RFK Rankings · Amsterdam
Best Chef's Tables in Amsterdam 2026
Kitchen tables & chef counters · Amsterdam · 6 seats ranked · Updated June 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published June 7, 2026 · Updated June 21, 2026 · Reviewed by Fredrik Filipsson, Editor-in-Chief · How we rank · Corrections
Ciel Bleu has held two Michelin stars since 2007, and the seats that matter most are not in its dining room but in the kitchen itself, four to nine of them around the pass. A chef's table in Amsterdam comes in three shapes: a fine-dining kitchen table, a teppan grill where the cook works an arm's length away, and an open fire counter built into the kitchen. Each puts you closer to the food than a normal booking ever will. Here is who each seat suits, what it costs, and how to get one. Six, ranked on chef interaction and the cooking, not the room behind it.
1.Ciel Bleu
The two-star room at the top of Hotel Okura seats four to nine guests in the working kitchen. Book it for the most serious counter night in the city.
Ciel Bleu sits on the 23rd floor of Hotel Okura in De Pijp, where Arjan Speelman has held two Michelin stars since 2007. The chef's table is a separate booking from the dining room: four to nine seats set inside the kitchen, with the brigade plating in front of you and a langoustine-and-caviar fruits de mer to open. It runs from around 225 euros, with the discovery menu at 215 and the caviar experience climbing to 695, drinks on top. This is the table for marking a real occasion at close range.
Book the chef's table direct through Ciel Bleu; ask for the kitchen seats, not the dining room.
2.Flore
Bas van Kranen's two-star, Green-Star kitchen runs a chef's table built around vegetables and wild seafood. Take it for the most forward cooking on this list.
Flore replaced Bord'Eau inside Hotel De L'Europe on the Amstel, where Bas van Kranen cooks a menu with no meat or dairy, built on vegetables and wild-caught local fish. It holds two Michelin stars and a Green Star in the 2026 guide, and sommelier Antonello Nicastri was named Gault&Millau Sommelier of the Year for 2026. The chef's table runs alongside the main room, with the tasting around 250 euros and lunch near 150. Book it when the cooking, not the hush, is the point.
Reserve through Flore; ask to be seated at the chef's table and take the wine pairing.
3.Vinkeles
Jurgen van der Zalm's two-star kitchen in an 18th-century almshouse bakery, served kitchen-side. Choose it for classic French at close quarters.
Vinkeles occupies the old bakery of an 18th-century almshouse at The Dylan on the Keizersgracht, in the Nine Streets. Jurgen van der Zalm holds two Michelin stars for precise, classic French cooking with deep sauces, and the kitchen-side seating puts you in the historic oven room as the plates come together. The chef's menu is 295 euros before wine, with pairings by the glass. This is the booking for a couple who want old-world French technique and a room with genuine history.
Book Vinkeles direct; request the kitchen-side seats and let the floor pair by the glass.
4.Sazanka
Europe's only Michelin-starred teppanyaki, where the chef grills A5 wagyu at your counter. The purest chef-facing seat in Amsterdam.
Sazanka has cooked on the ground floor of Hotel Okura since 1978 and is the only teppanyaki restaurant in Europe with a Michelin star. You sit at the iron griddle while the chef sears A5 wagyu, lobster and venison directly in front of you, the food priced by weight. Plan on 150 euros and up before drinks. This is the seat for anyone who wants the chef cooking at the counter rather than behind a pass, theatre and precision in one booking.
Reserve a counter at Sazanka; ask for the wagyu and let the chef pace the grill.
5.Yamazato
The first kaiseki restaurant in the world to win a star, with a sushi counter and a garden view. Book it for a quiet, traditional seat.
Yamazato, also inside Hotel Okura, was the first kaiseki restaurant anywhere to earn a Michelin star, and since 2026 chef Tsukasa Hagimori leads the kitchen. The seat to take is the sushi counter, where the chef works in front of you; the Aoi seasonal kaiseki runs eight courses at 170 euros, with an A5 wagyu upgrade. The room looks onto a still Japanese garden. This is the calmest table here, for a diner who wants tradition and a chef at arm's length rather than spectacle.
