One of Amsterdam’s hottest spots – a multi-media experience on the Rembrandtplein. Lots of events held nightly.
To quote their website:
“Escape Venue has been a fact in the Dutch nightlife since 1987. Exclusive parties, music, light, decoration: all faces of a progressive club venue…For young adults who see themselves in a multi media environment, existing of modern dancemusic, hi-tech lighting, eye caressing visuals and internet.
Renee’s impressed me in the past because they WERE so amazingly consistent, but since the euro change they have become frighteningly expensive.
Recently we have had numerous complaints from readers about the rudeness of the staff, and the ever-increasing prices. Also we have been short-changed by their staff on several occassions. It seems they have new people working there almost daily. This is why their rating has dropped from 5 stars.
Unless the management of Renee’s starts to change things soon, WE RECOMMEND YOU AVOID THIS PLACE!
The following comments are from our original review written over a year ago.
Renee’s Croissants is delightfully “lekker,” with an assortment of pastries, bonbons, soft ice, sandwiches, donuts, pies and more.
No trip down the Damstraat is complete without a visit to Renee’s. They offer a delightful assortment of goodies. Who can resist such offerings as hearty bran muffins with raisins and nuts, their fabulously crusty baguettes, and of course, chocolate muffins.
Renee’s has seasonal offerings, some typically Dutch, that are best sampled from here. Appleflaps, in season, are a great example. I’ve never had a bad one yet from Renee’s – with just the right amount of filling so that it doesn’t gush out at first bite, and a smattering of sugar crystals on the flakiest pastry crust you’ll ever enjoy.
I could go on for hours describing every pastry they make, but I also want to mention their sandwiches. Their “belegede broodjes” are made with the usual ingredients, all freshly laid out for you to choose from, and with great breads or bagels to enclose the fillings. If they aren’t too busy (an unusual occurrence at times) they will make you a sandwich on the spot with fresh bread and whatever you want in it.
I’ve enjoyed many a great sandwich from Renee’s, while exploring Amsterdam.
I’ve also delighted lots of friends with a gift of pastries or bonbons from Renee’s.
Open seven days a week, and late at night; it’s a great place to stop after touring the town on the way home for a late-night snack.
The Waterhole, a rebel themed hangout down in the Red Light District, is a good venue to hear music close up and personal and dance if the spirit moves you. We got to check this place out when Cosmic Charlie, a Grateful Dead cover band played, and there was enough gray haired tie-dyed ol’ hippies there to start a retirement commune. The band gave me some serious but extremely enjoyable flashbacks to the 60s with tunes like Uncle John’s Band. Everyone seemed to dig both the band and the somewhat funky but smokey atmosphere of the place.
There was no admission that evening, so for the price of a few beers I got to relive some golden moments. And it was a special pleasure to be able to smoke da kine in this venue. The stage is downstairs from a youth hostel, so they try to keep the music hip and the vibes easy going. The sound in the relatively small venue was excellent.
THE WATERHOLE IS A LIVE MUSIC BAR IN THE CENTRE OF AMSTERDAM WITH A VARYING LINE-UP OF ALL POPULAR MUSIC GENRES
Oh, and you can also eat at tap&dine upstairs
Hip venue lined with quirky stained glass for alternative gigs & club nights from hip-hop to reggae.
Once a hat store, the Bolhoed (Bowler Hat) restaurant now purveys a delectible assortment of vegetarian food. I tried the vegan special which included a very tasty pumpkin soup served with thick slices of fresh whole grain bread. The main course consisted of a variety of vegetable dishes including cauliflower with sweet potato in a mustard dressing (good tangy flavor, yet slightly sweet), eggplant and olives in tomato sauce (ok), Spinach with Tofu (yummy!), brown rice and a small salad (both very good).
With any of their specials you also get dessert, and I had a piece of chocolate cream pie that was scrumptious! There’s a beautiful selection of sweets in a display case inside, with more goodies like brownies and apple tart, all made without white sugar (honey being used instead).
All ingredients are organic including the very good red wine we had with our meal. My friend had pretty much the same except for a banana cream pie. I had a coffee substitute which was served cappucino style with foamed milk. It was very good. My friend had mu tea which he said was excellent. The bill came to 145 guilders for three including the wine. Not bad considering we pretty much ordered the most expensive items on the menu.
