Van Dobben

The best croquettes! Very creamy and delicious.

Meat! Croquets everything delicious! Real Amsterdam taste!
Good prices, quality and service

If you are looking for a quick sandwich in a great atmosphere, you have to stop at this Van Dobben location. The croquet sandwich you simply have to try, but their roast beef and other standard sammies are also very good. Each one comes with a bit of butter already on the bun and you can also ask to add a slice of cheese to your meat (for a price, of course). Every table has a big glass of mustard on it, which is a perfect topping for your sandwich. The service is typical, but the ambiance is fantastic. It’s like a vintage diner where business people might come for a bite. The person behind the counter will have no trouble remembering which table you’re from when you come up to the register to pay and they’ll bring out your food with very little fanfare. It’s a simple, but solid choice for a snack.

This is a simple, inexpensive Dutch style deli/​diner. The filet Americain is delicious. Order it with a glass of whole milk. The croquets are also good if you like Dutch style croquettes, which I do.

5 stars for the dutch atmosphere.
In New York i go to Katz deli for the famous pastrami. Here i go to Van Dobben.

Delicious croquette and the sandwiches look good too. I’ll be back to eat here again if in the neighborhood and am in need of a snack. Friendly staff as well.

Empfehlenswerter, traditioneller niederländischer Imbiss mitten in Amsterdam. Man muss aber als Tourist etwas suchen! Die Bedienung ist so wie ich es vom Ruhrpott her kenne: bodenständig und herzlich. Viele Einheimische essen dort ein Broodje und trinken Kaffee. Die Einrichtung ist imbisstypisch, aber es ist sauber. Und die vielen verschiedenen belegten Broodjes, mit Wurst z.B. oder Eiersalat aus eigener Herstellung sind lecker. Nicht zu vergessen die bekannten Kroketten, mit Fleisch– oder Garnelenfüllung. Und leckere Suppe gibt es auch. Im Winter vorzugsweise die gute holländische Erbsensuppe.
Fazit: Einfaches Lokal mit bodenständigem, typischem und leckerem Angebot. Vor allem aber echt niederländisch!

Definitely one of the more interesting places I visited in Amsterdam.

We wife and I love this place. We always take out-​of town-​guests for lunch here. It’s simple, fast and great tasting. We still have yet to sort out the ordering. I noticed someone below pointing out they were ignored at the table, I don’t think the staff really come out to take orders, we always go up to the counter to order, then return to pay. If something isn’t ready to go, they will deliver it to your table. The Croquet Sandwich is always a hit. Better quality and more fresh then FEBO.

Although the food did look good, regrettably I never had the chance to taste it. After waiting at a table for probably 15 minutes for acknowledgement and another 10 asking to see the menu (which some patrons were given) and being completely ignored by the waitress, I decided to leave and try my luck elsewhere. If I wasn’t going to receive good service prior to ordering then I would hate to see how the service was during the meal. It wasn’t only myself either, looking around I saw loads of groups trying to flag down the waitress. You shouldn’t have to work so hard to get decent service, even at a quick service place like this. I recommend anyone else experiencing this to go to Febo, which is one street north. They may not have the seating but you will get better service and the croquettes are still amazing.

This was a recommendation from the owner of the houseboat we rented for a few days. Frankly delicious! A little overwhelming when you first walk in. Place is packed, you need to figure out where to sit and what to order. We wanted to try the kroketten. Staff is quite busy and not always ready to help you out, but I find that it added some character to this old school eatery. Definitely more of a grab and go type of place. But worth the try for sure. Delicious!

I was recommended by a family friend who grew up in Holland. He told me to get the croquet and the american filet. The former was delicious, the latter was also delicious but that may be because at the time I didn’t know it was essentially ground, raw steak. In retrospect I still think it was pretty damn good and I would get more if I had the chance. Roast beef was also delicious.
The people were very nice, and the place was filled with locals. It also probably helps that it’s in an alleyway and so avoids the main tourist traffic. It also reaffirms the notion that Amsterdam is filled with little gems of food places, tucked away from the main streets.

I’d give this place a solid 4 stars if I ate meat, but since I am jealous of meat-​eaters and lamenting over the limited, yet surprisingly plentiful vegetarian options, I am going to go with 3. That does not mean, however, that I would avoid this place. Quite the contrary, in fact.
Van Dobben has this authentic feel to it. I saw grown ups reading the morning newspaper while drinking milk and enjoying their croquet sandwiches. The menu was available in multiple languages, including Japanese. The staff all spoke Dutch and there was this low-​tech feeling with paper guest-​checks.
I throughly enjoyed my vegetable croquet. As recommended by others, I dabbed on a generous helping of house mustard to make it taste even more awesome, and it delivered. Best part — it didn’t break the bank.
I am glad to have discovered a new lunch spot.

C’est une institution dont la spécialité est la «kroketten» !
Croquette (allongée) garnie de légumes, viande, fromage, etc…
Elles sont faites à la demande, servies seules ou coupées en 2 sur un broodje (=petit pain très moelleux); avec de la moutarde c’est encore meilleur !
En général, on mange ça le midi, sur le pouce, assis au comptoir d’où l’on peut observer le va et vient des «serveuses» vêtues de blouse blanche, style bouchère (!!!) un vrai spectacle !

Rule #1 when looking for an «authentic» place to eat: If the locals eat there, then it’s probably worth a try. Well, Van Dobben certainly fit the bill — the menu is all in Dutch, and you don’t see too many tourist wandering in. The clientele was distinctly Dutch-​speaking, though the waitresses were certainly willing to talk in English.
The food here is pretty good, though just maybe a tad bit on the high side given the portion sizes. Still, it’s definitely worth checking out for its unique fare, especially given its close proximity to the Rembrandtplein.

love the food and people. one of the best good quality fast food in amsterdam! the best of rembrandtpien! my favorites are the yummy croquets and warm pea soup during winter only. real dutch stuff.

We were scoping out eats to fill up our stomachs before imbibing at the bars nearby when we stumbled upon Van Dobben. It was empty but we decided to give it a try and before long we realized we had found a true Dutch gem!
There main speciality are sandwiches of just about every kind. From the flavorful meatball to pork doused in gravy, they were all delicious. Depending on how hungry you are, I would go wtih two or more (they are not too expensive either). The waitress even let us sample some of the raw beef which was suprisingly good.
It is the perfect spot to grab a quick bite and move on.

A great place to eat traditional Dutch foods. Great pea soup with ham, croquettes and other such delicacies. Well priced and cheery atmosphere.