If you want a more traditional Dutch pancake house Amsterdam experience outside the busy city center, Boerderij Meerzicht was one of my favorite food stops during our Netherlands trip. It sits inside Amsterdamse Bos, a huge forested park just south of Amsterdam, and the entire setting feels much quieter and more local compared to the usual canal-side brunch spots.
This is not a trendy aesthetic brunch café situation. It’s more of a classic Dutch pancake house surrounded by walking trails, bikes, trees, playgrounds, deer, and families spending the afternoon outside. It kind of feels like a little cottage hidden in the woods that also happens to serve giant pancakes.
And after eating there, I completely understood why people keep stopping here during bike rides through Amsterdamse Bos.
Boerderij Meerzicht is located inside Amsterdamse Bos near Amstelveen, just outside central Amsterdam.
Amsterdamse Bos is much bigger than a normal city park. It’s more like Amsterdam’s giant outdoor recreation area filled with biking paths, lakes, canals, picnic areas, cafés, farms, kayaking areas, playgrounds, and walking trails. A lot of locals come here to bike, walk, picnic, or spend the day outside.
If you’re planning multiple day trips around the Netherlands, my Best Day Trips from Amsterdam guide pairs really well with this area since Amsterdamse Bos is an easy escape from the city.
One thing worth knowing before you go is that the navigation can apparently get a little confused if you use the restaurant’s direct address.
If you’re driving, use:
Meerzicht Parking Lot, Amstelveen
instead of the restaurant’s actual address.
Using “Koenenkade 56” can sometimes send navigation systems to the wrong area, so the parking lot name works much better.
Parking itself was pretty straightforward once we used the correct navigation.
If you’re renting a car for tulip season or exploring smaller Dutch towns outside Amsterdam, I’d also recommend reading Driving in the Netherlands (What It’s Really Like for Tourists) because Dutch parking systems and road signs can feel a little different at first.
Walking up to the restaurant felt very storybook Dutch countryside in the best way. The building looks like a cozy little cottage tucked into the woods with outdoor seating, indoor seating, trees everywhere, and tons of open space around it.
There’s also a surprising amount to do nearby besides just eating.
You can feed deer, walk through the woods, let kids play on the playground, or go look for the singing tree nearby. People were biking all through the area while we were there, so the whole place had a very active outdoor atmosphere.
It felt a little touristy but still is much more local overall.
The ordering process confused me when we first walked in, mostly because it doesn’t work like a normal restaurant.
So here’s the easiest way to explain it.
When you walk inside, veer to the right and grab a menu. Drinks, salads, sandwiches, pastries, coffee, and basically anything that is not a pancake gets picked up or ordered through the indoor buffet area.
Then you order and pay for your pancakes separately at the register.
After paying, you take your receipt over to the pancake kitchen window. They’ll hand you a little electronic disk that lights up and vibrates when your pancakes are ready.
Once it starts flashing, you go pick up your pancakes at the pancake kitchen.
After watching a few other people do it, the system made much more sense.
If you’ve never had Dutch pancakes before, they’re very different from thick American pancakes.
They’re huge, thin, and somewhere between a crepe and an American pancake. The edges get slightly crisp while the middle stays softer, and the toppings cover basically the entire thing.
The portions here are massive too.
If you’re going with another person, I’d highly recommend splitting a couple different pancakes because it’s more fun trying both sweet and savory options.
The menu at Boerderij Meerzicht is enormous.
There were sweet pancakes with apples, cherries, pineapple, Nutella, whipped cream, chocolate, cinnamon, and powdered sugar, plus savory combinations with bacon, cheese, salami, Mediterranean spices, shoarma, and syrup.
One thing worth knowing: when the menu says “icing sugar,” they mean powdered sugar, not frosting. My American brain needed a second to process that.
We started with fresh strawberries and cream as a little “appetizer,” which felt like an excellent decision considering I’m always ready to eat sweets.
I also got a fresh squeezed orange juice that you get to watch being made fresh in front of you.
For the pancakes, I tried both sweet and savory.
The savory pancake had bacon, apple, and syrup, which sounds slightly crazy but worked together surprisingly well. The salty bacon with the sweet apple and syrup combination made more sense after about two bites.
I also got the classic apple pancake with cinnamon and powdered sugar, and that one ended up being my favorite. It felt closer to the traditional Dutch pancake experience and was simpler in the best way.
If strawberries had been fully in season while we were there, I probably would’ve ordered the strawberry pancake too.
Save this for later on Pinterest so you don’t forget it.
The pancakes here are huge enough that sharing works very well if you want to try multiple flavors.
Most pancakes were around €9–€18 depending on the toppings.
The simpler pancakes with powdered sugar, fruit, syrup, or cinnamon were mostly around €9–€12, while the larger savory combinations with multiple toppings, meats, or cheeses were closer to €14–€18.
The apple and cinnamon pancake was around €11.50, while the savory bacon, apple, cheese, and syrup pancake was closer to €16.50.
Considering the portion sizes, the pricing felt pretty reasonable.