The restaurant is very gezellig (cozy) with warm colors, plants, even a buddha sitting in a corner. There are four outside tables, and ours had a mind of its own, moving around like a planchette on a ouija board.
Having been an avid vegetarian and a vegan for many years, I can appreciate when this kind of food is done right. And at the Bolhoed, it’s done very well with everything one would expect from a vegetarian restaurant, and then some. I could find no flaw in anything that was served to us. The Buddha would love this place. I know I do!
This place gets busy so it’s a good idea to call for a reservation.
Princengracht 60-62
Amsterdam
Phone: 020-626-1803
We discovered this relaxing refuge from the hectic pace of the Red Light District, after showing a friend around the area. We were pretty burned out as we’d been walking all over town for many hours, and our last hour in the Red Light Light district was spent dodging tourists and listening to pounding house music in coffeeshops.
The Tibet restaurant welcomed us and restored us with it’s wonderfully exotic ambiance while the soothing Tibetan music put us in the proper calm mood to enjoy the tasty delights of this popular dining spot. The Tibetan artworks on the walls including eyecatching tankas and colorful woven tapestries that transported our city-tortured souls to distant Himalayan villages were the inward journey is as awe-inspiring as the lofty peaks.
We ordered from a menu filled with Chinese delights, including the spicy flavors of Shechuan. I ordered a delicious Kung Pao Chicken, and my friend had a delightful shrimp and fried noodle dish (bird’s nest style, photo above). The food was perfect, the service good, and we left feeling refreshed and centered. So if you’re in the mood for a transcendental treat, the Tibet Restaurant is just the ticket.
Located in the very first block heading east from the Dam Monument, Sukasari is on the right side of the street just past the Old Man Headshop. The place is nicely decorated, Indonesian style, and was an oasis for lunch on one of Amsterdam’s hottest summer days. The spinning ceiling fans kept us quite cool as we relaxed over a lengthy business lunch. A steady supply of kleine biertjes chilled us even further.
The food is traditional Indonesian, not hot and spicy like Thai food. The menu is extensive, and they offer daily lunch specials if you don’t have a clue as to what to order…
The appetizers range from the standard shrimp-flavored kropek crispies to soups (meatball, chicken, chicken-corn or vegetable) and loempias. They offer a variety of sate’s (chicken on skewers) with the usual peanut sauces, and traditional bami (noodle) and nasi (rice) dishes. (Prices range from f5.25 for an appetizer to f22.50 for the most expensive item on the menu.)
Sukasari will also make up a Rijstafel with a variety of eleven Indonesian dishes for you to sample. (Priced at f45 per person.)
Being reasonably priced is the main attraction here, with a lunch special geared to the wallets of travelers who want a quiet oasis near the Dam Square. Be sure to ask for some hot chili sauce for your dishes to spice things up!
Sukasari is open from noon until 11:30 in the evenings Tuesdays thru Saturdays. On Mondays they are open from 4:30 pm until 11:30 pm. Closed Sundays.
After spending an afternoon exploring Amsterdam we decided to find someplace nice to eat. Something different.
Strolling down the Reguliersdwaarstraat from the Rembrandplein, we came across the stylishly modern Memories of India, which I gather is a chain from Great Britain. The menu outside offered a tempting array of traditional Indian specialties, and a few Balti curries. Deciding to eat here was definitely not a mistake, and everything from the appetizer to the main course was presented to us by our smilingly efficient Indian waiter.
Our appetizer of fried fish with a spicy dipping sauce was quite tasty. Despite the many tiny bones we enjoyed the crispiness. A small salad was also served along with the appetizer.
For entrees we chose Prawns Bhuna and Chicken Korma. The Korma was made with chunks of chicken in a sauce consisting of cream, ground nuts, butter, herbs and spices. It was so rich and thick that it was seductively addictive. Prawns Bhuna proved to be the perfect counterpoint, with large shrimps simmered in a hotly spiced stew of tomatoes, onions, herbs and spices. The garlic naan we ordered worked quite well at sopping up all the amazing sauces that came with our meal.
