Sensi Seeds Cornershop

The Sensi is one of my favourite meeting points in Amsterdam with nice drinks, a chill space inside, and tables and chairs on the sidewalk outside in summertime.

Owned by Ben Dronker (above) and the Sensi Seed Bank, they also run the Hash Hemp Marijuana Museum just steps away down the canal.

While they don’t actually sell grass or hash, you’re welcome to buy a drink (teas, coffee, soda, beer) and have a smoke of your own stuff while enjoying your stay. Good music, most of the time (it’s up to the staff). You can also find great cannabis books, the legendary Sensi seeds and various pipes here.

Good place to meet your friends for those long conversations. All sorts of famous folks like the Cannabis Poet love to frequent this groovy place. You never know who’ll show up.

Right on one of the most INTERESTING corners in the Dam, on the Oude Hoog Straat, just two blocks from the Dam Square in the heart of the Red Light District. On the corner of the Oudezijdes Achterburgwal. You can’t miss it. Look for the Cannabis plants in the window.

Café Stof

An internet search for an affordable hotel took us to the hip and trendy ‘De Pijp” area. On our previous trips to Amsterdam we never left the (very touristy) city centre. We were pleasantly suppriced by de Pijp. It turns out to be the ‘quartier latin’ area of Amsterdam. All young and hip locals go here for a bite to eat or a few beers. Our hotel recommended café Stof for dinner. A quaint little pub with restaurant quality food. The place was buzzing! Very friendly staff and very tasty food. No tourist trapps in ‘de Pijp’!

Randy Roy’s Red Light Walking Tour Amsterdam

This tour was highly recommended in BOOM magazine. Randy is a pretty cool guy! This tour focused on the humorous and contemporary stories of the red light district. He kept us entertained by showing us where Quentin Tarantino wrote Pulp Fiction. Eminem and Mike Tyson’s favorite coffeshop. We even saw the club with the darkroom floor that Jean Paul Gaultier passed out on (and woke up stuck to)!
We saw a lot of window prostitutes and learned about X-rated bookshops, live sex shows, magic mushrooms and smart shops. Warning: there was also some Amsterdam history on the tour.We had a lot of laughs and came away with a better understanding of not only the red light district but also the Dutch culture. Highly recommended!

Info:
The meeting point is in front of the Victoria Hotel across from Central Station at 8pm, and 10pm on Fridays & Saturdays.(Damrak and Prins Hendrik-kade). It lasts 90 minutes.

Resevations are recommended!

Sugar Factory

Formerly the Amuse Theater, the Sugar Factory is located directly opposite the entrance to the Melkweg, at the Leidseplein in Amsterdam.

As with all Amsterdam venues, they claim to be all things for all people… featuring art exhibits, live musical performances, films, theater, and more.

Considering the location, right off the Leidseplein, this should become a popular venue for Amsterdammers and tourists alike. Especially if they offer quality entertainment.

Art and Culture in the Jordaan

The Jordaan was build at the large expansion of Amsterdam in early 17th century, as a district for the working class and emigrants. The population increase during the next centuries was enormously, caused by the stream political refugees like protestant Fleming, Spanish and Portuguese Jews and French Huguenots who mainly settled in the Jordaan. It was a poor district with small houses and slums, every little room stuffed with families and lots of children. The entire area was one ghetto with open sewers, canals served for both transport and sewer, and no running water. Around 1900 there lived about 80 thousand people, nowadays about 20 thousand.

Rembrandt
The famous 17th century Dutch writer Joost van den Vondel and photographer Breitner lived in the Jordaan. Artists, like the painter Rembrandt van Rijn in his lesser successful period, also came living in the Jordaan because of the low rents. The house of Rembrandt was on the Rozengracht (Rose canal, still a real canal these days). His studio was on the Bloemgracht (Flower canal). The famous painter was buried in a poor mans grave in the Westerkerk (West church).

Monument Care
During the seventieth of the 20th century the city council had serious plans to mainly demolish big parts of the district and replace them for large ugly blocks of modern buildings. There where many protests against this idea. City protectors, such as Monument Care, where against the loss of the historical town and the people of the Jordaan feared for large rent increases. Thanks to this resistance the plan was modified, there came small-scale projects which would repair the neighborhood, without damaging its original character.
Strolling
A large renovation was started. By then the district was discovered by a new generation occupants: artists, students, and young entrepreneurs. The old inhabitants moved to other neighborhoods and cities like Almere. Partly by these new inhabitants the Jordaan has changed from a slum area to a district for artist, still living on low rent, and the rich who bought the very expensive renovated houses. Nowadays the Jordaan is compared to the rest of the town an oasis of peace with a labyrinth of narrow streets and little canals, nice for strolling around courtyards, art studios, and monumental buildings with stone tablets, old-fashioned ‘brown’ pubs, boutiques or galleries.

