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Global Chillage
This relaxed shop with friendly staff looks like a little forest with trippy murals and chilled-out music (African and jazzy beats), populated by happy smokers relaxing on comfortable couches.
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Gollem
Gollem, the undisputed pioneer of Amsterdam's brown cafes, is a minuscule space literally covered in archival beer paraphernalia (old coasters, bottles and posters). The 200 beers on offer, both on tap and in the bottle, attract lots of drinkers, which, after all is the reason that beer was invented.
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Greenhouse
One of the most popular coffeeshops in town. Smokers love the funky music, multicoloured mosaics, psychedelic stained-glass windows and the high-quality weed and hash. The central location near the Dam is a plus.
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Grey Area
Owned by a couple of laid-back American guys, this tiny shop introduced the extra-sticky, flavoursome 'Double Bubble Gum' weed to the city's smokers. It also keeps up the wonderful American tradition of coffee refills (it's organic). It keeps shorter hours than most coffeeshops.
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Herberg Hooghoudt
Situated on lovely Reguliersgracht, this venerable café still bears the hallmarks of the Hooghoudt Distillery founded in Groningen in the late 19th century. You can try a gamut of jenevers , liqueurs and vodkas, or warm up with a korenwijn right out of a barrel on the bar. Note the earthenware pots still used to give the firewater its special flavour.
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Het Groot Melkhuis
Kind of a Goldilocks apparition, this huge thatched house at the forest's edge inviting you in. The huge dining forecourt, playground and amazing selection of chewing gum machines cater to family and all kidlike guests.
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Het Ketelhuis
In the old gas works, the three screening rooms have a chic post-industrial vibe and comfy seats; it's a great platform for art-house films. It also has a cosy café.
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Het Papeneiland
You won't be the only tourist visiting this café, but that doesn't make it any less worthwhile. It's a 1642 gem with Delft-blue tiles and a central stove. The name, 'Papists' Island', goes back to the Reformation when there was a clandestine Catholic church on the north side of the canal. By some accounts you got there via a secret tunnel from the top of the stairs.
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Hill Street Blues
Feels more like a lounge bar than a coffeeshop, with jazz lounge music, an in-the-groove vibe and an international swathe of visitors. Firm bean-bag stools and comfy benches make great stations for watching the life forms on busy Nieuwmarkt. Once you've settled in on the terrace, try a blended smoothie with yoghurt or fresh fruit, or one of its phenomenal chocolate shakes, a perfect antidote to the munchies.
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Homegrown Fantasy
Quality Dutch-grown product, pleasant staff, good tunes and famous space cakes make this popular with backpackers from nearby hostels. Patrons make use of the 3m-long glass bongs to smoke hydroponic weed.
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Hoppe
The constantly-packed brown cafe known only as Hoppe has been serving its patrons for more than 300 years and is a place where some serious drinking gets done: Hoppe has the city's highest beer turnover (250,000 litres a year). With its beer barrels and recycled church pews for seats, this dark bar has a cosy ambience.
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In 'T Aepjen
This funny little bar, one of the oldest in Amsterdam, got its name 'In the Monkey' from the lice-carrying beasts kept by the original owner; sailors lodging here left with an itch they could scratch. The story goes that a customer couldn't pay his bill and settled the debt with a monkey. The place is stuffed with old toys and advertising signs.
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In De Wildeman
This former distillery tasting house has been transformed into an atmospheric yet quiet beer café with over 200 bottled beers, 18 varieties on tap and a smokefree area. Locals rave about the choice of Trappist ales, the huge selection from Belgium and the Netherlands, and the potent French 'Belzebuth' (13% alcohol!).
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Jazz Café Alto
A slightly older crowd of jazz lovers is the kind of punter you'll find inside, toe-tapping to serious jazz and blues at this small (and packed) brown cafe. If you can, try to catch tenor saxophonist Hans Dulfer (father of Candy) and band. You can't miss the place - keep an eye out for the big sax on the facade.
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Kamer 401
This glamorous bar glows at night, as do the gorgeous-looking cocktail-drinking young locals who pack the place til late. With DJs providing a funky soundtrack, it's perfect for pre-clubbing drinks.
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Kandinsky
Those not into the grungy, hippy feel of most Amsterdam coffeeshops love Kadinsky for its clean, contemporary style, funky music, friendly service and infamous space cakes. Alcohol is no longer available (it's the new coffeeshop law, folks) but is readily sold at its café opposite.
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Khl
Proof of how far this district has come, KHL is a one-time squatter café gone legit. Next to the Lloyd Hotel, it's a historic brick building with great tilework, and the garden is worth a glass or two. There's often music on weekends, everything from Latin to pop to Klezmer.
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Korsakoff
Going strong since the late '80s and still grungy after all these years, this iconic hard-rock and alternative-music venue attracts a young and oh-so-cool clientele who front up each night with appetites that are whetted for lashings of punk, metal and goth. Korsakoff opens late and closes even later.
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Kriterion
This UvA-student-run theatre-café has a great array of premieres, theme parties, classics, kids' flicks and more. This former diamond factory became a movie theatre after WWII to help resistance fighters earn an income.
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La Tertulia
A backpackers' favourite, this mother-and-daughter-run coffeeshop has a greenhouse feel. You can either sit outside by the Van Gogh-inspired murals, play some board games, or take in those Jurassic-sized crystals by the counter.
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Lellebel
This hole-in-the wall just off Rembrandtplein has karaoke, singing and comedy shows that bring out the best in any girl's wardrobe. It can get bitchy, but always in the funniest possible way.
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Lime
Small but perfectly formed Lime, with its ever-changing, kitsch-cool interior and upbeat grooves, is the perfect pre-club pit stop. The DJs and cocktails might just keep you there till morn.
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Lisboa
At weekends, this restaurant-club boat moored behind the C1000 supermarket hosts jazz artists such as trumpeter Saskia Laroo and Brazilian samba bands.
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Lokaal 'T Loosje
With its beautiful etched-glass windows and tile tableaux on the walls, this is one of the oldest and prettiest cafés in the Nieuwmarkt area. It attracts a vibrant mix of students, locals and tourists.
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Lux
One of several happening bars along this street, attracting beautiful young Amsterdammers and expats-in-the-know - good DJs keep the crowds happy and the bar staff very, very, busy.
