How to order fries like a local
No menus to study, no table to book. Ordering at Vleminckx takes fifteen seconds if you know the ritual. Here is the local script, from joining the queue to the last fry in the cone.
Step one: the queue
Join the line and relax; it moves faster than it looks because everyone ahead of you is about to do a fifteen-second transaction. Use the wait to study the sauce boards above the counter, or to watch the fresh batches come out of the fryer. That is not marketing, that is the kitchen.
Step two: the size
Three words to choose from: small, medium, large. A small is a proper snack, a medium is lunch, a large is a commitment (or a sharing decision, see the couples with one cone and two wooden forks). Fresh, hot and salted is the default and the only mode.
Step three: the sauce
This is the Sausmeester, so this is the real decision. Mayonnaise for the benchmark, oorlog for the full Dutch experience, joppie for the cult favourite, or anything from the Belgian wall. Sauce comes on top, generously, and is charged separately: price not includes saus, as the sign has said for decades. Two sauces or a double portion is a normal request, not a faux pas.
Step four: payment and departure
Cash always works, cards are normally no problem; when in doubt ask at the window. Then take your cone, grab the little fork, and eat while walking: that is the original Amsterdam serving suggestion. Wondering where to wander? See what is around the corner.