Oriental City

This very attractive multi-storied Chinese restaurant serves up some great Chinese and Indonesian food at reasonable prices. Good views over the Oudezides Voorburgwaal. Highly recommended is the Indonesian Rijstafel (Ricetable) with about a dozen dishes like curried beef, gado gado, chicken satay, fruit salad and a fabulous banana fritter for dessert. We’ve been coming here for years and the food is always consistent. Located only one block from the Dam Square.

Manneken Pis Vlaamse Frites

This chain of Belgian Frites makes some good fresh “french fries”. There are many around town, usually on high traffic streets. There’s a good variety of sauces in addition to the standard mayonaise, ketchup and curry to accompany your potatoes. What all this has to do with a boy pissing is beyond me, but that is typical Dutch humor. Make sure you grab a little fork or you’ll get sticky fingers trying to pull those last frites out of the paper!

Hemp Hotel

This historic hippy hangout was an Amsterdam landmark, now permanently closed.
This groovy little hotel promotes hemp products with every conceiveable item made of hemp. Mila Jansen is well known for inventing the Pollinator which makes hashish out of leftover cannabis leaves. The Hotel has very reasonable rates which include a vegetarian breakfast. Prices range from 100-145 guilders per room. The Hemp Hotel is located in a quiet part of town.

The Hemple Temple Bar is located in the ground floor and has all sorts of hemp food and drinks for you to try. It’s open nights until early in the a.m.

Frederiksplein 15
Amsterdam
Phone: 625-4425

Beurs van Berlage

Formerly the Stock Exchange, now a performance hall and exhibition space of note for it’s Amsterdam School architecture, since it was designed by the style’s founder, Hendrik Petrus Berlage (1856- 1934). Located right on the Damrak between Central Station and the Dam Square, you can’t miss it’s beautiful clock tower.

Albert Cuyp Markt

Iconic street market since 1905 with lots of stands selling clothing, local foods, flowers & more.

This wonderful outdoor market stretches for about half a mile down the Albert Cuypstraat. Stalls sell everything from veggies, cheese and fish to cosmetics, clothes and bedding. Some of the best deals in Amsterdam can be found here. It can get very crowded on certain days and times.

The whole area including the Ferdinand Bolstraat and Ceintuurbaan has many interesting shops with good deals on furniture, computers, bagels, haircuts, and lots more!

Open Monday through Saturday, closed Sunday.

Item

Now permanently closed.

Formerly the Time, just the name is changed. Closed Mondays, Reggae night is Tuesday, Wednesday’s Fusion, numerous DJ’s keep the scene always interesting at this long-time Amsterdam favourite. What a convenient location, right there in the middle of it all! Have a groovy Time, or Item, or whatever.

Niuewezijdes Voorburgwal 163/5
Amsterdam
Phone:

Supper Club: Lounge

The more I hear about this place the less desire I have to go there. Everyone says it’s THE place for rich and snobby people who will glare at you with open hostility if you aren’t wearing the latest designer fashions. Stories circulate about items being pilfered from their coatcheck and unsympathetic management whose only concern seems to be gouging large amounts of guilders from your pocket.

Guests lounge in beds & order food & drinks at this eatery, bar & performance space.

If you are looking for attitude, here it is!