r/Amsterdam • u/AutoModerator • 6d ago
Question Weekly Q&A - All Questions Go Here (Especially Tourists)
This is the place for anyone to ask questions about Amsterdam. If you are a tourist visiting Amsterdam, you are moving to or recently arrived in Amsterdam, or you just have a basic question about life in Amsterdam and want some advice, this is the place to post your question. This post is refreshed every week on Sunday. Please feel free to repost in subsequent weeks.
READ THE WIKI FIRST. The people answering questions are locals who want to share the city they love with visitors, but only with people who make an effort. Read at least the Essential Tourist Information in our world-famous wiki before you ask a question. Otherwise, you may be told to go back and read it. The wiki is written by us, and updated when relevant. If the entries are old it's because nothing has changed. There are no "hidden gems" that we have not already included in the wiki. You may also check wikivoyage for more general tips on everything that is Amsterdam.
HOTELS ARE EXPENSIVE AND WE DON'T HAVE GOOD ADVICE ON THEM. Because we live here, we don't know what the best hotels are. Amsterdam is one of the most touristed cities in the world and has the highest hotel prices in Europe and prices go up every year. The city is deliberately trying to reduce tourism by raising the prices. There really isn't a secret "cheap" solution. Most "Airport" hotels are not connected to the Airport and will be more trouble getting to than it's worth.
TOURISTS CAN PURCHASE MARIJUANA, DESPITE WHAT YOU READ IN FOREIGN PRESS. Understand that the coffeeshops are just a tiny part of Amsterdam, so posts that treat Amsterdam like it's the Las Vegas of drugs sometimes get a negative response. We're happy to give you advice about coffeeshops and to discuss drug policy. The experts are our friends at /r/AmsterdamEnts, ask them the big questions.
WE DON'T HELP WITH ILLEGAL STUFF AND WILL BAN YOU FOR ASKING. We will not help you with things that are clearly illegal. Coffeeshops caught selling to minors get shut down and everyone loses their jobs. Authorities check for people smuggling marijuana out of the country. Hard drugs are illegal and so is asking for or selling them on Reddit.
WE DON'T ALLOW TICKET SALES OR TRADING. We do not allow selling, buying, or trading tickets on /r/Amsterdam due to the high rate of fraud. You should do everything on ticketswap.nl. We're aware that is difficult to get tickets to Anne Frank, van Gogh, etc. We have no solutions for you, sorry.
RED LIGHT DISTRICT Please be respectful and keep in mind this is a citysubreddit, and not your personal kink google. You can also can get some good tips from these threads of RLD sex workers: here and here.
USE PUBLIC TRANSIT TO GET AROUND 9292.nl is a great resource for plotting your movement around the city and between Amsterdam and other places. We strongly recommend against using taxis or Ubers.
DOE AARDIG. There is Dutch directness and there is rudeness. The people coming here don't know how we do things, and are usually well-meaning people who just want to enjoy the city we love. Be kind to them. For the tourists and new residents, please remember that we are not Google; respect our time by doing some basic research first and then asking your questions like you're speaking to a real human who is volunteering to speak to you.
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u/wolfsister31 12h ago
Hallo! My partner and I have a reservation at the van gogh museum tomorrow (18/10/2026) at 11:30. Will we still be able to get there with the marathon? Any advice for getting around welcome!
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u/Excellent_Lemon_5237 18h ago
Hi all,
Looking to take driving lessons and a test in Amsterdam.
My track record is 1) Abandon (car died 2 minutes from end of the test - this has literally cost me thousands of pounds). 2) Opportunistic test 4 months later in coventry as a slot became available (full in London), failed. 3) Over a year later from 1st attempt, fail.
I'm loathe to spend all the money to get the license for something I hardly ever use, but I will probably have to for various reasons.
My question is, ideally, has anyone specifically done their test in both London and Amsterdam? How difficult are they comparatively? Failing that, anyone done a test somewhere in the UK and somewhere in the Netherlands and can compare?
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u/trevcharm 22h ago
did anyone else hear the 2 loud explosions tonight around 3am?
I think the first was about 250am, second was about 315am.
sounded like it was somewhere near Sloten, Osdorp, or Lijnden.
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u/Disastrous_Ant3479 1d ago
When I go to Amsterdam I plan to go to escape nightclub. There is no event on, just a normal Saturday night. Will I need to book tickets or anything to go or can I just turn up at the door and get in?