There was no wait when we arrived, but the restaurant was already pretty full.
They do not take reservations.
Even without waiting for a table, it still took around 30 minutes for our pancakes to come out because the kitchen was busy.
So if you visit during a popular biking or weekend lunch time, I’d expect a bit of a wait for food.
Part of what makes Boerderij Meerzicht fun is that it’s surrounded by so many outdoor activities.
Amsterdamse Bos has bike rentals throughout the park (“fietsverhuur” means bike rental in Dutch), plus walking trails, lakes, canals, picnic spots, cafés, playgrounds, kayaking, rowing, and even small ferries for cyclists and pedestrians like Pont Ome Piet and Rederij Oeverloos.
The historic Electric Museum Tram Amsterdam also runs vintage streetcars through nearby parks and neighborhoods.
If you’re visiting during spring, combining this stop with the Best Tulip Fields Bike Route from Keukenhof or the Best Tulip Field Driving Route in the Netherlands would make a very fun Netherlands day.
There’s even a small shuttle service called the Bosmobiel that helps transport visitors around parts of the park.
I think this place works especially well for people looking for a more traditional Dutch pancake experience in a quieter setting outside central Amsterdam. It’s especially good for families with kids, bikers exploring Amsterdamse Bos, groups where everyone wants different toppings or flavor combinations, or anyone who enjoys sweet-and-savory comfort food.
The setting is a huge part of why people come here too, not just the pancakes themselves.
If you’re expecting fluffy American-style pancakes or a trendy city brunch atmosphere, this may not be your favorite stop.
Dutch pancakes are much thinner and larger, and some of the topping combinations can feel slightly unusual at first if you prefer more traditional breakfast flavors.
The experience also feels much more old-school and traditional rather than polished or modern.
During the winter season (November 1 through February 16), Boerderij Meerzicht is open Friday through Sunday from 10 AM to 6 PM, with pancakes starting at 11 AM.
During the summer season (February 19 through October 31), they’re open Wednesday through Sunday from 10 AM to 7 PM, with pancakes starting at 11 AM.
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I would absolutely go back to Boerderij Meerzicht.
Part of the appeal is obviously the pancakes, but the bigger reason is the whole atmosphere around it. Sitting in the middle of Amsterdamse Bos eating giant Dutch pancakes after walking through the woods just felt very Netherlands.
The apple pancake alone would probably get me back there eventually anyway. Which feels pretty a-peel-ing. (Yep, I went there.)
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The Junaluska Yurt sleeps six but feels more like a stylish cabin than a yurt, two real queen bedrooms with actual doors, a full kitchen, and a private bathroom with a walk-in shower. Check-in is just a door code texted to your phone, no lobby, no waiting.
The real win is outside: wraparound porch, private fire pit, free firewood, a gas grill, and Smoky Mountain sunsets that stop you mid-sentence, picture all of that with October color on the ridgeline. Heads up, the last stretch in is a gravel road, so skip the low-profile rental, and there’s no restaurant onsite, you’re minutes from Bryson City, Dillsboro, and Sylva for dinner.
Two to three nights is the sweet spot. (We actually stayed in the dead of winter and it was still stunning, fall just takes it up a notch.) Full review linked in bio.
Italian food felt like the last thing I expected to find in the middle of the Appalachian Mountains... until I sat down at Ilda in Sylva.🍝
They call it Italian-Appalachian, and that’s not just a tagline. Homemade pasta, craft cocktails, local ingredients pulled straight from the mountains around it, this is the kind of meal that makes you forget you’re two hours from the nearest city. It’s cozy, it’s a little upscale, and it is not a walk-in kind of place, call ahead, because tables go fast on weekends.
It’s not cheap, and it’s not trying to be. But if you’re already making the trip out to Sylva, this is the one reservation worth planning your day around.
Full write-up, including what to order, link in bio.
Booked my fall cabin before September even started, and I’m not sorry about it. 🍂
These are the stays that make you actually want the cold to hurry up fireplaces, mountain views, the kind of porch you don’t leave. Not every one of these is going to fit every trip, but if a cozy fall getaway is on your radar, this is the roundup to start with.
One of my favorite travel seasons is almost here, and I have zero chill about it. 🍁✈️
There’s just something about fall trips cooler air, apple orchards, that first flannel of the season, food that actually makes sense with the weather again. I’m already mentally packing for it before September even starts.
If fall is your favorite time to travel too, tell me where you’re headed... I’m taking notes for the list.
Pack your bags... ✈️🧳My hiking and road trip gear shop just got a refresh, and this is everything that actually earns a spot in my bag. The dry bag pulls double duty for beach days and trail days, the Osprey backpack is the one I grab for anything motorcycle or day-hike related, and the GoPro comes with me literally everywhere at this point.
Nothing on this list is filler it’s all stuff I’ve used, packed, and repacked more times than I can count. Full shop linked in my bio if you want to build out your own kit before your next trip.
Follow @travelwithwendyplummer for Beautiful Beach Destinations, City Guides, Foodie Spots, and Luxury Hotel Recommendations.
