Project
Simple eating out in Amsterdam (1900-1980)
Simple and cheap food play a fundamental role in the eating-out culture of Amsterdam. Small, cheap eateries, such as sandwich shops, snackbars and cafeterias, were established in Amsterdam in order to provide a dining experience devoid of class distinctions. The purpose of this research is to counter the widely-accepted contention that there was a lack of an eating-out culture in Amsterdam until the 1970s. Central to my study is the following question: in what way did simple, quickly-prepared, and cheap food play a fundamental role in an eventually constructed Amsterdam food culture? Although scientists, journalists and “culinary experts” have contended that a real eating-out culture in the Netherlands started only in the 1970s with the advent of more accessible restaurants. It is thus possible to examine this topic also from a socio-historical perspective to broaden existing knowledge of eating-habits and food history in the Netherlands.