We found this place online while visiting Haarlem for the day and decided to walk in right when…read morethey opened for dinner. We didn't realize how popular De Lachende Javaan is--they were completely fully booked! The owner noticed we were visiting from out of town and was incredibly accommodating. He explained the situation but managed to squeeze us in, provided we could eat relatively quickly before the next reservation arrived. We were so grateful because the meal ended up being fantastic. Since it was our first time trying Indonesian food, we went with the Rijsttafel Biasa (the smallest menu option). It was a variety of small plates served on portable burners to keep everything warm, accompanied by rice. It was the perfect introduction--there wasn't a single dish I didn't love. Even though the plates look small, we were completely full and satisfied by the end. We managed to finish just in time for the reserved party to take the table, so it worked out perfectly. Highly recommend booking a table in advance, but if you get the chance to eat here, definitely do it!

Wonderful and unexpected dining experience. We had the fish/veggie tasting menu. Beautiful dishes…read more Service was great and the place was humming with laughter and enthusiasm. Totally recommend.

Exceptional Ambiance , food and service ! Great value ! Best fries we had on this trip ! Healthy…read moreoptions and indulgent options ! Cute neighborhood with shops.

The food was amazing! We got the scrambled egg sandwich, spicy chicken sandwich and a burger. Best…read moreof all... Parmesan truffle Fries! Our waitress Sophie was great!!

We came to Haarlem for a day trip and was looking for a place to eat when we saw a sign outside…read morethat said "Dutch Cooking" we passed by and walked around the town and decided to come back to this cute little restaurant. We're so glad we did. Kenny the owner greeted us, and made us feel right at home. He has only been open a few weeks and the placed looked amazing. So charming. Balletje has a very small menu but the food is absolutely amazing, and tastes as close to home made as you can get. Kenny suggested a very nice white wine to go with my dinner. I was pleasantly surprised it was actually really good. (I don't remember the name of it but it was from Australia) I had the Beef Meatball Boerenkool Stew with the "This-Gravy" Sauce, so fresh, and flavorful. The only downside is there are no desserts, yet. I highly recommend eating here, if you are looking for authentic dutch food.

Delicious food, great service, lovely atmosphere, reasonable prices -- what more could you want!…read moreI'm vegetarian and my friend ordered meat. We both enjoyed our meals. The friendly restaurant owner and chef came out to thank us and receive feedback in the meal. :-)

We order assorted sandwiches and they were all very tasty with fresh ingredients. It is nice…read moreambiance, somewhat atupical because we felt like we we're eating at grandmas place and that is good. The service was courtious, efficient and we git exactly what we ordered.

Great food, rude lunch service. I wasn't sure if it was because we don't speak Dutch, or what the…read moredeal was, but reading other reviews, the lunch service might just be poor.

Out of all of the brunch spots that I've been to in Europe so far, Toast is my favorite…read more The ambience is beautiful, clean, cozy, and warm. I ordered the Salmon Toast and the Apple Pancakes and both were delicious and amazing. Our server Robin was very personal and helpful and had a great sense of humor. He was honest and sought out feedback to improve the restaurant as well. If you're in Haarlem, you got to try it out!

The Latte and breakfast was amazing and affordable! I got some toast and eggs over easy. The cheese…read morein The Netherlands is out of this world so be sure to order something with Cheese. Sit outside the view is great

While walking through the Bloemencourso in Haarlem, I noticed the huge line in front of this…read morebelgian fries stand and knew I had to try some! The line setup is a bit confusing, you order on the left and then wait on the right for your fries (right in front of the sauce sign... making it difficult for other people to see it). They have your usual selection of sauces which they usually pump onto your fries, but for the samurai, andalouse and americaine, it is self-service. The fries were slightly crispy on the outside and really soft on the inside. It is different than the ones from Vleminckx in Amsterdam; those are crispier overall. If you prefer your fries soft on the inside with a bit of crunch, this is your place. If you prefer really crunchy fries, I recommend Vleminckx.

Hands down the best place in Haarlem to go when you want some Belgian fries. They are oh so good!…read more Perfectly golden brown every time. They sauces are also very good as well. The homemade sambal sauce with mayo is really nice as is the joppie sauce. I would go as far to say that these are the best Belgium fires that I've had in NL. Pretty damn close to the real thing in Belgium if not just as good. You will always see a line at this place because everyone knows how good it is, the prices are reasonable and the wait time is not that long.

I ate at Diga on Friday night with 9 of my co-workers. It was our first time there. We arrived a…read morefew minutes early and they sat us right away. Since we were a large group, they put us in a small side room with other larger groups. It got quite noisy by the end of dinner. We shared 3 antipasti platters. It was all meat -no cheese choices. Since we had a few vegetarians this was a bit disappointing. We also shared several small pasta plates as appetizers. They were very, very good. Finally, each of us had a main course. I had the steak which was outstanding. Overall, I recommend Diga but you need a reservation as it gets super busy.

We had dinner here on a Saturday night. It was packed so it gave the impression that it's a very…read moregood restaurant. But, we were not satisfied to say the least. The food portions were very small, so even though we had three courses we were still hungry afterwards. Unfortunately the service was very slow throughout the night. As vegetarians ourselves, the menu is very very limited. For example, all they could offer for vegetarian starters was the most mundane iceberg salad. If you are reading this, try to book a table not in front of the entrance. We were seated there and it was cold every time someone left or came in.

Great food, kind service, and really cute cafe! Came with a friend for a quick bite and some coffee!read more

Great service! The food tasted great. I loved the vegan pinsa…read more I brought my kids here and they liked the play area. The only issue with the play area is that there is a wooden plank that borders it, so every kid tripped over it.

Really excellent food, and I am from New Jersey which has all the Italian food you want. Try the…read moregnocchi in white creamy sauce. Unpretentios setting and great food.

The place is nice cosy, the lunch was good. We had omelette with mushrooms and paprika. Delicious…read morewith Italian bread. The service was also good, we will sure come back next time if we are here by the Grote Markt.

The service was wonderful and the food was fabulous! A gem in the heart of historic Haarlem!read more

What a splendid meal. We visited Haarlem for the day and had our hearts set on BastiJan and lucked…read moreout to get a table (make a reservation - they have 2 seatings a night and we got lucky someone didn't show). We sat outside on the busy, but quaint and enjoyable street. Great people watching! Wait staff was excellent and food was superb! It was one of our favorite dining experiences of our visit to the Netherlands. We recommend the chateaubriand 100%.. Excellent wine pairing.