Markets
There are also some markets in this area. Saturdays you will find the Lindenmarkt (Lime market), a general market, on the Lindengracht (Lime canal) and a biological food market on the Noordermarkt (North market). Mondays you have a flea market at the Noordermarkt and a market on the Westerstraat (West street) with nice fabrics. On the Noordermarkt you can visit the Noorderkerk (North church), designed by Hendrick de Keyser in the 17th century.

Noorderkerk
Many people think that the Westerkerk (West church) on the Westermarkt is the main church of the Jordaan. It’s true that you can hear its carillon and see the beautiful Westertoren (West tower) everywhere in the neighborhood and that the Jordaanfestival is located on his square, but the church is actually located just outside the Jordaan. So the main church of the Jordaan is the Noorderkerk. The Noorderkerk was built in the northern part in 1620-1623 by Hendrick de Keyser and his son Pieter. The church is still in use as a Protestant church, and like the Westerkerk open to everyone, especially during concerts.

Art studios
Hundreds of artist discovered the Jordaan in the 70th because of the low rent of houses in these little streets. The lucky ones are renting a studio in one of these beautiful inner courtyards of the neighborhood. Every two years the artist organize a so called ‘open studio event’. During these days visitors can have a look in the ‘kitchens’ of the artist. There is also a permanent ornamental route called ‘Jewels in the Jordaan’. Past charming alleyways and picturesque canals it leads to gold- and silversmiths.

Courtyards
The Jordaan has a high concentration of hofjes (inner courtyards), beautiful yards with little houses, many of them with restored houses and peaceful gardens. These courtyards were build by rich people for older women; a kind of charity and protection. Beginning of the 70th most of these courtyards was in a very bad shape, like the rest of the neighborhood. After there restoration they were discovered by artist, students and still some older people with special privileges because of a church membership. Some of the courtyards are closed to the public, and only opened on special days called ‘open monuments days’. But if you do come across one of the entrances, and it is unlocked, most residents won’t mind if you sneak a quiet peek. During the summer some of these yards are opened on Sundays during free concerts called ‘hofjesconcerts’.

Stone tablets
Many houses in the Jordaan have a stone tablet, a stone sign that shows the profession or family sign of the inhabitants. For instance a butcher showed a pig and a tailor a pair of scissors, carved in a stone above the entry. During a walk it’s a pleasure to observe those beautiful, when renovated colorful, antique signs. The first stone tablets are made in the 16th century, when citizens were ordered to use these tablets instead of big wooden gables that obstructed the traffic in these narrow streets.
Museums
Most of the museums in the Jordaan are small. You have the Pianola museum with old mechanical pianos, a literature museum of Theo Thijssen, a houseboat museum, and a fluorescent museum called Electric Lady Land. Just on the boarder of the Jordaan you can find the Anne Frank House on the Prinsengracht (Prince canal).

Maurya Organic Indian Lounge

I do not normally write restaurant reviews but was so appalled by Maurya; I feel the need to warn all. It wasn’t the food that appalled me (the food was rather lush) and it wasn’t the decor, which was to a certain extent authentic. It wasn’t even the service, which was slow, but hey if good company surrounds you, it tends to be less of a concern. NO, what I and my fellow diners we dismayed by was the bill. It was OUTRAGESOUS! If you deducted the alcohol and water off the bill and calculated the food only, we were charged 50 euros EACH for food alone. Tell me, how does one eat 50 Euros of Indian food? We are not talking a Michelin Star restaurant for goodness sake! On checking the bill, we discovered curious costs. I won’t go too much into detail but we were highly overcharged. There are extra costs such as spiced rice, 6 euros per person. (There were eight of us, which amounts to 48 euros for rice alone). There were a lot of other additional costs as well that are not stated on the menu or mentioned by the waiter.
Anyway at the end of it all we refused to pay the total amount because it was clear he was trying to rip us off. We asked him to deduct 50 euros, he refused and was extremely rude to us shouting and carrying on. (Very professional). We asked him to call the police because we were not paying the amount on the bill. He did, the police came (5 of them) and after hearing both sides of the story and reviewing the bill and the menu the police agreed with us and we paid the amount which we thought was fair. Be warned! At the Maurya, they are rip off merchants!

