Sweet Memories

When we arrived at Centraal Station in Amsterdam, we picked up our luggage and trooped through the streets to our lovely hotel, the Pulitzer. Even though it was a short walk, I had a hard time not oogling and taking pictures every second.

We found the hotel easily, marked by its red banners, a rambling, gracious building pieced together from smaller townhouses. There was a spacious lobby with dark wood panelling, a fireplace going (yes, in late August) and a long reception desk to one side. To get to our room on the third floor, we used one of the three elevators, which could only hold two people at a time.

Our room was beautiful (see above). It overlooked the canal, had wooden shutters and old wood beams, and the greatest bathroom ever. As an architect I can go on and on over the most ridiculous things, like bathrooms. This one had charming old tile and was basically a quarter of a circle, so the door was curved. I took a bunch of photos but none of them could capture the small, precious space.

One of the best things from the trip was a package of stroopwafels from the hotel. Mark had eaten these a while ago by chance and didn't know what they were called. Every trip to Fairway, we'd scour the candy and cookie aisle. The hotel sent up several packages of stroopwafels later and we bought a couple packages before we left.

Stroopwafels are delicious and deceptively simple. Two crispy-ish, butter-laden waffle layers sandwich a thin layer of caramel. It's the texture that makes the cookie so yummy. I'm not usually a sweets person but I could not get enough of these, which are the perfect companion to coffee.

We found them online when we got home, and saw it mentioned alongside Trader Joe's. So...we're going to brave the crowds at the Union Square store today, in pursuit of this decadent cookie.

Mark found a site that sells a few varieties that sell them online. These were the ones we found in the bakery, and these were the ones we got at the hotel.

Sarah at Living in Dutchland lists stroopwafels as one of the top ten things in her life as a British woman in Amsterdam. Check out her blog for a daily account of such a beautiful city. I wish I'd read her blog before I went; I would've toured her recommended sites and had an ice cream bar!


Photo by myself of our comfy bed at the Pulitzer Hotel.