Every month I head down to Rotterdam, my former hometown. There I eat and drink with my three girlfriends and we talk about life. It’s roughly in the middle of where we live and you have delicious restaurants there. So yesterday I suddenly ended up at restaurant Tosca , in the North. On the corner of a small square, in the middle of a residential area, lies perhaps the best-kept secret of Rotterdam. The terrace is almost un-Dutch and is snugly situated under the vines and among the trees, yet still cozy urban against the facade. The wines are good and also reasonably priced. You can get a nice Grüner Veltliner for less than thirty euros and free water (it’s a wonder it still exists). And then the food. Those mussels with spicy sausage and breadcrumbs, that burrata with the softest ham, those melanzane, the risotto, and then the fish of the day. The choice off the menu is almost as extensive and tasty as what’s on the menu, and that was actually enough to persuade me to eat there. So if you’re in Rotterdam, craving Italian, and want to leisurely hang out on the terrace for an evening? Restaurant Tosca is your spot. Just promise me you won’t tell everyone, because otherwise we might not be able to go there anymore.