For a taste of hedonism from gentler times, La Rive is superb. All too often, restaurants in grand old hotels are more about the fuss than the food, but La Rive delivers on both counts. It has the ornate table settings, heavy velvet-trimmed curtains, thick carpets and regal seats of a grand old home, but, in a typically Dutch way, manages to avoid pomposity and snobbishness. What is untypically Dutch is the service, which manages to be welcoming, buy highly efficient and eager to please. The cuisine is French fine dining (with the seafood dishes particularly good), prepared by Edwin Kats, and has carried a Michelin star for several years. It is an expensive but exquisite dining experience. Book a spot on the terrace in the summer for views over the Amstel river, or by the window in the cooler months.