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u/TheKr0w 1d ago
Hi!
Visiting soon from the UK, our first time. 2 adults 1 child aged 8. Staying at the Corendon New-West Tribute Hotel without a car.
What is the best way to get around from our hotel and where would you recommend we check out? There for a weekend in November.
Any help appreciated! Thanks :)
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u/pala4833 Knows the Wiki 1d ago
Public transit. Tram #2 is a 5 min. walk from your hotel. Use gvb.nl for information and Goggle Maps works fine for trip planning. You can tap in and out with your bank card. You'll need a card for each passenger, so you may have to pay separately for the kid.
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u/crackanape Snorfietsers naar de grachten 23h ago
There's an all-day ticket for children ages 4-11 for €5 which will probably work out than paying per ride. That can be purchased using the GVB app.
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u/MadridNewbie 1d ago
How long is it normal to wait for landlord decisions after making rental offers?
My husband and I just moved to Amsterdam for work. We have temporary accommodation for a month while we find somewhere to live. Lots of people told me it would take longer to find somewhere, but my employer paid a relocation consultant to help us and she assured us that we’d find something in time. We‘re now half way through the month and have nothing, and I’m getting concerned 😬
Part of the problem is our relocation agent won’t let us register interest in multiple apartments at once. They say there‘s no point submitting non-binding expressions of interest because landlords won’t consider them when they have real offers on the table. And they say we can only make one real offer at a time because they’re legally binding and we can’t risk two getting accepted. But landlords are taking so long to respond to offers, it feels like we’re just constantly stuck waiting to hear back and I don’t know how long we should be waiting each time.
Do people really only make one offer at a time when searching for somewhere to rent, or do people who aren’t using agencies just submit multiple offers at once? And when you have had offers accepted on rentals, how long was that typically after you made the offer? I’m concerned that if we haven’t heard back from a landlord within a couple of days that might mean they’re moving ahead with someone else and just keeping us as backup, but I don’t know if that’s something that happens. (Especially because estate agents keep telling us landlord will make their decision next day, but then 5 days later they haven’t made a decision and the estate agent won’t give us any info except that there were 9 offers so it’s taking a while 😭)
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u/Both-Actuator6710 2d ago
Hi everyone, I am looking for a guy named Eric from Amsterdam who was visiting Seville, Spain, a few weeks ago. On Saturday, September 5th, we met at Bar Kepler in Seville. He was on vacation with his friend Daan (44 years old, divorced with two kids), and they were flying back to Amsterdam on Sunday morning. There was an amazing chemistry between Eric and me. Unfortunately, Daan got a bit upset about something and abruptly took Eric away before we could exchange phone numbers or social media. I really regret losing touch with him. If you are Eric, or if you know an Eric who just went to Seville with his friend Daan, please send me a direct message (DM). I would love to reconnect! Thank you so much!
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u/YesterdayOk4549 Expat 2d ago
Hello everybody!
I have moved to Amsterdam and have been trying to find jobs mainly in floral design, since I have experience in the field but haven't heard back from many of the studios I have emailed and sent my portfolio, and the ones that did get back to me were not hiring. I was wondering if there are any tips to find a job in this field, any info that I'm missing about the current market situation or anything else that might be useful to know.
I'm also looking into event planning jobs, theatre backstage crew jobs, basically a lot of hands-on visual/artistic/creation-based jobs, but not much luck.
I am an EU citizen, I do not speak Dutch, I have studied arts and architecture and I have experience in Horeca, Building Design, Floral Design, Gardening, Landscaping as well as a couple Administrative jobs.
Thank you in advance for your help!
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u/nilsrva Knows the Wiki 16h ago
Lack of Dutch will hinder you greatly. NL is #1 flower market in the world, so there is no shortage of Dutch to fill those roles- and if you could hire someone who speaks English and Dutch or someone who just speaks English which would you choose?
Stage/film tech might be the better route. You will need to look outside Amsterdam though. There is a lot of production based in Hilversum and Rotterdam
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u/Unusual-Fuel3001 2d ago
The job market is not as good as it used to be for many fields, including yours. If a studio serves Dutch clients, they probably prefer an employee who speaks Dutch.
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u/501102 Knows the Wiki 3d ago
How to best dispose of such mops and buckets? mine are beyond re-use and are ready for the graveyard. Does this qualify as bulky-waste per the gemeente-terminology?
