Surviving the international cuisine

To make life easier for you, we asked international students and staffers at TU Delft which restaurant they head to for the taste of home.

Chinese
Jiakung Gong – Chairman of the Association of Chinese students and scholars in Netherlands in Delft

If you’re willing to bike a bit (or have a car), then Gong recommends the Shanghai Garden Restaurant (Kleveringweg 11). Having recently attended a department dinner there, he said the quality of food is definitely worth it. However, if you prefer to stick to the City Centre, then head to Peking on Brabantse Turfmarkt. “It’s pretty close to being authentic. At Shanghai Garden Restaurant you should try the fish, and at Peking, the duck is really well made,” said Gong, PhD candidate, Petroleum Energy

Indonesian
Anandro Amellonado – TU Delft Student Ambassador for Indonesia

Amellonado, who is doing his master’s in Offshore and Dredging Engineering, recommends Toko Ramee at Papsouwselaan 129. “This is a small store where you can buy groceries or get some takeaway some food. A must try, I would say, is rendang (beef simmered in spices and coconut milk).” In his experience, Indonesian food in the Netherlands is less spicy than that back home. “But that’s probably a good thing for Westerners who may not be able to handle too much spice.”

Indian
Shreyas Raghunathan – Former Secretary, Indian Students Association

A post doc in the Department of Imaging Physics, Raghunathan has lived in Delft since 2006. He said he’s seen the quality of Indian food available in Delft change dramatically. While local restaurant Maharaja (Nieuwe Langendijk) is “not as good as it used to be” he said it’s still worth trying, especially for the baingan bhartha (aubergine dish). One restaurant he absolutely recommends is Hills & Mills Pure Food Café (Oude Langendijk). “The café is run by a Pakistani owner and their biryani is excellent. Even their vegetarian kebabs are great. The tandoor naan (bread) here is very authentic.”

Italian
Luca Locatelli – TU Delft Student Ambassador for Italy

“We recently hosted our department dinner at La Famiglia Ristorante Pizzeria in Oude Delft. The owner and cook are both Italian and even though we had ordered a special menu, the food was really well made,” said Locatelli, a master’s student in Sustainable Energy Technology. “If you’re looking for good pizza and can do with a venue that is less fancy, then I recommend Pizzeria Da Salvatore on Oude Delft. They have a real wood oven and the pizzas are really great.”

Greek
Ioannis Lantzos – TU Delft Student Ambassador for Greece

De Kleine Griek comes highly recommended by Lantzos. “It can offer an environment that makes you feel like you’re in Greece,” he said. Traditional dishes, like giros, souvlaki, dolmadakia and soutzoukakia are authentically made. “Don’t forget to try the methismeni tou Bekri dish. Of course, there wouldn’t be a Greek restaurant without ouzo or tsipouro.” The restaurant serves small glasses of ouzo as soon as you enter. The only drawback, he said, is that the prices are much higher when compared to Greece. “However, compared to other restaurants in Delft, they’re fair.”