Pizzeria Rimini

The Leidseplein area is famous for a wide range of entertainment and dining options. Most of the restaurants seem to be clones of each other, with little to differentiate the various ethnic places, especially the Italian ones.

Pizzeria Rimini is unique in that it offers pretty much the same fare as most other Italian eateries in the area, but boasts pizza and pasta dishes at about half the price of other restaurants. This was such an unusual claim, especially for Amsterdam, I had to give it a try.

I ordered a pizza funghi (with cheese & mushrooms) and I wasn’t disappointed. While it wasn’t the best pizza in the area, it equalled most others. It was huge covering the entire platter. The only faults I could find was perhaps just a little less of each ingredient. A little less cheese, fewer mushrooms (although there certainly was enough), and a slightly thinner crust.

All pizzas are priced at just 5 euros.

You’ll have to walk a bit farther to get the deal as the Rimini is at the edge of the restaurant district. No doubt that’s why they have the half price gimmick to get people to walk past a dozen other Italian restaurants along the way. It’s also very popular with young Dutch people looking to save a few Euros, so it might be crowed on weekends. If you’re looking for cheap eats around the Leidseplein, check out Rimini!

Restaurant Pisa

I often complain that the Italian restaurants near the Leidseplein all seem the same. Same menu, prices, tacky plastic plants and wall murals. Well at least the Pisa Restaurant ditched the plastic, giving this place a more modern, less dusty feel.

I’ve always enjoyed the lasagnas in Amsterdam, because they are a bit different from what you get in other cities. My guess is that instead of the typical combination of mozzarella and ricotta cheese, you get a richer selection of Dutch cheeses substituting for the traditional Italian cheese. This makes for a delightful change.

So I ordered a vegetarian lasagne and a beer. I was long thru my beer, and had to wait almost a half hour (or so it seemed) for my lasagne, which I guess was made from scratch to order. It was excellent with a variety of vegetables and lots of cheese and a combination of bechamel and tomato sauces. It was so good it was worth the wait, and I ate every bite. My only complaint was they served me a basket of bread just before the lasagne came out. It would’ve been much more welcome 20 minutes earlier when I was ready to eat the table setting! Traditions die hard in these Italian restaurants.

Open from noon until 11 pm daily.

A-Fusion

Over the last few years Amsterdam has seen a surge of new Asian restaurants, especially since the renovation of Chinatown. Likewise more fusion restaurants seem to be popping up as Dutch taste becomes accustomed to the more unusual, creative fare these kinds of restaurants offer. So it’s no surprise then that another new Asian fusion restaurant has opened on the Zeedijk.

A-Fusion is the descriptive name of this already popular eatery just steps away from the Nieuwmarkt. The intriguing menu and reasonable prices have tourists and locals alike dropping in for lunch and dinner. Their creative fusion of Asian flavors combines elements of Japanese, Chinese and Indonesian/Malaysian cuisines.

The sleek decor with warm woods and blue accents is offset with beautiful live orchids and lilies scattered about the room. The only strange thing is the projection TV on the wall playing Japanese commercials. This silent infotainment might seem dissonant, but it really did fit in with the modern Asian motif, and I’d take it over a football game with my meal anytime.

For appetizers we ordered a Hot and Sour soup (4 Euros), which came with a rich tasty broth and some very hot red chilies. If you don’t like it so hot, let them know or avoid eating those. My Seaweed Wrapped Sesame Chicken rolls were sublime, four for 3.75 Euros.

My main course of udon noodle soup had shitaki mushrooms, bok choy and was topped with chicken satay sticks with an excellent dipping sauce (8.50 Euros). On the menu it was actually a mixed satay, but they gladly substituted my preference. My friend had the Seafood Fried Rice which was served in a whole pineapple. This huge portion contained shrimp, squid and some of that crab-like substance the Japanese love. It was light and delicious but so filling, we couldn’t finish it.

I ordered a Coconut Bubble tea to see if it was like those Tea Shakers I’d had in Barcelona. So I was surprised when I discovered the “bubbles” were actually tapioca pearls. Good thing they served it with both an extra wide straw and a spoon. It was delicious, with good coconut flavor, not too sweet (they asked my preference) yet I had trouble tasting the tea. But that was the only fault I could find with this place on my first visit.

The service was very good, and I noticed the waiters constantly scanning the tables for anyone needing assistance. It almost made me feel like I wasn’t in Holland anymore. The price was right, with our bill coming to around 32 Euros for two with drinks.

A-Fusion is a very pleasurable experience where tasty surprises await adventurous diners.

Info:
Address:
Zeedijk 130
Amsterdam
Phone: 020-330-4068