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u/RoderickJaynes67 3d ago
The bucket will fit into the container that takes garbage bags. Are you sure the pole can't be fitted with a new mop?
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u/Particular_West_8295 4d ago
Can't Seem to find an Apartment Anywhere
I (25 M) and my wife (26 F) just moved to Amsterdam in August. We came for a graduate program I was accepted to with some savings and a plan to find an apartment. We make about 4200 Euros cumulatively and we've been searching vigorously for an apartment. Every day we apply to all the apartments that are sent to us on Rent Hunter. Every day we also check Pararius, Funda, and Kamernet.
We don't qualify for most student housing since my wife is not a student, but we've been looking just about everywhere else I can think of. We've opened up our search radius too to find more apartments to apply for. We've looked in Haarlem, Utrecht, Amstelveen, and plenty of other smaller towns close enough to commute to. Can anyone chime in with something we've been doing wrong? I can't think of what we've been doing that's scaring off these landlords. Are we looking for a room in all the wrong places or is the market really that bad? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Note: we're not against moving in with roommates but we would need to register us both with the municipality and so have been having a tough time with roomshares as a result.
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u/RoderickJaynes67 3d ago
The market is as bad as you say.
Ultimately it means giving up on location. Try searching further and further out of town. Once you've landed somewhere, you can continue efforts to find something better.
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u/Kitarn [Oost] 3d ago
Historic housing crisis. Finding a job in Amsterdam isn't the hardest part of getting to live here. Landlords are in a position to demand proof of income 3-4 times the monthly rent and to only rent to people with stable working situations. Your budget puts you in the most competitive part of the market.
The situation isn't a lot better in those other cities you mentioned.
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u/throwawayyy19283747 4d ago
What on earth are you guys doing? What is all of your guys issues? What on god’s green earth did I do to you people? I flew into the city because it looked interesting, but I’m never going back, and I’m telling all of my friends to never go there either. What is wrong with all of you. I had a great time at my hotel, at my activities, but people on the street are just screaming at me. For what? I had so many horrible experiences. For what? I visited the Rijks museum with my friends and thought Dutch culture was cool because of it. But apparently it caused all of you to have such an issue with me… because I got hungry?! I left, found a nearby fries spot, and ate there. But this one food vendor ´T Museumpleintje was screaming at me at the top of her lungs, screaming to tell me to get out of there and that’s for paying customers only. I genuinely had no clue. The seats all look identical. I actually did not know. I found a different food spot and got food and my biggest issue was that I sat down somewhere and this woman from ´T Museumpleintje was screaming at me, causing the biggest scene, having literally EVERYONE around us staring at us, like we just broke the law.. I had no idea. Once she told me to get out, I just walked away. It wouldn’t have been such a big deal, I just left. Why didn’t she just ask me nicely. Why did she have to yell at me and cause the biggest scene? I never felt so humiliated in any of my trips. What is your guys issues?
Is it a brown thing? You saw me and I was brown and that’s why you did that? What on earth was that? I had to walk by again to go to the van gough museum and the lady was staring me down.. what on earth did I do? Why are you all doing this to a brown guy? What on earth did we do? I’m genuinely nice and as polite as I can be to anyone anywhere I’m visiting, but I had no idea someone could just scold me like that. It was so confusing. I’m so lost. I not only never want to visit Amsterdam again, but I never want to spend a dollar supporting that city, that area, or even that part of Europe. I will actively fight against anyone going to this place, ever spending a dime on here, ever. I can’t handle someone talking to me like this or to my family. No human being should be talked to like that. There wasn’t even a sign. This is the most tourist heavy area in the entire city, where on earth would anyone be able to figure out sitting on a bench would warrant such humiliation. Is this a racism thing? Is it that bad in this area of the continent?
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u/crackanape Snorfietsers naar de grachten 3d ago
Is this a racism thing?
Were all the other brown people (and there are plenty of us) getting screamed at too? Or only you?
Working that out could help you answer your own question.
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u/shibalore 4d ago
Is there a place where I could grab some scrap piece of wood?
Everyone sells the big pieces. I barely know what I'm doing and just trying to make a shelf for my weirdly proportioned dog with IVDD, to use to place her bowls on. It doesn't have to be that big.
Thank you!
