You probably have noticed that the square between Utrecht’s central station and shopping mall Hoog Catharijne is in full development. In the past few weeks, a lot of new restaurants have opened up, which makes the Stationsplein the new hotspot to have a nice meal. We’ve made a small selection of the our favorite new spots in and around Hoog Catharijne.

1. Vapiano

On March 15th, the Italian restaurant chain Vapiano opened its doors in Utrecht. In the middle of the restaurant you can find the open kitchen, where you can order your pizza, pasta and antipasti straight from the chef. The chef prepares the dishes fresh, right in front of you! The restaurant has long oak tables where you can sit with your friends, family or complete strangers to enjoy your meal. The restaurant offers seating for nearly 600 people! During summer, they even open up a roof terrace, so you can enjoy the sun with a nice glass of prosecco.

2. Five Guys

American fastfood chain Five Guys is relatively unknown in the Netherlands. But that’s all going to change! On the 5th of March, this burger restaurant opened its doors on the Stationsplein.

The menu is quite small and simple; it mainly consists of burgers and fries. Apart from that they also have hotdogs, sandwiches and interesting milkshakes with flavors like bacon, Oreo and salted caramel! Despite the smaller menu, you can create your own burger or hotdog in over 250.000(!) ways according to Five Guys. This way you can give your own spin on an otherwise simple burger.

Five Guys lives and breathes America. The red and white interior design reminds one of an American diner and you have unlimited soda refills with your cup. A nice extra bonus is that you can munch on some peanuts while you wait to order. Five Guys won’t be part of the healthy food trend any time soon, but it’s still very tasty!

3. Wagamama

“From bowl to soul” is the slogan for new Asian hotspot Wagamama. On the 7th of March Wagamama opened its doors so all of Utrecht can enjoy their diverse Asian cuisine. There’s 14 kinds of curry, 8 kinds of ramen, 7 teppanyaki dishes and 5 donburi on the menu. Apart from that you can have your pick at smaller side dishes, salads, Japanese beer and real saké. More than enough choice!

4. The Seafoodbar

Do you love fresh salmon, seafood or a nice prawn cocktail? Then you’re in luck, cause The Seafoodbar is coming to Utrecht! With three locations in Amsterdam, the owner Fonsch de Visscher thought it was time to bring his popular restaurant to Utrecht. The menu is filled with tasty fish dishes and they offer an amazing wine menu. When you need to catch your train, the Seafoodbar might not be your best choice. Once you sit down with a nice glass of wine in your hand, you won’t want to leave! 

The restaurant opened on March 12th, so all of Utrecht can share their love for great food with Fonsch de Visser.

5. TGI Friday’s

Utrecht’s got the scoop! Our city is going to get the first location of TGI (Thank God It’s) Friday’s in the Netherlands on the 23rd of April. The American chain combines a grill restaurant with a cocktailbar and has over 900 restaurants worldwide, in over 60 countries. And now those those locations include Utrecht! The menu emphasizes quality burgers, -ribs and -steaks, but also offers a variety of salads, pastas and nachos.

The restaurant promotes itself with the slogan ‘In here it’s always Friday!’. If that it really always feels like Friday, we will see in april. But with a good burger and an irresistible cocktail in your hand, how can it not feel like Friday?

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