The 17 best bars in Amsterdam

Neighbourhood: Jodenbuurt 

Speakeasy lovers, we’ve got just the thing for you. Hiding in Plain Sight is exactly what you’d expect – a dark, cosy, intimate bar with great music that feels totally secret, yet is conveniently positioned right in the centre of town. Somehow, even after all these years, this bar has stayed cool and classy – there is no better place to see and be seen. Knowledgeable bartenders make a range of classic and bespoke cocktails (they’ll happily discuss your tastes and preferences) but book ahead via phone to secure a spot in their lounge-style seating, as standing is not allowed. 

Address: Rapenburg 18, 1011 TX, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Sunday to Thursday, from 6pm-1am; and Friday and Saturday, from 6pm-3am
Expect to pay: €16-25 for cocktails 

Neighbourhood: Oosterdok 

Grab a seat at one of this waterfront spot’s bright picnic tables, and you’ll instantly feel like you’re on holiday. Boats pull up to the dock at Hannekes Boom, while swimmers jump in for a dip, and locals meet to drink, chat, and soak up the friendly vibes as the sun goes down. During winter, the party moves into a cottage-like space made from salvaged materials that’s extremely shabby-chic, with cosiness vibes provided by a large fireplace – the perfect combination to ward off cold, harsh weather.  

Address: Dijksgracht 4, 1019 BS, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Sunday to Thursday, from 11am-1am; and Friday to Saturday, from 11am-3am 
Expect to pay: €4-7 for beers, around €12 for cocktails, and €8-15 for small plates and bar snacks.

Neighbourhood: Centrum

Small is beautiful at this quaint, storied bar, famed as Amsterdam’s smallest (it measures just 18 m2). Founded in 1798 by a surgeon from a nearby hospital, Café de Dokter has been delighting the curious and the adventurous ever since; think old jazz records mixed with candles, antique chandeliers, and even a birdcage. It’s usually packed, but that just adds to the charm. Aim for a spot at the bar – all the better to meet a local character – and order a Limburg beer or a whisky from their extensive collection. 

Address: Rozenboomsteeg 4, 1012 PR, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Wednesday to Saturday, from 4pm-1am; closed Sunday to Tuesday
Expect to pay: €5-8 for beers, €6-9 for wines, and €7-14 for spirits

Neighbourhood: Amsterdam Oost

An Amsterdam East institution, this tasting room in an old bathhouse at the base of Amsterdam’s largest windmill serves Belgian-inspired beers, brewed on-site for over 30 years. You’ll find Brouwerij ’t IJ’s beers on menus all over town, but it’s worth visiting the original outpost for a tour, a tasting flight, or to soak up the sun on the large terrace with the windmill overhead. Be sure to try their bar snacks too, especially the classic ossenworst – raw ox meat sausage.

Address: Funenkade 7, 1018 AL, Amsterdam.
Opening hours: Monday to Friday, from 2pm-10pm; and Saturday to Sunday, from noon-10pm.
Expect to pay: €4-8 for craft beers, €12-16 for tasting paddles, and €6-14 for snacks.

Neighbourhood: Amsterdam Noord

Up in trendy Amsterdam Noord, Pllek – the product of a recycled warehouse and various shipping containers – is a bar, man-made beach, and restaurant that also hosts outdoor summer film screenings and live electronic music. Hop on the free ferry at Amsterdam Centraal to reach this throbbing hangout and settle in with a couple of beers or a glass of rosé while you dig your toes into the sand. When the sun goes down, retreat under the disco ball in the huge industrial-chic space with rows of windows overlooking the IJ river.

Address: T.T. Neveritaweg 59, 1033 WB, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Sunday to Thursday, from 9.30am-1am; and Friday to Saturday, from 9.30am-2am
Expect to pay: €12-16 for cocktails, €5-8 for beers, and €15-28 for mains.

Neighbourhood: Weteringschans

A delightful slice of old-school Berlin charm, Café Brecht – named after German writer, poet, and director Bertolt Brecht, natch – is both quirky and quaint. Decked out like a hipster’s living room, a mish-mash of vintage sofas, chairs, and tables competes for space with piles of old books and retro board games. The extensive beer list is distinctly – and deliciously – German, of course, and if you time your visit right, you’ll be greeted by huge, freshly-made pretzels hanging by the bar. Prost!

