Resto VanHarte three-course dinner for at most 8 euro: Monday tables in Amsterdam and Rotterdam, 4 euro with a Hague Ooievaarspas

At 18:00 on a Monday, at Buurthuis De Meeuw in Amsterdam Noord and at Mozaïek in Rotterdam's Oude Noorden, a table of people from the neighbourhood sits down to a three-course dinner costing at most 8 euro each. This is Resto VanHarte, a non-profit that brings neighbours to the same table, with locations in more than twenty towns including Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Den Haag and Utrecht; each location cooks on one or two fixed evenings a week, with doors opening at 17:30 and dinner at 18:00. For newcomers and international students who usually eat alone, or families who want to meet their neighbours, it is a cheap way in that does not require forced networking. Prices are not the same everywhere: some cities accept their local discount card and children pay less, so check your own city's page and reserve a date online before you go.

• How it works: each Resto is set up in a community centre, school canteen or café, where cooks and volunteers prepare the meal, supported by the municipality, foundations and donations, which keeps three courses under 8 euro. When you book you can list dietary needs, and the cooks prepare low-salt, vegetarian or halal food on request. (source 1, source 2)
• Where to go on a Monday: in Amsterdam, Buurthuis De Meeuw in Noord (every Monday) and Calvijn College in Nieuw-West (every Monday and Thursday); in Rotterdam, Mozaïek in Oude Noorden (every Monday, Schommelstraat 69). The four Den Haag locations cook from Tuesday to Friday and the two in Utrecht on Tuesday and Friday. (source 2, source 3, source 4, source 5)
• City prices: Amsterdam charges 8 euro, and a Stadspas with a green dot gets one dinner a month for 5 euro; Rotterdam charges adults 8 and children 4 euro; Den Haag charges adults 8 and children half, or 4 and 2 euro with an Ooievaarspas; Utrecht charges adults 8 euro, children under 12 half, and accepts the U-pas. (source 2, source 3, source 4, source 5)
• Before you go: reserve a date on your city's page or call 0900 900 3030 (Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 12:30); pay by card on the spot or buy a Resto dinner voucher in advance; if you cannot come, cancel through the link in your confirmation email so someone else can take the seat. (source 1, source 2)

Do the sum yourself: one dinner = number of adults × your city's adult price + number of children × the child price. Two adults and two children in Den Haag normally pay 2 × 8 + 2 × 4 = 24 euro, or 2 × 4 + 2 × 2 = 12 euro with an Ooievaarspas. A Stadspas holder with a green dot in Amsterdam who goes on four Mondays a month pays 5 + 3 × 8 = 29 euro, because the 5-euro dinner applies once a month. Put in your own household and city.

This is not a promotion: 8 euro is the price ceiling Resto VanHarte always states.

Where

Buurthuis De Meeuw, Motorwal 300, Amsterdam (other cities on their own pages)

When

Doors 17:30・dinner 18:00

Price

At most € 8 per person・discount cards and child prices differ by city

Booking

Online by date・phone 0900 900 3030

Note

Card payment or Resto dinner voucher・state dietary needs when booking

Hokimi field note: for a first visit, choosing the location nearest home on an evening that suits you matters more than the menu, because each location cooks only once or twice a week.