Lingering over dinner was really enjoyable, with a fresh breeze coming through the open front door to carry away cigarette smoke. The restaurant has a patio dining area in the back, and the whole place is decorated in a very modern style, (hardly discernable as Indian) with large modern art canvases, and Roman-style columns topped with metal-work palm trees scattered about. There are a few stone carvings of elephants and other Indian motifs on the walls to help remind you that yes, indeed, you are in an Indian restaurant. As if you will need a reminder after eating the food!
Memories of India is a nice place, with great food at a reasonable price – our entire meal with drinks was under 100 guilders. Most enjoyable indeed!
‘t Blauwe Theehuis, an attractive, round blue pavillion in the Vondelpark, looks like a spaceship that landed among the trees. In the summer it can be crowded with alien lifeforms (some on rollerblades!). It seems to be a popular rendezvous point for intergalactic travelers passing through. It is a ring-shaped concrete & steel cafe with vast terrace for drinks, light bites & summer BBQs.
Although the barman isn’t versed in how to mix a pan-galactic gargle-blaster, they do serve up a good variety of earth beverages, including beer and wine, tea, coffee, sodas and some snacks to stave off hunger until you get to the next way station.
On a warm summer day, this is a popular place to beat the heat with a cold beer, sitting on the big downstairs patio or upstairs, around the saucer. If your solar cells need recharging, there are many seats in direct sunshine, or if you can’t handle any more radiation, a shady spot can be found. It can get a bit crowded and noisy on such days as my last visit. And when the breeze dies, the smoke can get thick (and it’s not just tobacco).
The place grooves on weekends with DJs upstairs, and what better venue to recharge depeleted cannabinoid levels, than the middle of the Vondelpark, among the tall trees with other interesting life forms around for entertainment. Any similarity to The Restaurant at The End of the Universe is purely coincindental…or is it?
Websurfers Beware! Their website seems to be stuck in a sort of time warp, since the most recent event shown is from April, 2000!
Also known as “Chinese Kitchen,” this little place in the Red Light District is an interesting spot for a spicy meal.
The decor is that of a converted Italian restaurant, with a shrine by the front window including a picture of the Dalai Lama, and statues of Ho-Tei and Buddha for that authentic Asian feel. The insence wafting from the altar went quite well with the aromas of sizzling spices and food while we settled ourselves at the table inside the front window.
Take some time and look over the menu carefully, there’s a lot to choose from. The menu will seem familiar to American tastes, with Kung-Pao and other Sichuan specialties to choose from. However, the flavors are anything but American, this is true Sichuan cooking in Amsterdam.
The waitress took our order, helping with suggestions and answering our questions clearly. I ordered the Sichuan soup, Sesame Prawns as an appetizer and Kung Pao Prawns for my main dish. My friend ordered the same soup, shared the Sesame prawns with me, and for a main plate choose a Sichuan chicken dish, which the waitress promised would be very spicy. I also ordered a large pot of hot tea to wash everything down.
The jasmine tea and soup arrived quickly, and my taste buds were soon reeling from the intensely flavoured and delightful Sichuan soup, which featured mushrooms, chili peppers, herbs and tofu in a great broth. The sesame prawns arrived soon thereafter, along with a spicy dipping sauce made with a base of soy, salty and wonderful. The main dishes arrived on platters as large portions, with a huge bowl of steaming jasmine rice and individual plates. My Kung Pao Prawns were fabulous, clean-tasting and fresh, cooked perfectly and the rest of the dish was classic kung-pao, with the peanuts and vegetables in a light brown sauce spiced with bits of red pepper. The sichuan chicken dish wasn’t quite as good, but it was uniquely flavored and delicious in its own way. The pieces of chicken were cooked with the shreds of skin still attached, adding a certain greasiness to the dish, but the addition of allspice to the seasoning almost fooled me into thinking this was a dish made from duck…
Our meal was good, with efficient service in nice surroundings. The table we had in the front window proved to be a great place to watch the never-ending parade of humanity passing through the Red Light District. Our table was also cigarette-smoke free being by the open door, an added benefit indeed.
The bill for our great Sichuan Chinese meal was f72. I will visit again and have more soup, their menu has an extensive selection of hot pot meals as well.
Since ourt original review this restaurant has moved from the Zeedijk to the Warmoestraat, see the map below.