Address: Weteringschans 157, 1017 SE, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Monday to Thursday, from 4pm-1am; Friday to Saturday, 1pm-2am; and Sunday, from 1pm-1am.
Expect to pay: €4-9 for beers, €5-8 for wines, and €10-16 for cocktails.

Neighbourhood: Centrum

Hidden behind an unmarked door on Reguliersdwarsstraat, Door 74 is the bar that more or less taught Amsterdam how to do cocktails properly. Back when most places were still shaking together syrupy espresso martinis and calling it sophistication, Door 74 was quietly introducing the city to serious mixology, speakeasy style. More than a decade later, it still feels effortlessly cool: dim lighting, jazz-age energy, bartenders in braces and some of the best-balanced drinks in town. The cocktails lean classic rather than flashy, but that’s exactly the point – even the lack of signage outside somehow adds to the atmosphere. If you know, you know.

Address: Reguliersdwarsstraat 74, 1017 BN, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Sunday to Thursday, from 6pm-3am, and Friday to Saturday, from 6pm-4am
Expect to pay: €16-25 for cocktails.

Neighbourhood: Centrum

Step back in time to Amsterdam’s Golden Age in this authentic, historical gem of a bar. Famed as a jenever (the forerunner to modern gin) tasting room, De Drie Fleschjes (“The Three Bottles”) has been serving up the traditional tipple since 1619, making it the city’s oldest (they still store the drink in old-fashioned casks and the flagons that give the bar its name). A favourite of Amsterdam’s mayors over the centuries, their portraits line the wall of this unique establishment. And should jenever not be to your taste, they also serve beer, wine, and 35 different liqueurs.

Address: Gravenstraat 18, 1012 NM, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Monday to Saturday, from 2pm-8.30pm; and Sunday, from 3pm-7pm.
Expect to pay: €4-8 for genever, €5-7 for Dutch beers, and €6-12 for tasting snacks.

Neighbourhood: Amsterdam Oost

Named after writer Charles Bukowski, this neighbourhood hangout near Oosterpark is dedicated to liquor and literature. The former appears in classic, no-tricks cocktails and a well-rounded beer list, while the latter is embodied in a typewriter-inspired light installation above the bar and plenty of Bukowski quotes on the menu. Bar Bukowski feels like the neighbourhood’s living room: settle into one of the front tables in the mezzanine for an unbeatable street view.

Address: Oosterpark 10, 1091 AC, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Sunday to Thursday, from 9am-1am; and Friday to Saturday, from 9am-3am
Expect to pay: €11-15 for cocktails, €5-8 for beers, and €7-14 for bar snacks.

Neighbourhood: Centrum 

Gruff, rough, and distinctly old fashioned, De Druif (“The Grape”) has been quenching locals’ thirst on this spot for at least 400 years. It boasts a liquor licence that dates back to 1631, and is rumoured to have served departing sailors as far back as the 1580s. With wooden casks lining the walls, plenty of earthenware jenever bottles behind the bar, and no music, De Druif feels like a glimpse into Amsterdam’s storied past.

Address: Rapenburgerstraat 83, 1011 VL, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Tuesday to Thursday, from 4pm-1am; Friday to Saturday, from 2pm-3am; and Sunday, from 2pm-1am
Expect to pay: €4-8 for jenever, €5-8 for beers, and €5-10 for bar snacks.

Neighbourhood: Jordaan

Wedged beside one of the prettiest canals in the Jordaan, Café ’t Smalle is the kind of brown café tourists dream about finding and locals quietly hope stays slightly under the radar. Inside, it’s all candlelight, dark wood, old jenever barrels and crooked beams; outside, the tiny waterside terrace practically spills into the canal during summer. The building dates back to the eighteenth century and originally belonged to a nearby distillery, which explains the excellent jenever selection, though most people come for the atmosphere: cosy in winter, golden and impossibly photogenic on sunny evenings. 

Address: Egelantiersgracht 12, 1015 RL, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Sunday to Thursday, from 10am-1am; and Friday to Saturday, from 10am-2am
Expect to pay: €5-8 for beers, €4-7 for genever, €6-9 for wines , and €7-14 for bar snacks

Neighbourhood: Flevopark / Amsterdam Oost

This former polder pump station in leafy Flevopark looks like a church from a distance but is actually a jenever distillery with a setting that couldn’t be prettier. Set on a quiet lake, ’t Nieuwe Diep has a gorgeous terrace for summer and a cosy tasting room for winter. If classic jenever is too harsh for your palate, try the unique fruit versions made with plum, apple, berries or citrus. The bar closes early, so check the website for seasonal hours.

