The Best Desserts in Amsterdam (From a Local Bakery)

Amsterdam is a brilliant city to eat your way through, and dessert is where it really shines. Between the canals you will find centuries-old bakeries, market stalls and a Dutch sweet tooth that takes caramel seriously. If you are looking for the best dessert in Amsterdam and want to skip the tourist traps, here is where a local family bakery would send you.

1. A warm stroopwafel

Start with the obvious one, because the obvious one is genuinely the best. A stroopwafel pressed fresh and filled with warm caramel is the dessert Amsterdam does better than anywhere. The packaged supermarket kind does not count. Look for a bakery that makes them warm to order, ideally one that dips them in chocolate and finishes them with toppings like Biscoff, salted caramel or hazelnut. See our full stroopwafel flavours for an idea of how far this simple waffle can go.

2. Fresh-baked cookies

Amsterdam has quietly become a great cookie city. A thick, fresh chocolate chip or red velvet cookie, still slightly warm in the middle, is one of the most underrated desserts in town and far better than anything prepacked. Our Cookiebar side grew out of one of the first espresso bars in the city, so cookies have been part of the family for over twenty years. Browse the cookies we bake daily, including a vegan sea salt option.

3. Dutch apple pie

Appeltaart is a national institution. Tall, rustic and packed with cinnamon-spiced apples in a crumbly crust, it is usually served warm with a heap of whipped cream. Almost every proper Dutch cafe has its own version, and a good slice with coffee is one of the most comforting things you can order in Amsterdam.

4. Poffertjes

These tiny, fluffy pancakes are cooked in a dimpled pan, dusted with icing sugar and served with a knob of butter. You will find them at markets and dedicated pancake stalls, and they are best eaten hot from the pan on a cold day. A small portion is a perfect street dessert between sightseeing stops.

5. A gift tin to take home

The best Amsterdam dessert is sometimes the one you bring back for other people. A tin of stroopwafels travels well and keeps for weeks, which makes it the easy edible souvenir. We pack ours in gift tins and boxes that ship across Europe, so the treat outlasts the trip.

Where to taste the real thing

You can find every dessert on this list within a short walk of the centre. If you want to start with the one Amsterdam is famous for, come and try a warm stroopwafel at our shop on Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal, open every day. Bring an appetite, the smell of caramel on the iron does the rest.