In Holland Dutch food & festivals go hand in hand. We take every opportunity to create a celebration around a seasonal product. In June intense flavors come straight from the herby green pastures and salty water.

Most Dutch food festivals are postphoned due to Covid. Contact me to find out which countryside event is happening. 

To celebrate the authentic way of Dutch life is to go beyond the best known Dutch food in Amsterdam and taste the season in the Dutch countryside.  In June we start our journey of taste at the Dutch North Sea coast for a artisanal raw sensation. From there we follow the Rhine river where we stop to taste the season at a small cheese town. To end our Dutch summer food party with picking fresh fruit in the countryside Holland. 

• What do the Dutch eat in June?
• When is the best time to eat herring?
• What is the best place to buy young Dutch cheese made on a farm?
• What seasonal fruit Holland can I get in June?
• Where can I pick summer fruit in Holland?

What do the Dutch eat in June?

At the very beginning of Verita’s Visit Holland I organised a private flower tour in The Hague area for a Finnish family. The conversation quickly shifted from small talk to the more serious subject: food traditions. Apparently the Finland locals wait all year for the arrival of the new potato. 

Well, we got a Dutch version! Ask any local in Holland what traditional food the Dutch eat in June and chances are high they’ll respond: “herring!” 

Not all locals like the typical Dutch raw fish.  Nevertheless, many know the arrival of Hollandse Nieuwe herring is celebrated in summer.  Decades of marketing have brought the soused herring in the top ten list of typical Dutch cuisine. And the promotion of the Flag Day festival,  the celebration of the new herring catch, surely helped.  Today it is a popular seasonal event in June where Dutch food & festival become one. If you’re looking for a daytrip from Amsterdam and want celebrate with locals, soak up some typical old Dutch traditions and enjoy surprising food combo’s in Holland, put this June food festival on your list.

When is the best time to eat herring?

So, the start of the Holland herring season is with the arrival of the new catch. After the official celebration at the end of May, beginning of June it is time to party.  Mid- June is your chance to celebrate this ‘maatjesharing’ with new mates. It’s the season to meet locals, do business, during the many herring parties. The typical Dutch delicacy will mostly be eaten the traditional way, but there are also places which organise food & drink pairings or Dutch chefs who serve these amazing food creations. And that’s when a simple herring becomes part of the Dutch haute cuisine.

The Holland New Herring can only be sold as such from June till September. From the end of May, beginning of June till July the fishermen catch the fish, which in that period is nice and fatty. The best time to eat herring, I would say, is within those 6 weeks. 

What is the best place to buy young Dutch cheese made on a farm?

Another food event in June is related to cheese. Holland may be in the top 5 of dairy and cheese exporters, many of the local Dutch cheese festivals are still a secret to the inter-national- cheese lovers. Take for instance the celebration of the fresh, young cheese in the first weekend of June. Around the Rhine river a lot of the Gouda and Dutch cheese is made. Cheese farmers from small cities and cosy villages come together to present their homemade farmers young cheese on Fresh Cheese Day. This combination of Dutch food & festival is a fantastic opportunity to meet many local Dutch farmers and get a taste of the many flavours of Gouda and farmer’s cheese

What seasonal fruit Holland can I get in June?

The strawberry is already available in April.  This red beauty in Dutch is also known by the nickname zomerkoninkje ( little summer king). In spring most of this sweet fruit is grown in Dutch greenhouses. Way easier than maintaining strawberry fields. Fruit growers in the Dutch countryside who still own strawberry land and produce in the traditional way have a true passion. They often can only start the harvest in June and the season is much shorter than in the strawberry greenhouses. There is quite some difference in taste between the greenhouse strawberry and the field strawberry. Best way for you to experience is by tasting, so can I take you to a Dutch strawberry fruit grower? There is also an annual strawberry festival Holland.  This Dutch food & festival with focus on the red fruit is usually celebrated on the third weekend of June.

Where can I pick summer fruit in Holland?

Picking summer fruit is a super fun kid friendly activity. But, you don’t have to be a kid to enjoy an outing to the fruit grower. As Verita’s Visit Holland mainly organises tours and celebrations in South Holland I can give you one tip on where to pick strawberries in June.  And that is Framblij in The Hague area. There are other locations, but I like to keep them a secret and bring you there on one of my tours or events in this beautiful province 😉 

Enjoy your journey full of flavours during the Dutch food & festivals in June. Eet smakelijk!

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