Book Yamazato direct; ask for a counter seat and the seasonal Aoi kaiseki.
6.Wils
Joris Bijdendijk's one-star fire kitchen near the Olympic Stadium, with a kitchen table at the open hearth. The value pick on this list.
Wils sits above Stadionplein in Oud-Zuid, where Joris Bijdendijk and chef de cuisine Thomas Val cook over wood and open flame in full view. It won its Michelin star in 2021, a year after opening, and the kitchen table at the hearth is the seat to ask for. The six-course chef's menu runs around 110 euros, the most affordable serious counter on this page, with vegetarian and vegan versions on request. Book it for fire-led cooking without a top-end bill.
Reserve at Wils; request the kitchen table at the fire and take the six-course menu.
Not for a chef's table
A great kitchen, but a dining-room booking
Bridges. The seafood room at Sofitel Legend The Grand is a fine Amsterdam booking and still listed by Michelin in 2026, but it is a conventional dining room with table service, not a kitchen counter or chef's table. If sitting at the pass with the chef is the whole point, it will leave you a room short. Book it for the seafood, not the seat.
How to book a chef's table in Amsterdam
The kitchen seats are a separate reservation from the dining room at every venue here, and there are only a handful of them, so book two to three weeks ahead and state plainly that you want the chef's table or the counter when you reserve. At Ciel Bleu, Flore and Vinkeles the kitchen table is a named booking with its own menu; at Sazanka and Yamazato the equivalent is simply a counter seat, which you should request rather than a table in the room.
Tell the kitchen about allergies and any celebration when you book, since a chef cooking at arm's length can build the night around it. For the best value, Wils gives you fire cooking and a one-star kitchen table at roughly a third of the top-end spend. Compare the full Amsterdam dining guide if you want the rooms behind these counters.
Frequently asked
Which Amsterdam restaurant has the best chef's table?
Ciel Bleu holds the top spot for a chef's table in Amsterdam. Its two-star kitchen on the 23rd floor of Hotel Okura seats four to nine guests at a table inside the working kitchen, with chef Arjan Speelman's brigade plating in front of you. It runs from around 225 euros before drinks. Book the kitchen seats two to three weeks ahead and state the occasion.
How much does a chef's table cost in Amsterdam?
Plan on roughly 110 to 295 euros per person before wine, depending on the room. Wils is the value end at about 110 euros for a six-course fire menu, Yamazato's kaiseki is 170, Flore's tasting is near 250, and Vinkeles runs 295. Ciel Bleu's kitchen table starts around 225 and climbs to 695 for the caviar experience. Drinks are extra at all of them.
Can you watch the chef cook at the counter in Amsterdam?
Yes, at several. Sazanka is the most direct: a teppan grill where the chef sears wagyu and lobster an arm's length away. Yamazato has a sushi counter with the chef working in front of you, and Wils seats guests at a kitchen table beside the open fire. Ciel Bleu, Flore and Vinkeles put you inside or beside the kitchen rather than at a grill.
Is Sazanka a chef's table?
Sazanka is a teppanyaki counter rather than a formal chef's table, but it offers the closest chef interaction on this list. You sit at the iron griddle while one chef cooks your whole meal in front of you, from A5 wagyu to lobster. It is the only teppanyaki restaurant in Europe with a Michelin star, on the ground floor of Hotel Okura in De Pijp.
Do you need to book a chef's table in advance?
Yes, and well ahead. The kitchen tables and counters here hold only a handful of seats each and are a separate booking from the dining room, so reserve two to three weeks out, earlier for a weekend. State that you want the chef's table or counter when you book, flag any allergies, and mention a celebration so the kitchen can plan around it.
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Browse the full Amsterdam restaurant guide, compare chef's tables worldwide, see where to sit alone at Amsterdam's counter-only rooms, or open the full RFK rankings index.
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