Restaurant in Amsterdam, Netherlands
One Michelin star, fire-forward cooking, book it.
Wils holds a Michelin star and an OAD Europe ranking, delivering plant-forward, fire-driven cooking from a fully visible kitchen in a thoughtfully designed brasserie near Amsterdam's Olympic Stadium. At €€€ it sits below the city's most expensive starred rooms while matching them in ambition. Book well in advance — this is not easy to get into, particularly on weekends.
Wils is the right call for a special dinner with someone who takes food seriously, or for any occasion where you want a room that feels considered rather than just expensive. It works equally well for two people marking an anniversary as for a solo diner who wants counter energy and a front-row view of the kitchen. If you are visiting Amsterdam and have one occasion-worthy dinner in your budget, Wils competes directly with the city's Michelin-starred tier and, depending on your priorities, it may be the most satisfying choice at its price point.
The building matters here. Wils occupies the third floor of a structure designed by Dutch architect Jan Wils, whose most famous work — the Olympic Stadium , sits directly across the street. The room draws from that lineage: American-style urban brasserie in scale, but with enough warmth and detail to feel intimate rather than cavernous. The kitchen is fully visible from the dining room, which means you are not waiting passively between courses; there is always something to watch. Seating options give you flexibility depending on your reason for visiting. The counter positions facing the kitchen are the clearest choice for solo diners or anyone who wants to be close to the action. Larger tables suit groups without sacrificing the sense that the room is designed for attentive dining rather than volume turnover.
The cocktail bar is a separate point of interest. It has a genuinely contemporary identity, not an afterthought appended to a restaurant. If you are arriving for dinner, factor in arriving early enough to have a drink before your table. If you are in the area and not dining, the bar is worth visiting on its own terms. For Amsterdam, where standalone cocktail programs at this level of ambition are not abundant, that is a meaningful distinction. See our full Amsterdam bars guide for context on where Wils sits in the city's drinks scene.
Wils holds a Michelin star (2024) and ranks in the Opinionated About Dining Leading Restaurants in Europe for 2025 (currently at position 612). That dual recognition tells you something useful: this is not a restaurant coasting on a single credential. The cuisine is structured around fire , charcoal grill and traditional ovens are central to the kitchen's approach, not decorative details. The result is food with genuine depth of flavour and technical control. The menu is plant-forward in philosophy, with 100% plant-based dishes available and dairy replaced with plant-based alternatives throughout. That is not a limitation; the Michelin citation specifically praises the kitchen's ability to deliver pure plant dishes without compromise. Meat and fish appear alongside, so this is not an exclusively plant-based restaurant, but the plant-based path through the menu is fully developed and not an afterthought.
Chef Thomas Val runs the kitchen day to day, with the menu developed in collaboration with Joris Bijdendijk. The cooking draws on a broad range of influences: Surinamese-Hindustani references appear alongside yuzu and tomatillo, herbs from an on-site garden, and techniques like a parfait glacé built from stale bread sourced from their own bakery. The connecting thread is flavour precision, not any single regional tradition. For Amsterdam, that breadth is well-suited to a city that has always been comfortable with culinary range.
Dinner runs Tuesday through Saturday, lunch only on Friday and Saturday. If your schedule allows, Friday or Saturday lunch is worth considering: you get the full kitchen in operation with a slightly more relaxed room than Saturday dinner. Weekend dinner slots are the hardest to secure, so if booking is proving difficult, Friday lunch is a genuine alternative rather than a fallback. Tuesday through Thursday dinner is typically easier to book than weekend slots and still delivers the full experience.
See the comparison section below for a direct read on where Wils sits relative to Ciel Bleu, Bolenius, De Kas, and others in Amsterdam's serious dining tier.
