For years, I have been celebrating my birthday abroad, unless it was impossible due to COVID-19 restrictions. In June 2023, Steve and I went to Rotterdam in the Netherlands in a deal combining a dinner at Restaurant Fred and an overnight stay at Marriott Rotterdam including a champagne breakfast. 

“Relaxed, elegant gastronomy with a hint of blue and crafted to perfection; that’s Restaurant Fred.  Enter the restaurant and immediately sense the warm, contemporary interior with some striking design elements. With as much attention to experience and aesthetics as taste, the team of Fred creates a complete experience that will impress you for a long time”, owner and chef Fred Mustert introduces his restaurant on the restaurant website. 

“Culinary enjoyment at Restaurant Fred is done with all your senses. And that makes you feel at home right away. Therefore, as a guest, you can count on smooth, attentive service with a touch of humor. We look forward to seeing you.”

Restaurant Fred quite recently moved to Boompjes, across the Flag Parade at the Nieuwe Maas (New Meuse) river. The interior design is spacious, with pastel green seats and playing with light grey and brown colours. 

We were sat at a table for two, not opposite each other, but next to each other. So Steve and I both had a nice view of the dining room.

Getting started

We booked a hotel + dinner deal well in advance, in December 2022. An arrangement as the Dutch love. 

So when we arrived at 7 PM, we we sat down and it didn’t take long before we got our drinks. The waiter asked four questions:

1. Still or sparkling water? Sparkling.
2. Are there any dietary requirements? Yes, absolutely no cheese for Steve.
3. Do yo both drink alcohol? Yes, we do.
4. Can the menu be kept as a surprise? Yes, so we did not know in advance what we would be served.

And then it started with a glass of sparkling wine from Baden-Württemberg in Germany. 

The menu

I started taking notes of the explanations accompanying each dish, but I asked if I could have the menu after. Yes, I could. It would turn out to be handwritten. How sweet. 

The menu:

1. Japanese-inspured waffle whit wasabi and chorizo. 
2. Hamachi, shiso, nori.
3. Tartare steak, dashi, wild rice.
4. Scallop, truffle, foie gras.
5. Langoustine, os(c)ietra caviar, sour cream.
6. Turbot, chanterelle, white asparagus.
7. Duck, gomasio, carrot.
8. Surprise olives.
9. Cheeses.
10. Red fruit on the rocks.
11. Stroopwafels, madeleines, pistachio chocolate, canelés from Bordeaux, white chocolate praline, red lemon tart. 

Two Michelin stars

Fred has two Michelin stars which means “Excellent cooking, worth a detour” (“Table excellente, mérite un détour“). One star means “A very good restaurant in its category” (“Une très bonne table dans sa catégorie“) and three stars refers to “Exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey” (“Une des meilleures tables, vaut le voyage“).

Having done one-star restaurants and two-star restaurants (Steirereck in Vienna) I totally see the difference.

I can only use descriptions as delicious, well conceived and impeccably prepared. But there is a definite next level compared to “only” one star. 

Stand-out dishes were hamachi – shisho – nori, the langoustine and the scallop. Also the mignardises accompanying coffee and tea. But the absolute winner were the olives, which weren’t really olives, but chocolate and sherbet. 

Also a special mention to the choice of cheeses and the sauterne and ratafia served with it. Amazing. 

So?

Worth a detour? Yes! Fred is excellent. The price is accordingly. That’s how it works: this level of food asks for a lot of staff, work hours and top-notch ingredients. So this is not for every week or month, but for very special occasions.

Food, gastronomy and restaurants

• REVIEW | Restaurant Kuzina in Athens.
• REVIEW | Restaurant Neon in Lier.
• REVIEW | Restaurant Le Train Blue at Paris-Gare-de-Lyon.
• MANCHESTER | Afternoon Tea at Richmond Tea Rooms near Canal Street.
• RIDE & DINE | Brussels Tram Experience.
• STUTTGART | Restaurant Plenum, in Baden-Württemberg’s State Parliament.
• REVIEW | Restaurant Ritzi in Stuttgart.
• VIENNA | Restaurant Steirereck.
• REVIEW | Restaurant Ventrus avec vue, La Villette, Paris.
• REVIEW | Restaurant De Godevaart in Antwerp.
• REVIEW | Restaurant SELSation in Hemiksem.
• REVIEW | Breakfast at the 5-star superior Botanic Sanctuary Antwerp.
• REVIEW | Dinner at DINS Santi Taura in Palma de Mallorca.
• REVIEW | Restaurant 273 in Utrecht.
• REVIEW | Restauracja Ritz in Gdańsk.
• REVIEW | Carlton President Hotel Utrecht Maarssen ft. Restaurant One24.
• REVIEW | Van Der Valk Hotel Hoorn.
• REVIEW | Restaurant La Grange aux Canards in Paris.
• RIDE & DINE | Orient Dining Express by Stoomtrein Maldegem-Eeklo.
• Afternoon tea at Fortnum & Mason in London.
• The German Gymnasium, Kings Cross / St Pancras, London.
• Hoftrammm, the tram dining experience.
• An airline meal for the holidays.
• More than, but also sausages: rich cuisine of Germany’s heartland Saxony, Franconia and Bavaria.
• Bars and drinks package on Majestic Princess.
• Restaurants and food on Majestic Princess.
• Food and drinks on board Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas.
• Comparing Royal Caribbean to MSC Cruises.
• Culinary, food and drinks markets in Antwerp.
• 5 (surprising) hotspots in Stockholm, Sweden.
• 8 food hotspots in Madrid for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
• POLAND | 3 hotspots of gastronomy in Kraków.
• Antwerp counts more bars and restaurants and notices rise of ‘fast casual’ eateries.
• ​In search of Belgian or Flemish cuisine in Antwerp.

Previous visits to Rotterdam

• Aboard the SS Rotterdam.
• Rotterdam’s Markthal.
• Rotterdam: Cube House or Kubuswoning.
• Impressions of Eurovision Song Contest 2020 host city Rotterdam.

Rotterdam 2023

1. HOLLAND | A walk in Rotterdam.