What you eat on an Amsterdam canal dinner cruise
The four dinner cruises here feed you in very different ways, from a single pizza to three restaurant courses collected on the way. This guide goes through each menu as the listings describe it, along with what reviewers said about the plates that reached their table.
Four kitchens, four ways to eat
No two of these cruises serve dinner the same way. LOVERS has a set four-course menu, Aemstelland collects three courses from a restaurant, Stromma brings one pizza each, and Boat Boys lets your group pick the restaurant.
The dishes below come from the listings. Menus can change, and Aemstelland calls its own a sample, so read the listing again before you book. The fares are compared in our cost guide.
LOVERS, one menu per booking
On the LOVERS cruise (~$99) you choose meat, fish or vegetarian when you book. Each booking gets one menu, so a party that wants to mix should make separate bookings under the same name and will still sit together.
Bread with butter and oil comes first, according to the Viator listing. Every menu then has green pea soup with grilled green asparagus, and every one ends with a tiramisu made with Dutch stroopwafels.
- The meat menu starts with beef tartare, poached egg yolk, piccalilli and brioche, then beef casserole with potato cream and balsamic sauce
- The fish menu starts with house-smoked salmon, roasted potato salad and wasabi mayonnaise, then cod baked in its skin with potato cream and lime beurre blanc
- The vegetarian menu starts with a brioche bun with scrambled egg, spinach, feta and avocado, then roasted-vegetable lasagna with spicy Italian cheese
The weak spot shows up in the reviews. Some guests found dishes lukewarm by the time they arrived, and one felt the "4-course" label oversold the portions. Expect a good set dinner on a big boat rather than a restaurant meal.
Aemstelland, courses collected warm
Aemstelland's dinner at ~$134 opens with a welcome glass of Prosecco, with an alcohol-free version on offer, and small bites. The boat then makes brief stops at its partner restaurant, Le Hollandais, to collect each course warm.
Viator shows a sample menu that may change. It reads like a small restaurant card, with a choice at every course.
- Starters such as pickled salmon, steak tartare, or a truffle artichoke salad with goat cheese
- Mains of entrecote or seabass with risotto, or gnocchi with vegetables
- Desserts of cheesecake with pistachio, or stewed pear with vanilla mascarpone
Three courses from a restaurant kitchen
Aemstelland's saloon boat from Zwanenburgwal, with Prosecco, small bites and courses picked up warm along the route. Drinks after the first glass are extra.
Reviewers mention the food arriving warm, which is what the restaurant stops are for. The trade-off is price, because wine and every other drink come on top, as our drinks guide explains.
Stromma, one pizza each
Stromma's pizza cruise (~$39) keeps dinner simple. Each guest gets one New York Pizza, collected on the way and served hot, with nuts on board to go with the drinks.
You pick from five pizzas, Margherita, Californian Veggie, Pepperoni, Hawaii or Chili Chicken. One reviewer mentions a vegan option, so ask the operator after booking if you need one.
The nuts matter for anyone with a nut allergy, since the listing says the cruise is not suitable for them. One pizza is a modest dinner for a hungry adult, so plan a snack afterwards if you eat big.
Boat Boys, a restaurant of your choosing
Boat Boys (~$432 for the boat) works differently from the shared cruises. Your group picks one of several Amsterdam restaurants before the cruise, then each guest orders two courses à la carte, served on board.
Viator's sample dishes include pumpkin soup and mushroom arancini (both vegan), salmon tartare, seabass and shepherd's pie. Bavette tataki also appears, and peach cake, a vegan trifle or a cheese platter can finish the meal.
What you can order depends on the restaurant you choose, so ask for its card when you book. Our private cruise guide covers the rest of the evening on board.
Vegetarian, vegan and allergies
Vegetarians are looked after on all four cruises. LOVERS has a full vegetarian menu, Aemstelland's sample lists a vegetarian starter and main, Stromma bakes a Margherita and a Californian Veggie, and Boat Boys shows vegan dishes.
Vegans have fewer sure options. Boat Boys lists vegan dishes in its samples and one Stromma reviewer mentions a vegan option, while on the other two cruises you should message the operator after booking.
Nut allergies rule out the pizza boat. For any other allergy, contact the operator through your booking well before the day, since the kitchens are on shore and dishes are prepared ahead.
Which menu suits which evening
For variety and four full courses with drinks, LOVERS gives the most plates for the fare. For cooking closer to a restaurant's, Aemstelland is the stronger choice, and its 4.7 from 300+ reviews on GetYourGuide backs that up.
Give the meal time if you can. LOVERS runs 2 hours and Aemstelland 2 hours 15 minutes, against 1.5 hours on the pizza boat, so the longer cruises suit a slow dinner with conversation between courses.
The pizza boat is the easy family choice, as our guide to cruising with children shows. If the meal is the reason for your evening, read our saloon or glass-roof comparison too, because the boat shapes how the food reaches you.