On beans

The friendly barrista's at Expressofabriek are teaching me about coffee beans.
I adore the Brazilian Santos Espresso Arabica bean for my espresso.
The Panama Esmeralda Special 100% Geisha is great for regular coffee.

Both available from Boot (The Golden Coffee Box) Koffie (seriously nobody has paid me for that statement).

Coffee Company @ Haarlemmerdijk & Binnen Oranjestraat

In Amsterdam, coffee company has been rapidly expanding before the *$$$ juggernaut lands in the city. (During last year they have opened at the airport and various train stations.) I think the original coffee company is the one I frequent on the Haarlemmerdijk (the street that has become Amsterdam's foodie-heaven, but still has a full complement of ordinary, high quality shops); it's been open for just over a decade. The coffee has a high average quality, and they keep trying to get the snacks right (still work in progress). They cut down on the free wifi, and now one gets an hour with a coffee order. Not generous, but still workable.

THis is definitely place for people watching. The area has gentrified, but is still a cross-roads for lots of bike and walking traffic in and out of town. There is a big long table along big tall windows, and lots of creative industry types, a few day-traders, and students share view(s). I have met a few damn good logicians, too. For out of towners, who don't like the club scene, this is even a place to start a social life, or get a lot of work done. On week-ends it gets too busy, but it stays open until 7pm most days of the year.

Grotere kaart weergeven
For food...a block down there is a very small Iranian sandwhich store with the best (Mediterranean spreads in town); and very cheap. Yummy!

For those who plan on visiting NYC

See these links:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/10/dining/10coffee.html?_r=1

http://www.salon.com/food/international_cuisine/index.html?story=%2Ffood%2Ffeature%2F2010%2F08%2F25%2Famerican_espresso&source=newsletter&utm_source=contactology&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Salon_Daily+Newsletter+%28Not+Premium%29_7_30_110

I like that McNally's Bookstore made it in top 40 (although their teas may be better):

Espressofabriek

One of the best places for coffee in all of Amsterdam is De Espressofabriek in the old Westergasfabriek (to be found in Westerpark), although its official address is:
Gosschalklaan 7. http://www.espressofabriek.nl/westergasfabriek.html There is another outlet at Ijberg (a supposedly trendy part of Amsterdam on one of the harbor islands, but in my humble opinion that place is basically a Vinexwijk for well connected middle-class families), but I won't go there.

The coffee is absolutely superb; even Italian tourists are impressed. (A bunch of them found their way to the usually very quiet upstairs--the stairs are hidden behind the barrista's.) The brownies and muffins are addictive, too. Better yet, the place has free wifi (and clean toilets); the password is... But foodies will be left hungry. Worse, on sunny weekends (admittedly rare in Amsterdam), the place is a zoo. The lead manager of the place is a terribly self-satisfied barrista, who thinks of his craft as an art that needs to be admired slowly. Moreover, he doesn't mind letting tall blondes skip the very long cues that develop due to his out-sized narcissism. But when he is gone and on ordinary week-days, the place is among my favorite hide-abouts. The barristas live all over Holland, and they make long trecks (treks?) to serve the very best coffee to a growing group of appreciative customers.

Note to the computerfreaks: I have been unable to find a picture of espressofabriek on google.pictures.

Cafe Daalder

Cafe Daalder is at the corner of Lindengracht 90. The owners of the place, Frans and Wilke, are our neighbors, so I need to be careful!:) Despite its name, the Lindengracht is not a canal anymore. But it is a quiet street that is mostly used for outdoor parking except on market-days (Saturday). There has been a market for over a century which tells you how long it has not been a a canal. There are terrific Greek, Indonesian, and Japanese take-out places around the square and side-streets.

Daalder has free wifi (the pass-word is Frans' birthday). The coffee is decent, but not superb. I was a huge fan of the tuna sandwich. But they have unaccountably removed that from the menu. During the day it is a very mellow bar with a leisurely atmosphere. The wait-staff knows who you are and will leave you alone. People, including some of Holland's best known artists and writers, come to read the daily newspaper and not to be disturbed. Moms with children like to sit outside on the ample terrace (when sunny). I like the fried cheese sandwich.

In the evening it turns into a busy bar and a lovely restaurant. In particular, when Frans is in the kitchen (he is the bold one), the menu really comes alive with a mixture of salads, steaks, and fish--all for a reasonable price. There is some terrific finger foods.

Newsflash: Letting to be sold!

My favorite and much beloved Letting http://coffeespotamsterdam.blogspot.com/2010/07/one-of-my-favesand-its-neighbor.html has been sold, and will start under new ownership after July 26. (Apparently new ownership is a couple with British roots.) Word is that little will change (and coffee-cards honored) until the end of year after which a new concept will be unveiled.

Besides great coffee (and cookies), free wifi, and delicious sandwiches, Dennis whose generosity of spirit makes the shabby chic of Letting glow with joy will be much much missed. He's moving with Let and Ing to their pancake place a few blocks up the Prinsengracht. It is to be hoped he will open his own place sometime in the future.

http://maps.google.nl/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=nl&geocode=&q=prinsenstraat+3,+amsterdam&sll=52.377914,4.887379&sspn=0.000725,0.00236&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Prinsenstraat+3,+1015+Amsterdam,+Noord-Holland&ll=52.379817,4.887371&spn=0.0115,0.037766&z=15&layer=c&cbll=52.377696,4.88738&panoid=miPok-MZ07y6FZ_IPKjmuA&cbp=12,208.28,,0,17.64

Boycott Tazzina!

Today my fiancee had an emergency stop at Tazzina in order to discretely breastfeed our 7,6 month old son. (She has a Brittish sensibility so she is very polite about such things.) Anyway, She was told to cover up her breast, or leave! In AMSTERDAM (after customer complaint by a Dutch man)! Mind you the law permits breastfeeding in public, but not in Belgium by the way.
Anyway, it's official: I call for a boycott of Tazzina!

To put this in perspective:a few days ago I already called attention to their lousy attitude:
http://coffeespotamsterdam.blogspot.com/2010/07/great-coffee-lousy-attitide.html