My Take on Dutch/European Food

As many of you know, I've been in The Netherlands for quite some time. While I enjoy a good public transportation system as much as the next girl, what I really love about traveling here is the different food. For one thing, the fries are much thicker and much tastier than at home. I love that you eat at home more. Coupling that with all the walking, and you're bound to lose a few pounds. (Ten in a month is you're me.)

So, I've decided to take some time and look at five food products I've tasted here that aren't traditionally found at home. One that I am leaving out is Crispy M&Ms because we USED to have them in America, but someone decided huge pretzle M&Ms were a good idea. They weren't a good idea. Please, for the sake of candy, bring them back.

And now to the food . . .

Now I know what a lot of you are thinking: Sarah, there's orange Fanta in the US. Wtf? But I'm here to tell you, this orange soda is a lie. For one thing, it's not orange. As you can see, it's more of a pale orange/yellow combo. Now, this soda is not bad, but because I've had the real thing, I'm a tad racist. This is more of a citrus mix as opposed to the pleasant orange I'm used to. I've found that the light (aka diet for us Americans) off-brand tastes better than this original. Then again, I'm weird. Overall, I say this is a good soda, but not the best.

Oh, the Kinder Bueno. How I love thee. Shall I count the ways? This delicious piece of heaven is as my good friend Melissa calls it, "Better than any Kit Kat." Basically, what the Kinder company has done is take the crunchy wafer of a Kit Kat and added hazelnutty goodness to the mix. This creamy substance is that of the Gods. The candy bar comes with two sticks of four rectangles. Each stick is individually wrapped. I like this feature. It's nice to eat half and remember later on that you still have a slice of ambrosia to come back to. What is extra great about Bueno is that they come with five packs for around 2.70 Euro. Yes, I'm in chocolate heaven over here.

For those of you who haven't seen The Avengers and thus don't know about the shawarma reference, this is it. Yummy meat, yummy sauce, all wrapped in a warm pita. I honestly don't know what meat shawarma is. My best guess is that it's close to that of gyro meat. Regardless, it is delicious. The meat is chopped up small and usually comes with enough in a pack for five pitas. Well, this is true for the Snackattack place down the road at least.You can add some veggies if you like. I personally think it tastes best with some lettuce, but I love veggies in general. The only downside to shawarma would be that it sometimes can lead to heartburn. Again, I'm different. Every since I had my gall bladder removed in 2010, foods just don't like me the same way as they used to. I take medication daily to help with my heartburn, but this little pita can surpass my meds and still manage a little heartburn from time to time. It's not really spicy hot, just has a lot of spice.

Okay so, for those of you who have never been to the Netherlands, their McDonald's have these sandwiches known as the McKroket. My first time here I tried one. I severely disliked it. Then I tried a bite of a homemade kroket. (By homemade, I mean from the freezer and deep fried, of course.) I still was quite repulsed. The reason being that the inside of a kroket is like regurgitated mush. My boyfriend couldn't even tell me the kinds of meat in it, but the consistency reminded me of something a mommy bird would spit up and give to a baby bird. Result: not good. While some of you might not have the texture issues that I have with this thing, I can also say I didn't particularly enjoy the taste. It wasn't anything special and was mainly tasting of fried. This is the reason I won't eat fried shrimp. The breading covers the taste. Not that I would actually want to taste this madness known as a kroket...

And to the grand finale!

This my friends is Dutch garlic sauce, and it is the single most delicious thing in this country, in my opinion. It is a creamy sauce with herbs and garlic. This amazing invention can go with bread, meat, fries, salad, rice and just about anything. I seriously can't think of a meat that wouldn't taste better with this sauce. It makes Papa John's garlic butter taste like a wet dish towel. It brings joy into dinner. It saves kids from eating complaining about vegetables. It is the God of all condiments. I've tried to find it back in the States. I got some garlic Miracle Whip. It wasn't even close to the awesome known as Knoflook Saus. Seriously people, it's worth the price of the plane ticket to come here and eat this stuff. I'm taking as much as I can home. I don't even care if it explodes on my clothing. Worth it.

So, there you have it. Five Dutch/European foods. The good and the bad. I must say that the good really does outweigh the bad here. I love new food and new experiences. I can't wait to try new things. But seriously, America, Crispy M&Ms and garlic sauce. Work on it.

xoxo

Sarah