop. You continue your route towards Rijnhaven, follow the Hillelaan along the Player and RAAF back towards Erasmusbridge. Cross or turn right on Stieltjestraat. Explore the architecture on the Kop van Zuid and head back into town via the Willemsbrug.   

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Rijnhaven Round | Art & culture, Coffee & tea, Shopping, Snacks, Restaurants
Rijnhaven | Zuid
24 hours daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rotterdam

Image by Marieke Koets

The interior doesn’t give it away, but this place is tops!

I just got rid of my fried rice with mushroom addiction, cause I discovered how good their sushi is.

This place is always very busy, so you might have to wait for a seat at one of the long tables. Or…you can ask for take away and eat your dinner/lunch at a nicer place.

Don’t be afraid you won’t have enough food. It comes in pretty good portions (you know, just a little too much that you eat anyway and then feel way too full!)

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Dim Daily | Restaurants (Asian) | Mixed sushi 8 pieces € 14.00
Rode zand 48 | Center | +31102809026
Sat -Thu 12:00 – 22:00, Fri 12:00 – 23:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rotterdam

Image by Marieke Koets

I know, it is one of the many pizza/pasta places in town, but the food is really good and the price even better. If you are with less then 10 people you can’t make a reservation.

The place is big, but also very popular at the moment. And if you need to wait, Happy Italy is located right next to Van Zanten (check my Van Zanten article), so you can start and end your evening there and jump in for dinner here.

If you’ve got kids; there’s a little play area downstairs. The little ones can entertain themselves while you enjoy you dinner.

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Happy Italy | Restaurants (Italian) | Pizza Delizioza € 6.75
Binnenrotte 102 | Center | +31102140836
12:00 – 23:00 daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rotterdam

Image by Marieke Koets

I was planning to go and enjoy some lovely sushi at the Dim Daily (check the Dim Daily article) with one of my friends when she suggested to go to this Vietnamese restaurant right underneath the apartment building where she lives. She said it was very nice and something different, but I shouldn’t expect Dim Daily.

She was so right. What a nice place she took me to. We had to eat at the bar, because we didn’t make a reservation (stupid us, it was a Saturday) and it was very busy. Still the service was quick and very good.

The food was lovely, I enjoyed every bite. The tea we had afterwards was a bit strong, but my friend and I do drink very weak tea.

Dim Daily doesn’t have to worry, nothing beats their friend rice with egg and mushrooms, but Little V did just steal a little place in my heart.

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Little V | Restaurants (Vietnamese) | Noodles with gamba’s € 12.00
Grotekerkplein 109 | Center | +3110413191
Tue – Wed 17:00 – 23:00, Thu 17:00 – 01:00, Fri – Sat 17:00 – 01:30, Sun 12:00 – 22:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rotterdam

Image by Marieke Koets

Another great place in the Meent Area. This street is becoming more and more attractive and popular. Vlaamsch Broodhuys is a bakery and lunch place in one.

They have the nicest so called yeast (or leaven, I’m not sure how to call it) bread in the shop and on the menu. I’m a big fan of the marinated salmon. Come here to have a great lunch of high tea with friends or buy your bread and other yummy stuff in the shop in side.

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Vlaamsch Broodhuys | Coffee & tea, Restaurants (Bread) | Salmon on bread € 7.50
Meent, 8a | Center | +31102810024
Mon – Fri 08:30 – 18:30, Sat 08:30 – 18:00, Sun 09:30 – 18:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rotterdam

Image by De Hemel op Aarde

This restaurant lives up to it’s name (translation: “heaven on earth”). It’s the favorite restaurant of one of my best friends and not with out a reason. Their tapas are delicious and there is lots to choose from. My favorite are the dates filled with an almond and rolled in bacon.

This popular place does not take reservations during the weekend, so it could be that you have to wait before you get a table. Or you can take a seat at the bar.

Just with their food, the owners have put a lot of thought and love into the interior of the restaurant. Everywhere in the place there are statues of angels and other things that have to do with heaven.

Enjoy a great meal here and maybe afterwards you can have a nice beer or something warmer by the fireplace at the Locus Publicus (check the Locus Publicus article). Not too long ago they put heaters outside, so you can sit there as well. Normally there are only chairs here during summer, so I reckon that’s more for smokers to sit. I haven’t tried it yet, so can’t really judge. Good reason to pay them a visit again .

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Hemel op aarde | Restaurants (Tapas) | Dates with almond & bacon € 3.25
Oostzeedijk beneden 205a | Kralingen | +31104139656
17:30 – 00:00 daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rotterdam

Image by Marieke Koets

Level is situated in the trendy area around the Meent and this describes the place a bit as well. It’s decked out very hip and lots of people come here to be seen. All the others come for the cocktails, especially the “Porn star”. I’m not the biggest cocktail drinker, but even I like some of the ones they make here.

I like Level because it’s a nice and a bit different hang out near my house. I don’t have to go far to have a night out.

Before 21:00 when the place turns into a crowded cocktail bar, Level is a restaurant. They have nice food and the way serve that food is very pretty, but that’s also what you pay for! Their chocolate dessert for chocolate lovers is to die for though!

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Level | Bars, Restaurants (European) | Chocolate desert € 7.50
Pannekoekstraat 76A | Center | +31102800788
12:00 – 01:00 daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rotterdam

Image by Marieke Koets

One of my favorite bars in Rotterdam is definitely ‘Stalles’.

The location and its terrace is ideal for some good people watching. The different type of visitors to this place is also the reason I like it so much, a nice mixture of all kind of people. One thing they all have in common is that they’re relaxed.

Next to Stalles is ‘Parket’, which is the same kind of place. In fact only one wall separates the two places form being one. They share owner, staff and bathrooms. Where Furore is more a restaurant, ‘Stalles’ and ‘Parket’ are known as pubs, when the menu here is very good and gets regular up-dates. Monday and Tuesdays are pizza night. From 15:00 pizza’s cost between € 4.50 and € 6.50.

If you stay long enough during the weekend you can walk straight into Club Vibes (check the Club Vibes article), yaay!

Exciting, if you have a RotterdamPas, you get 20% discount on the bittergarnituur!!!

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Stalles | Bars, Restaurants (European) | Plat du Jour € 10.50
Nieuwe Binnenweg 11a | Center | +31104361655
Mon – Thu 12:00 – 01:00, Fri – Sun 12:00 – 02:00 (with bad weather from 15:00)

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rotterdam

Image by Alexander

Grand Café Engels is the first candidate in my quest for the best balance of affordable-niceness vs. proximity-to-train-station. Every once in a while I need to meet with people from outside of Rotterdam just for a coffee or a cup o’ soup.

Engels is a nice place to start this search. The interior shows the gradual shift in functions and style. At the entrance on the corner it features a 30′s look with big brown arm chairs and heavy bronze clocks. Through the more functional tables in the center you can sneak to a more funky area in the back with bright pink walls and zebra stools.

Over to the left, the restaurant leads straight into the fluorescently lit tourist information center. Yes, it has a certain style and it’s hard to define. I think Engels manifested itself in the past as a pretentious place for metropolitan people and is somehow shifting to an unknown future.

The visitors are generally like you, a bit lost and looking for something close by, though especially in the evening it can get fancy. The spicy pumpkin soup is more then approved. Keep your eyes open for the green flag in the summer, it signals the availability of the roof terrace.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Engels Grand Café | Coffee & tea, Restaurants (European) | Soup € 5.50
Stationsplein 45 | Center | +31104119550
Mon – Fri 08:15 – 23:00, Sat 09:00 – 23:00, Sun 10:00 – 23:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rotterdam