After breakfast, we strolled around, and I took even more pictures of the town. We also ventured into some shops and had some fun conversations with shop owners. Customer service is much better here than in the US. Jake was on the hunt for boeterkoekjes, so I'll let him talk a bit about that, as well as his cheese find. I will say that it would be nice to live in a small town where people were friendly and helpful in little shops.
After shopping, we came back for a short rest, then we headed out to the Royal Delft Factory. This gave us the opportunity to walk in a different direction and see some gorgeous older homes. I kept ooohing and ahhhing over them. Some had generous sized "gardens," with beautiful flowers. There are many different flowers and trees from what we have in the US.
The factory and museum were very interesting. It is the last remaining pottery factory from the 17th century. The building, itself, is impressive. I enjoyed seeing the antique Delft pieces. There were some large tile paintings, too. One was of Rembrandt's "The Night Watch," and it took a year for the two master painters to finish it. We finished up our visit there with a cappuccino and some fun souvenirs.
Jake: it was a very relaxing day in Delft. Julie told you most of what we did today. I guess I will talk about food and drink, which is what I usually do.
We had breakfast at Stads Koffiehuis. It was delicious pannekoeken with smoked sausage, mushroom, onion, garlic, ham, and cheese. I drank some strong and flavorful coffee drinks. In Holland, Stads Koffiehuis is #3 of all restaurants to eat. They have won several trophies and awards for their food.
After breakfast, we walked through Delft a different direction to areas of the city we have not explored. Even though this was our intent, but I had different intentions. I was in the culinary adventure to find the ultimate food in all of the world.....boeterkoekje.
Boeterkoekje is a butter cookie. What is the significance?
When I was a little boy I would visit my Opa and Oma with my family. I would run through the back door of their house which was a direct line to the kitchen. Oma was always in the kitchen having cheese on the butchers block and the smell of soup cooking on the stove. I can see the kitchen with it's wood and red brick with copper pans hanging over the stove.
I was always rushed off quickly to keep me out of the kitchen until dinner. The whole family would come over. There were my uncles, aunts, and cousins all present. Parents would sit at one table, while the children sat at another table.
It was usually a vegetable soup with noodles and meatballs served with fresh bread and butter. The parents would usually sit at the table for a while talking and visiting as they spoke in Dutch and English.
Once the conversation died down, the men and children would go to the living room, while the women cleaned up from dinner. After this was done, it was time for boeterkoekje. It was served with a small cup of sweet coffee.
Boeterkoekje is more than a cookie for me, but memories and traditions I will never forget. It is, also, about family.
Okay, let us talk about dinner. We ate at Moeke's. Moeke's is a bar and grill type of restaurant serving fresh farm to table food. I ate drunken bavette with a beer sauce, cheese, and bacon with julienned vegetables. I ate it with a medium cook. The first time I ate meat with this type of cook, because I like my meet cooked well without pink. It was delicious.
We also tried bitterballen with a ground mustard mayonnaise sauce. Bitterballen is a snack you usually eat in Holland with a coffee or beer midday. It is made from bits of beef or veal in a thick roux of beef broth, flour, salt and pepper. Our bitterballen also had cheese in it.
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