Published almost 2 years ago · Last edited about 2 months ago · 6 min read

Amsterdam is a wonderful city and extremely diverse.

I moved here in 2018 after getting a job at Travix, which relocated me from Vila Velha all the way to Amsterdam.

Before that, I had never been in The Netherlands. I moved all the way to a totally unknown country ~10.000km away from my home country without knowing anyone.

As years went by, I managed to make friends, meet my girlfriend, buy an appartment, and settle for good in Amsterdam.

Over the years also I've met many people in a similar situation as I had, or friends coming over to get to know the place. Sometimes they've been here before and know around.

But as it's an ever-changing city. New things pop up, old places close, streets get rebuilt, and so on.

So I'm always getting to know new places and recommending it to people who are new here. After doing it so many times, I made a compilation of the best places I know and the ones I usually like to go.

It ended up being handy to many people, so I decided to make it a post so it can be broadly shared. Hope you enjoy!

Bars / Breweries

• Biertuin (not only amazing beers but also amazing food. full and half chickens, amazing chicken burger)
• Craft & Draft
• Arendsnest
• Beer Temple
• Mikkeler
• Walhalla Brewery
• Brouwerij 't Ij (in a molen! that is a windmill)
• Cafe Brecht (German bar, often packed)
• Vergulden Eenhoorn (Dutch bar with a garden, amazing for sunny days)
• Oedipus Brewery (amazing burgers as well)
• Lowlander Botanical Restaurant (EXCELLENT, with plenty of food! including vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options)
• FC Hyena (very good for some swimming in sunny days as well)
• Het Lagerhuys (very centraal, in Rokin, often empty because it is easy to miss it. very nice selection of sour beers and they serve food.)
• Cafe Hesp (amazing location with a terrace for sunny days by the side of the Amstel river. lunch and dinner never disappoints. paulaner is the best beer they have)
• Homeland Pension (also a hotel, very nice view and vibes in de Marineterrein in Amsterdam, beers from their own brewery Homeland)

Cocktails

• CatuaBar
• Tales and Spirits
• Hiding in Plain sight
• Rosalia's Menagerie
• Sins of Sal
• Dutch Courage (mostly jenever drinks)

Clubs

• Bitterzoet
• The School
• Skate Cafe

Coffeeshops

• Boerejongens
• Barney Lounge
• New Times
• Tweede Kamer
• Prix D'Ami (my first coffeeshop, very much club vibes, haven't been there in a long time)
• Tyson 2.0 (yes, it is Mike Tyson's coffeeshop)

Games

• Poolbar
• Tonton Club
• Gamestate
• Blast Galaxy (pay entry, play as much as you want. food and cocktails inside, pretty cool for a night out with friends)

Skateboarding

• Skatepark NOORD
• Oosterpark Skatepark
• Skate Cafe

Weed-friendly places

Mostly bars/venues where you can have a beer and smoke a joint without being asked not to.

They might be quite underground.

• Hill Street Blues
• Soundgarden
• BR020
• Checkpoint Charlie
• Cafe The Minds
• Vrankrijk
• The Black Dog
• Schuim
• Homeland Pension

Unusual places

These places offer a different experience than what you usually find in Amsterdam. They are not for everybody, but if you are looking for something different, you might enjoy them.

• Mezrab (story telling place)
• OT301 (squatted place, many different events)
• OCCII (squatted community with many different events)
• Vondelbunker (literally a squatted bunker under a bridge in Vondelpark, not for everybody, but you might find some weird free psytrance there)
• Het Groene Veld (squatted park and community on the outskirts of amsterdam noord, hosting all sorts of events and bands, very community driven)
• LAB111 (restaurant, vintage cinema, cool vibes)
• Studio K (restaurant, community-driven cinema)

Restaurants

Vegetarian

• Lowlander Botanical Restaurants (amazing vegetarian selection, some vegan as well)

South African food

• The Lion's Head

British food

• The Old Bell

Indian food

• The Golden Temple

Vegan food

• Vegan Junk Food Bar
• Dear Mama

Chinese food

• Panda's Kitchen (unfortunately closed during the pandemic)

Japanese food

• MOJO Japanese Kitchen

Dutch food

• Cafe Hesp
• Moeders
• De Groene Olifant

Middle-eastern food

• D&A Hummus

Kebab / Doner

• LAVINA
• Donerland

Variety

• Foodhallen
• Albert Cuypmarket

Pizza

• Loulou
• nNea Pizza (very fancy, hard to get a place)

Korean food

• Gangnam Chicken (nice fried chicken and mushrooms)
• FACTORY GIRL
• SEOUL SISTA (korean barbecue)
• Miss Korea (korean barbecue)

Sandwiches

• Small World Catering (THE BEST sandwiches ever)
• JOE & THE JUICE
• Carrol's (absolutely love their Kimchi sandwich)

Burgers

• Lombardo's
• Cafe Oslo
• Thrill Grill
• Restaurant Zest
• The Butcher
• Carrol's (only after 5pm)
• Oedipus Brewery

Sea food

• Mossel & Gin
• Mr Crab Restaurant
• Volendammer Vishandel J.C.M. Koning
• PESCA
• The Seafood Bar (a bit overpriced, if you ask me)

Thai food

• O-CHA

Brazilian food

• LOVA
• Casa Nossa
• Brazuca
• Samba Kitchen
• Tapi 'n Bowls
• Brazuca Rodizio (not Amsterdam, actually in Hoofddorp)
• Little Brazil
• Jungle Brazil

Portuguese food

• Portugalia Tasca

Mexican food

• Salsa Shop (fastfood tho)
• Los Pilones (amazing tacos and micheladas, also very good mezcal)
• Sins of Sal (try the Nikkei Tacos first, then explore)
• Mr Haz (REALLY good tacos)

Brunch

• Locals Coffee
• Benji's
• Gs
• Staring at Jacob
• Bali Brunch
• Greenwoods Singel
• Dignita Hoftuin

Meat

• Salmuera (very busy, reserve in advance. make sure to try the Yuca Frita)
• Cafe de Klos (first come first serve, no reservations. the spare ribs are amazing)
• Cannibale Royale (often open until late, so might be your last resort for dinners after 9:30pm)
• Mi Sueno
• Loetje
• Cafe Hesp (very nice Bavette)
• Samba Kitchen (brazilian meat rodizio, ~30 eur per person, cannot go wrong)
• Sins of Sal

Ramen

• Vatten Ramen
• Sapporo Sora Ramen
• Takumi Ramen
• Fou Fow Ramen