For context on the wider Dutch fine dining scene, De Librije in Zwolle and Inter Scaldes in Kruiningen are the benchmarks at the leading of the national tier. For plant-forward cooking at a comparable level of ambition, De Nieuwe Winkel in Nijmegen is the reference point in the Netherlands. Back in Amsterdam, our full Amsterdam restaurants guide covers the range from Bistro de la Mer at €€€ to Flore, Spectrum, and Vinkeles at €€€€. If you are also planning where to stay or what to do, our Amsterdam hotels guide and Amsterdam experiences guide are useful companions. For comparable world cuisine at €€€ elsewhere in the Netherlands, Scherp in Middelburg and The Bishop in Leiden are worth noting.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wils | €€€ · World Cuisine | €€€ | Wils is a contemporary restaurant where it’s a pleasure to linger. You can experience the entire kitchen operation from the front row and enjoy 100% pure plant-based dishes without any problem. Even dairy products are replaced with delicious plant-based alternatives. Simplicity, color, and flavor are the pillars of a cuisine developed in collaboration with Joris Bijdendijk. Chef Thomas Val has everything beautifully under control and beams with pride when he sees that the pure plant dishes are enjoyed. What an “Olympic” team: congratulations!; Opinionated About Dining Top Restaurants in Europe Ranked #612 (2025); This restaurant occupies the third floor of a building by architect Jan Wils, who also designed the Olympic Stadium across the street. No doubt Wils would have been proud of this American-style urban brasserie, which feels both grand and intimate. The cocktail bar is delightfully trendy. The cuisine never fails to impress – especially its use of fire. Chef Joris Bijdendijk and his team love to cook with the charcoal grill and traditional ovens, which they handle with great skill. For instance, they pair fluffy deep-fried bara (a Surinamese-Hindustani snack) and crispy veal sweetbreads with a zesty vinaigrette made with yuzu, raw green tomatillo and herbs picked from their own garden. Bold flavours are given extra depth with a sure hand. Their commitment to sustainability fuels their creativity, as seen in the parfait glacé made with stale bread from their bakery. The chefs have a penchant for plant-forward cuisine and enjoy playing around with spices and contrasts. An exciting dining experience is guaranteed!; Michelin 1 Star (2024) | Hard | — |
| Ciel Bleu | €€€€ · Creative | €€€€ | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
| Bolenius | Modern Dutch, Creative | €€€€ | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| De Kas | €€€ · Organic | €€€ | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| Ron Gastrobar | €€€ · Creative French | €€€ | Unknown | — | |
| Sea Palace | €€ · Cantonese | €€ | Unknown | — |
Comparing your options in Amsterdam for this tier.
Dress well but not formally — the space reads as an American-style urban brasserie on the third floor of a Jan Wils-designed building, which sets a considered but not stiff tone. Think a sharp jacket or a clean dress rather than black tie. Trainers and casualwear will feel out of place at a Michelin-starred restaurant in this price bracket.
Lunch is the sharper move if your schedule allows — it runs only on Friday and Saturday, so availability is limited, but you get the Michelin-starred kitchen at €€€ pricing in a room flooded with daytime light looking out toward the Olympic Stadium. Dinner gives you more atmospheric depth, but for value-to-experience ratio, Friday or Saturday lunch is worth prioritising.
The kitchen is visible from the dining room, so you can watch the charcoal grill and traditional ovens in action — that's central to the experience, not incidental. The cooking leans plant-forward with bold use of fire, spice, and contrast, and the Michelin jury specifically called out the creativity behind sustainable sourcing. Come hungry and curious rather than expecting a classic French tasting format.
Yes — the combination of a 2024 Michelin star, a striking architectural setting, and a kitchen that visibly performs makes it a strong pick for a celebratory dinner. It works best for two people or a small group where everyone has an interest in food; if your guest just wants a reliable steak, look elsewhere. The room feels both grand and intimate, which is the right balance for a meaningful occasion.
Plant-based eating is built into the kitchen's identity: dairy is replaced with plant-based alternatives throughout, and the Michelin guide specifically praises the 100% plant-based dishes alongside the broader menu. If you are vegan or plant-forward, Wils is one of the few Michelin-starred kitchens in Amsterdam where that is a core commitment rather than an accommodation. For severe allergies, check the venue's official channels before booking.
For a Michelin two-star option at a higher price point, Ciel Bleu at the Okura is the Amsterdam benchmark. Bolenius is the closer comparison — also sustainability-led, also starred, and similarly focused on Dutch produce. De Kas is worth knowing if the garden-to-table concept appeals but you want a more relaxed format and lower spend. Ron Gastrobar is the right call if you want Michelin pedigree (Ron Blaauw's background) at a fraction of the price.
At €€€, Wils sits in the mid-to-upper tier of Amsterdam dining, and the 2024 Michelin star plus an OAD Top Restaurants in Europe ranking for 2025 give it verifiable standing at that price. The fire-led cooking and plant-forward creativity are genuinely the point here, not just positioning — the Michelin guide noted the kitchen's skill with charcoal and traditional ovens specifically. If that format excites you, the price is justified; if you want a more conventional fine dining register, Ciel Bleu or Bolenius may be a better fit.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
