If you eat vegetarian food in Amsterdam, finding an Indian restaurant that actually respects that choice is harder than it sounds. Most restaurants remove the meat from regular dishes and call it vegetarian. That’s not real cooking. That’s just omission. Rasoi Amsterdam approaches vegetarian food differently. They prepare dishes designed for vegetarians, not dishes that happen to be vegetarian because the meat got left out. The cooks here understand that vegetables and paneer cheese deserve the same attention and skill as meat dishes. That changes everything about what you experience when you eat here.
Amsterdam has a strong vegetarian culture. People here take plant based eating seriously. But that doesn’t mean every indian restaurant in amsterdam gets it. Many still treat vegetarian orders like second class requests. At Rasoi, the vegetarian menu is half the full menu. That’s not accidental. That’s intentional. The kitchen has specialists who understand how to cook with vegetables and cheese in ways that make them interesting.
Why Rasoi’s Vegetarian Menu Matters
The vegetarian lunch menu runs Tuesday through Sunday from 12 to 5 pm. Almost the entire lunch menu is vegetarian, which means if you come at that time, you’ve got options without having to ask for substitutions. This is important because it shows the restaurant actually planned for vegetarians, not just accommodated them.
The spices matter more when you’re cooking vegetables. Meat carries flavor on its own. Vegetables need the spice work to taste like something. The chefs here know this. They don’t just throw the same curry sauce at vegetables that they use for meat curries. They adjust. They layer. They build flavors specifically for what they’re cooking.
The Paneer Dishes and How They’re Made
Paneer is an Indian cheese that absorbs flavors without falling apart the way soft cheeses do. Rasoi uses it in several dishes, and each one tastes different because of how it’s prepared. The Tandoori Paneer comes from the clay oven. The Afghani Paneer is prepared differently. The Achari Paneer gets treated another way entirely.
The Aloo Gobhi Paneer combines paneer with mashed potatoes and tandoori cauliflower. Sounds simple when you read it. But there’s complexity in how those three components come together. The paneer needs to be the right texture. The potatoes need to stay creamy. The cauliflower needs to have char from the tandoor without being burnt. Getting all three right at the same time is harder than most people realize.
The Malai Kofta is another paneer based main course that deserves attention. Kofta means meatball, but in this case it’s made from paneer and vegetables. It’s rich and creamy without feeling heavy. Served with rice, it’s a complete meal that happens to be vegetarian.
Street Food That Actually Comes From Streets
The Banarasi Chaat is street food from Banaras, a city in India. It comes with deep fried potato patties, chickpeas, yogurt, tamarind chutney, and spices. This is the kind of thing you’d actually buy from someone selling food on the street in India. Most restaurants don’t bother making street food properly. Too much work. Too many small components.
Rasoi makes it. The potato patties come out crispy. The yogurt is cool and creamy. The tamarind chutney has the right balance of sweet and sour. When everything comes together, you understand why people buy this food on streets instead of cooking at home.
The Chickpea Curry and Why It Matters
Chickpea curry, also called Chana Masala, is one of those dishes that separates restaurants that understand vegetarian food from ones that are just going through the motions. A bad chickpea curry tastes like someone cooked chickpeas in water and added some tomato sauce. A good one tastes like the spices worked with the chickpeas to create something you couldn’t make by leaving out the meat from a meat dish.
Rasoi’s version has depth. The chickpeas are cooked to the right texture. Not mushy. Not too firm. The gravy has layers. You taste the individual spices working together, not just a generic curry taste.
Vegetables That Get Real Attention
Beyond the paneer and chickpea dishes, Rasoi has curries built around vegetables. Bhindi do pyaza is okra with onions. Simple ingredients. But like everything else here, it gets treated with care. The okra doesn’t get slimy, which is the main way restaurants ruin this dish. The onions are cooked until they’re soft and sweet. The spices come through clearly.
The restaurant also works with seasonal vegetables. What’s available changes depending on the time of year, and the menu reflects that. In summer you might see different vegetables than in winter.
How to Order Like Someone Who Knows What They’re Doing
If you’re vegetarian and coming to Rasoi for the first time, don’t just point at things randomly. Talk to the staff. Tell them you eat vegetarian. Tell them how much spice you like. Tell them if there are particular textures or flavors you gravitate toward. They’ll make recommendations that actually fit what you want, not just popular dishes.
The staff here knows the difference between a creamy curry and one with a lighter sauce. They understand which dishes are heavier and which are lighter. They can guide you toward a meal that feels balanced rather than just full.
Pricing and Value for Vegetarians
Vegetarian dishes at Rasoi cost less than meat dishes. That’s fair because meat costs more. But the quality stays the same. You’re not getting lesser food because you don’t eat meat. Your getting food that was designed for vegetarians and prepared with the same skill as everything else coming out of that kitchen.