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u/crackanape Snorfietsers naar de grachten 3d ago
Contractors are tossing wood scraps of all sizes into their skips, which you'll find in parking spaces in residential areas all over the city, all day long. Bike around for 10 minutes and you'll surely find one. They are happy if you take it out of there as long as you don't make a mess or un-compact the load.
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u/PQ_ Moord-en-brand-buurt 4d ago
Someone dumped a bunch of pallets here and they've been there for a week now: https://maps.app.goo.gl/HwcQ8CxJtiyYKWV79
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u/wag0n_wheels 4d ago
Hi all!
Me and my wife are on holiday in Amsterdam and are desperate to find some cool and cheap 2nd-hand clothing!!
We’ve seen lots of cool looking folks around the centre and outskirts and want to know where they all shop!
Anyone that can help us out would be amazing!
Thank you :)))
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u/Duochan_Maxwell Knows the Wiki 4d ago
Look for "kringloopwinkel" when you arrive, it's the local equivalent of Goodwill and other similar 2nd hand stores. You'll need to do some digging for the finds but they'll definitely be cheaper than the "curated" 2nd hand stores
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u/TrebleThrees 4d ago
Hi everyone,
I am due to stay in Amsterdam over the weekend and will be taking part in the Amsterdam Marathon which should be some great fun. I just have a question regarding possible running/jogging routes to give my legs a stretch out before race day.
My hotel is near the NEMO science museum and doesn't seem to be near any parks. Is it possible to run parallel to the waterways or would anyone have any directions for jogging routes near the museum?
Thank you
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u/K_R_O_O_N [Noord] - Oud-Noord 3d ago edited 3d ago
My go to route when living around there was:
Nemo > Entrepotdok > Zeeburgerpad > Veelaan> C. van Eesterenlaan > Around Borneoeiland > Around Sporenburg > Verbindingsdam > Around KNSM Island> Javakade > Kattenburgerstraat.
It's about 10km. If you skip the Borneoeiland, Sporenburg and KNSM it's about 6,5km.
Only two trafficlights on route with one almost at the finish (you can easily bypass the others). You can skip the one at the beginning of Kattenburgerstraat/Piet Heinkade by passing under road and rail near het Muziekgebouw/Passengerterminal and Klimhal Centraal and passing through Marineterrein.
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u/TrebleThrees 3d ago
Thank you K_R_O_O_N for the feedback here, I will give those places a visit over the next few days in the leadup thanks again
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u/crackanape Snorfietsers naar de grachten 3d ago
Yes many people run along the river behind Piet Heinkade. Also check out Javaeiland.
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u/Outthere15 5d ago
Clothes for April in Netherlands
Coming from from the sub tropics in Australia and struggling with clothing for Netherlands in April. So far I have thin long sleeve and short sleeve merino wool base layers a light weight polartec fleece a light weight rain jacket a light weight down vest, but am struggling with the outer coat. I'm not sure whether to biy the kathmandu epiq 600 loft down jacket which is considered mid weight or the kathmandu lighter weight heli down jacket. Any advise very welcome please.
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u/Bright_Week1755 1d ago
Layer!
A winter coat is a good idea for this time of the year. And an umbrella.4
u/According_Water_5774 4d ago
You can get all seasons in April so better to check nearer the time.
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u/idoubtedbelgium 5d ago
Just before midnight, we heard an insanely loud bang. It sounded like it came from quite far away from the city centre, but it was still incredibly loud. What was this?
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u/spaceguydudeman Knows the Wiki 5d ago
My phone is broken. It's a foldable phone. (Z Flip 5)
The inner screen functions fine, but the flex ribbon cable is damaged, which makes the touch screen only responsive when closed at a 90 degree angle.
I'm looking for a repair shop that can replace the flex ribbon cable without replacing the entire display. All shops I've called immediately tell me they can only replace the entire display for 430 euros, but I found YouTube videos clearly demonstrating that it's possible to just replace the flex cable itself, which is only a 25 euro part.
Any suggestions for phone shops that are willing to go the extra mile for their customers?
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u/IncaThink 4d ago
phone shops that are willing to go the extra mile for their customers?
Probably not. They need to make money and paying a crew member for an hour while replacing a €25 part doesn't pay the bills.
Also, if something goes wrong and they mess up your phone then everyone is unhappy. Risk/ Reward and all that.
Since the phone isn't really usable, maybe order the parts and tools and give it a shot yourself?
