Vleminckx de Sausmeester

Vleminckx has been serving fries from its narrow hatch on Voetboogstraat since 1957, and the family's story in fries goes back further, to 1887. Amsterdam's newspaper Het Parool has called it an institution, and in 2013 it was recognised in the national AD fries test, whose certificate hangs by the counter. It is one of the city's best-known snack stops, and the queue outside is part of the scene.

The fries are thick-cut in the Flemish style and made from just potatoes, vegetable oil and salt. They are cut and fried in small batches all day and fried to order, so they arrive hot and crisp in a classic paper cone. The fryers are used only for fries, never for breaded snacks. Portions come in small, medium or large.

The real decision is the sauce. Vleminckx offers 23, split between a regular wall and a Belgian wall. The regular choices include fries sauce, mayonnaise, curry ketchup, satay sauce, sambal, joppie sauce, piccalilli and apple sauce, plus the Dutch mixes speciaal, with mayonnaise and onions, and oorlog, with mayonnaise, satay sauce and onions. The Belgian wall adds samurai, andalouse, hannibal, tartare and others. Sauce is charged separately from the fries.

This is street food rather than a sit-down meal, which makes it ideal for a quick, cheap lunch, a snack between sights or something to eat while walking. It suits everyone from children to late-shopping adults, and vegetarians will find it easy too. Payment is by card or cash at the window. The hatch is open every day from 11am to 7pm, and until 8pm on Thursday. Expect a queue at lunchtime and on Saturday afternoons; it moves quickly because the fries are made continuously.

Voetboogstraat is a narrow lane just off the Spui, a few minutes' walk from the Kalverstraat shopping street and the Begijnhof. Trams stop at the Spui and on Rokin. Take your fries to the Spui square to eat, or walk a few minutes to the canals for a seat by the water. Please take your empty cone to a bin rather than leaving it on the street or by the water.