On a never-ending tour to find the best and cheapest student restaurants in Delft, a roving restaurant critic and his band of fellow hungry VSSD Social Committee members pulled up chairs at the ‘eettafel’ of the Open Youth Society Koornbeurs.
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On the Voldersgracht, right in the heart of the old city, stands a beautiful old building with a stone faade, decorated with cattle heads above the doors and guano-covered angels under the roof. This ancient house with a rich history . it’s been everything from an explosives storehouse to a horse manure auction – is home to the Koornbeurs Society, one of Delft’s most eccentric student societies and our dinner host tonight.
On the Koornbeurs’ front stairway hippies with greasy hair and guitars confirm the prejudgment I made about the place . namely, that the Koornbeurs is a place where hippies with guitars and greasy hair hang out. But any observer who spends five minutes on the bench in front of the entrance (or hangs out with the friendly hippies) will be convinced that the prejudgment is just an undeserved stereotype. One sees people of all ages, shapes and colors coming in and out of the armored door (dating from the explosives bunker period during WWII and still referred to as “the bomb door” by the Koornbeurs’ members).
Once passed the bomb door, we go up a curling staircase to the dining room on the second floor. Inside it’s a whole different setting: plastic covered tables and many concert lights strangely interact with the ancient columns and the yellow walls. There are quite a few people inside and new diners keep coming in.
On the menu tonight: bulgur or potatoes with tandory sauce and chikory with honey, complement the chicken in mustard, or puff pastry with cheese filling for the vegetarian. These offerings lead to a surprising combination of colors on my plate . yellow, pink and gray are complemented by the green side salad, and those who feel the need for more food (or colors) can add to this a pink and yellow dessert.
If you feel you’re still hungry once you’ve finished your meal, it’s okay to ask for more food. As long as you’re not coming back for the fourth time and there’s enough food left, getting some extra carbohydrates shouldn’t be a problem. And the food tastes good, too!
The Koornbeurs cooks make a great bulgur and the tandory sauce was a revelation. I’m not convinced by the combination of chicory with honey, but it was worth a try. The rest of the people dining with me agree. Unfortunately, free tea/coffee coupons are no longer given out for the cafe downstairs. Coffee is available, but you must pay extra for it.
The Koornbeurs also has a ‘Thee Attic’ every day from 18:00 to 20:30, where you can enjoy more than 40 types of tea under one roof! Conclusions and recommendations: the Koornbeurs definitely has its own unique atmosphere, even though (as they admit on their website), it’s difficult to describe. Dinner at the Koornbeurs costs 3.30 euro. Soup and dessert cost 30 cents each.
The Koornbeurs is officially ‘vegetarian friendly’ and in addition to serving dinner, it hosts a wide range of cultural activities. The Koornbeurs is run by volunteers who deserve lots of credit for making this such an enjoyable and special place in Delft.
On the Voldersgracht, right in the heart of the old city, stands a beautiful old building with a stone faade, decorated with cattle heads above the doors and guano-covered angels under the roof. This ancient house with a rich history . it’s been everything from an explosives storehouse to a horse manure auction – is home to the Koornbeurs Society, one of Delft’s most eccentric student societies and our dinner host tonight.
On the Koornbeurs’ front stairway hippies with greasy hair and guitars confirm the prejudgment I made about the place . namely, that the Koornbeurs is a place where hippies with guitars and greasy hair hang out. But any observer who spends five minutes on the bench in front of the entrance (or hangs out with the friendly hippies) will be convinced that the prejudgment is just an undeserved stereotype. One sees people of all ages, shapes and colors coming in and out of the armored door (dating from the explosives bunker period during WWII and still referred to as “the bomb door” by the Koornbeurs’ members).
Once passed the bomb door, we go up a curling staircase to the dining room on the second floor. Inside it’s a whole different setting: plastic covered tables and many concert lights strangely interact with the ancient columns and the yellow walls. There are quite a few people inside and new diners keep coming in.
On the menu tonight: bulgur or potatoes with tandory sauce and chikory with honey, complement the chicken in mustard, or puff pastry with cheese filling for the vegetarian. These offerings lead to a surprising combination of colors on my plate . yellow, pink and gray are complemented by the green side salad, and those who feel the need for more food (or colors) can add to this a pink and yellow dessert.
If you feel you’re still hungry once you’ve finished your meal, it’s okay to ask for more food. As long as you’re not coming back for the fourth time and there’s enough food left, getting some extra carbohydrates shouldn’t be a problem. And the food tastes good, too!
The Koornbeurs cooks make a great bulgur and the tandory sauce was a revelation. I’m not convinced by the combination of chicory with honey, but it was worth a try. The rest of the people dining with me agree. Unfortunately, free tea/coffee coupons are no longer given out for the cafe downstairs. Coffee is available, but you must pay extra for it.
The Koornbeurs also has a ‘Thee Attic’ every day from 18:00 to 20:30, where you can enjoy more than 40 types of tea under one roof! Conclusions and recommendations: the Koornbeurs definitely has its own unique atmosphere, even though (as they admit on their website), it’s difficult to describe. Dinner at the Koornbeurs costs 3.30 euro. Soup and dessert cost 30 cents each.
The Koornbeurs is officially ‘vegetarian friendly’ and in addition to serving dinner, it hosts a wide range of cultural activities. The Koornbeurs is run by volunteers who deserve lots of credit for making this such an enjoyable and special place in Delft.
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