By the shadow of the Euromast in Rotterdam is a new (to me, at least) Dudok  outpost that could well be the best-looking I’ve seen so far.

In the green oasis that is Het Park, in an attractive building dating back to the 1700s, Dudok has found itself a location that any restaurant would find enviable. Next to a lake and carefully-manicured gardens it’s a total people-magnet and it was a surprise to me that it wasn’t as crowded as expected. We were immediately seated, got quick, friendly service, and got down to business getting reacquainted with Dudok and its new iteration.

Dudok has always been known for its apple pie, which I’ve had on many past occasions and found unexceptional – to be fair it’s hard I think to make apple pie stand out from the others – so this time I opted to let me eyes choose something else from the dessert display. Along with a sandwich and a nice cup of cappuccino I was set. Apart from the food, however, this new Dudok’s clean interior lines and warm colors were also on full display, and nicely so.

The truffle egg salad with roast beef on white bread was delicious, as was the partly unfinished, light but deadly white chocolate velvet cake. After our quick repast, we took a leisurely walk around the beautiful park and saw another side to Rotterdam that I somewhat ashamedly failed to notice before.

Anyone who’s ever asked me about Rotterdam would almost always get a critical response as I was never a fan of the city when I lived there for a year and a half. It just wasn’t love at first site, possibly hurt by the fact I came during the end of autumn/start of winter when the weather is never the most appealing. This visit though made me see the city from a different perspective – a more comfortable, wiser, and less troublesome standpoint that looks to make my previous comments about the city less than approving. A few more visits to The Netherlands’ second largest city may be in the cards soon.