Did you know that eel has only been hot smoked since 1847? Before that time, eel was smoked cold.
Cold smoking the eel produced a hard and bitter product. Not exactly tasty. Franz Ernst von Siemens (nephew of the people at the Siemens factory) in Hanover came up with the idea of hot smoking the eel. He did this in his kitchen, probably only for his own consumption, because he did nothing else with it. It was the Jewish Knapp family from Hamburg and Hannover who made it big. They started smoking the eel in their backyard in the Korte Leidschedwarsstraat according to Von Siemens’ recipe and sold the hot-smoked eels at fairs. It was not until 1923 that it was advised that you could easily fillet the eel at home. And on the Visscherspad in Amsterdam East was the first eel smokehouse in the Netherlands, in fact the first in the entire world. Huh, I hear you say. Where exactly is the Visscherspad? Well, it no longer exists, because the name was changed to Schollenburgstraat in 1935. Restaurant Troef is now located on the spot where the first eel smokehouse once stood. And now, more than 1.5 centuries later, there is a festive eel celebration, because chef and patron Raymond Plat of Restaurant Troef has been declared Eel Patron.
The Eel Patron is an award created by the DUPAN Foundation. They are committed to the sustainable eel sector in the Netherlands. And not without success, because the eel population is doing well. For example, the local newspaper De Nieuwe Meerbode reported that the eel stock in Westeinde is the highest in ten years. DUPAN keeps a close eye on chefs who are committed to good eel stock and have established a Guild of Eel Patrons for this purpose. The following two-star chefs belong to this guild: Martin Kruithof (De Lindenhof** in Giethoorn), Michel van der Kroft (‘t Nonnetje** in Harderwijk) and Soenil Bahadoer (De Lindehof** in Nuenen). And now chef Raymond Plat also belongs to this prestigious group.
To celebrate this joyful occasion, chef Plat and his team served a lunch with eel in the leading role at Restaurant Troef in Amsterdam on May 30. The celebration started outside in the sun with two appetizers (cheese cracker with sour cream, eel and caviar and a Caesar salad with chicory). Then it was time to sit down to enjoy an eel lunch, of course prepared with eel with the ESF label. This is eel that contributes to the sustainable management of the eel stock.
Of course, this also includes an official moment. Chef Plat was presented with the trophy by Alex Koelewijn, chairman of Dupan, and fellow patrons Martin Kruithof (also his former teacher) and Michel van der Kroft.
The eel dishes that we enjoyed were specially prepared for the festive presentation, but there are often beautiful eel dishes on the menu at Troef Amsterdam, so who knows, you might come across one of these dishes when you dine here.
Trump Amsterdam
Schollenbrugstraat 8
Amsterdam East
Dinner | nice terrace
Opening hours Trump:
Monday to Saturday from 5:30 PM to 11:30 PM
Closed on Sundays
Plan your route to Troef Amsterdam