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u/spaceguydudeman Knows the Wiki 4d ago
They don't make too much money on patts anyway, it's mostly labour
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5d ago
[deleted]
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u/Jorshington [Oost] - Watergraafsmeer 5d ago
skip Heineken, go to any local craft brewery. redditors recommend t IJ but you can also just go for a tasting at any of the many options like Prael or Troost. for a nicer meal you have endless options. maybe try Kenneh, a fine dining west african place if you want something unique.
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u/enirih24c Amsterdammer 5d ago
Seconding Kenneh, absolutely lovely! You might also consider visiting a jenever distillery like A. van Wees or Wynand Fockink. For Dutch food you could also check out 't Heemelrijck.
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u/darkbee83 [Zuid-Oost] 5d ago edited 5d ago
Not saying you are/will, but please don't go around claiming you're Dutch, like many Americans tend to do; you're not.
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5d ago
[deleted]
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u/Jorshington [Oost] - Watergraafsmeer 5d ago
jezus wat ben je toch een zeikerd. if you don’t have anything nice to say don’t say it all.
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u/Latte_boy_22 5d ago
Hey everyone, I'm going to be visiting a friend in Amsterdam next week. I have a couple of days where my friend is busy, and so I'm making my own plans. I was thinking of taking a quick day trip to Antwerp on one of the days.
Are there any online groups or communities where I can find people who would be willing to tag along? Happy to create a group!
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u/bumblebuoy 5d ago
I am originally from the Midwest of US, where cheddar is amazing. I’ve tried the cheddar here at Albert Heijn and it’s absolutely disgusting, by far the worst cheddar, or any cheese for that matter, I’ve ever eaten. Where is the good cheddar?
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u/enirih24c Amsterdammer 5d ago
Agree, AH cheddar isn't great. Kelly's Expat Shop carries some UK brands and different ages. No idea if it's similar to the cheddar you have in the US.
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u/notassigned2023 5d ago
Try local cheese types while you are here. I was not a fan of Gouda back home but here it is quite tasty. Wisconsin Gouda is a pale imitation. Don‘t expect 5 year cheddar here.
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u/RoderickJaynes67 5d ago
In the UK.
We don't eat cheddar here because of the thousands of better kinds of cheeses available... at Albert Heijn
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u/crackanape Snorfietsers naar de grachten 4d ago
There are not thousands of kinds of cheese available at Albert Heijn. Maybe 30-40 if you're quite generous about what a "kind" is. Otherwise like 5-10.
The Netherlands makes one or two kinds of cheese very well but it is silly to claim that there's a wide diversity of cheeses (or really almost anything) available here; a trip to any other Western European country larger than Liechtenstein will quickly reveal this.
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u/weisswurstseeadler Knows the Wiki 5d ago
at Albert Heijn
...sorry to inform you, but most European countries have a much bigger cheese selection comparing average supermarkets.
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u/RoderickJaynes67 5d ago
We’re not talking about most European countries
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u/weisswurstseeadler Knows the Wiki 5d ago
you were speaking in such hyperbole that it sounded like AH was the cheese Mekka.
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u/bumblebuoy 5d ago edited 5d ago
Thanks, I agree, there are lots of great cheeses at AH, like the billion different types of Gouda!
But, I wouldn’t suggest someone eat strawberries if they were looking for the best blueberries. I wouldn’t suggest someone eat spaghetti if they were asking for the best fusilli. I wouldn’t suggest someone eat a croissant if they were asking for the best brioche.
It’s truly comical that your knee-jerk reaction is to just suggest… something else.
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u/Host_Horror [West] - Oud-West 6d ago
Would love a list of the best hummus places mainly looking for West, Zuid and the Centre but will definitely travel to Oost or Niewe West for something special.
My current favourite is Tetouan in the Dappermarkt.
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u/RoderickJaynes67 5d ago
Roos Supermarkt at Rozengracht sells hummus. Good in my opinion. Don’t know where they get it
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u/fraying_carpet Knows the Wiki 6d ago
There’s a great hummus seller at Ten Katemarkt. Forgot what it’s called but it’s easy to find.
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u/McStabbed 7h ago
Hi All, I am going to be in Amsterdam on the 29th of October, just for 2 days on the way home from a work trip. My plan is to try and fill those 2 days with as much as possible. I’m not interested in the drugs etc, but I do love a club etc. Any recommendations for what I should get up to would be great. I’ll be staying in the Hilton by Amsterdam central. TIA! :) M 27 from the UK.