Address: Flevopark 13A, 1095 KE, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Wednesday to Friday, from 3pm-8pm; and Saturday to Sunday, from 1pm-8pm
Expect to pay: €4-8 for house jenevers, €10-16 for tasting flights, and €5-8 for beers.

Neighbourhood: De Pijp

Tucked away in De Pijp, this tiny candlelit spot helped introduce Amsterdam to natural wines back when most people still thought cloudy wine meant something had gone wrong. GlouGlou's blackboard menu changes constantly depending on what’s open, the staff genuinely know their stuff without becoming unbearably smug about it, and the atmosphere lands somewhere between neighbourhood hangout and very good Parisian cave à vin. If you’re even remotely wine-curious, this place is dangerously easy to lose an entire evening in.

Address: Tweede van der Helststraat 3, 1073 AE, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Tuesday to Thursday, from 5pm-midnight; Friday to Saturday, from 4pm-1am; and Sunday, from 4pm-11pm
Expect to pay: €6-12 for wines by the glass, €35+ for bottles, and €8-16 for small plates.

Neighbourhood: Jordaan

The Dutch love their beer – the country boasts over 400 breweries – and this cosy, traditional bar in the heart of the city is the best place to sample some of them. Indeed, they don’t serve beer from anywhere else! With 50 beers on draft and another 100 available by the bottle, Proeflokaal Arendsnest will serve you up pretty much whatever you fancy, and they have a great canal-side terrace for warm-weather supping. Plus, if you want to learn more, they have a bookable tasting room for 32 where they host workshops and lectures.

Address: Herengracht 90, 1015 BS, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Monday to Thursday, from noon-midnight; Friday to Saturday, from noon-2am; and Sunday, from noon-11pm
Expect to pay: €5-9 for Dutch craft beers, €12-18 for tasting flights, and €6-14 for bar snacks.

Neighbourhood: Canal Belt

This buzzy cocktail bar smack in the centre of Amsterdam is racking up global award nominations. Co-owner Tess Posthumus has been nominated many years running for the best international bartender at the Spirited Awards, and she shows off her mixologist chops here with a focus on – as they refer to them – (neo)-classic cocktails, many of which are based on recipes up to 400 years old. Spirit connoisseurs, take note: Flying Dutchmen holds more than 800 bottles behind the softly lit bar, the largest backbar in the Netherlands.

Address: Singel 460, 1017 AW, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Open daily, from 5pm-4am
Expect to pay: €15-25 for cocktails

Neighbourhood: Jordaan 

If you’re after a down-and-dirty dive bar, look no further. Soundgarden is an Amsterdam institution – an unpretentious, authentic spot that has resolutely refused gentrification. You know, the sort of place where the decor hasn’t been changed in decades. Proper old school. Soundgarden plays loud rock music, has a wonderful terrace overlooking the water, and a battered pool table. It’s an absolute gem.

Address: Marnixstraat 164-166, 1016 TL, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Sunday to Thursday, from noon-1am; and Friday to Saturday, from noon-3am
Expect to pay: €4-7 for beer, €10-14 for cocktails, €10-18 for burgers and bar snacks.

Neighbourhood: Amsterdam Oost

A beach bar in the centre of town? Say hello to the best summer hangout. Alongside sand, this is a nightclub, live-music venue, open-air hangout and occasional techno playground all rolled into one gloriously chaotic waterside space in Amsterdam Oost. Built from shipping containers, reclaimed wood, and huge terraces, Strand van Oost captures the anything-goes energy that Amsterdam nightlife has been missing a bit in recent years. During the day, people sprawl out in deckchairs with beers and pizzas; by night, things regularly escalate into DJ sets, dancing and full-blown parties under the lights. 

Address: Linnaeusstraat 2, 1092 CK, Amsterdam
Opening hours: Wednesday to Thursday, from 4pm-1am; Friday, from 4pm-3am; Saturday, from noon-3am; and Sunday, from noon-11pm
Expect to pay: €5-8 for beer, €11-15 for cocktails, and €10-18 for pizzas and street food.