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New in Town (January + February 2025)

Welcome to our winter special with new finds and ones you may have missed - from Salvo’s pop-up in the city centre to a Turkish eatery in Zeeburg that’s got everyone starry-eyed.

Tom Flanagan

Culture Editor at iamsterdam.com covering online and print (I amsterdam magazine). likes: nostalgia. dislikes: overhead lighting.

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ASOP Café

Amsterdam has become something of a hub for wine bars and specialty coffee places, but there’s still room for those who combine the two. ASOP (not the soap) Café brings those two worlds together with a sister venture dubbed A Sense of Place, a wine shop that is now home to the café. Housed in a former garage – which has previously played host to a curtain shop and theatre – ASOP is located unobrtusively in a back street of the Jordaan. But behind its leafy garage-like front, you’ll find deep cavernous space, where rows of wine bottles and expertly poured coffee await. Run by Lucas Hernandez, a native of Barcelona who now calls Amsterdam home, he takes a curated approach to all the coffee, pairing it in accordance with some of the small bites on the menu – usually seasonal toasts from sweet to savoury, like toasted sourdough with coffee butter. Everything is locally sourced and high quality, and while the menu is small, the offering is excellent. ASOP is the kind of place worth whiling away a Sunday afternoon in when the rain hits – and grabbing a bottle to go for later. 

ASOP Cafe by Amplify | open Tues-Sun, 09:00-16:00 | price range €-€€ |  Willemsstraat 141, City-centre

TULA

Mezcal is having a moment in Amsterdam if the wave of taquerias and cocktail bars (think Salmuera and MaisMais) including it on the menu are anything to go by. TULA cantina is another venture that makes mezcal, in part, the star – though there’s plenty more to love about this sun-baked hideout in Noord than just its drinks. Located right next to long-time Mexican favourite Coba, TULA brings some early morning and late-night feeling to this corner of Noord. Every morning, you’ll find freshly baked concha – a type of sweet brioche-like bread laced with vanilla and tonka bean, while at night, mezcal-based cocktails infused with chorizo for a savoury twist lead the lineup. There’s also horchata – a Mexican rice-based drink – mocktails, and corn bread (pan de elote), meaning you’ll be swept off to sunnier lands whenever you visit ( there are no reservations, so rock up spontaneously like you were meant to). 

TULA | open Wed-Sat, 09:00 till late | price range €-€€ | Schaafstraat 4B, Noord

Esra

Oost knows its way around Turkish and Middle-Eastern food. And new spot Esra looks to cement this neighbourhood’s reputation as a hub for Turkish fare. Run by Selin Kiazim – a Londoner with Turkish-Cypriot heritage known for her Shoreditch restaurant, Oklava – you’ll find this intimate restaurant in the northeasterly corner of Zeeburg. Complete with à la carte menu that features seasonal ingredients from local Dutch suppliers alongside small-producer wines from Turkey and the Med, there’s a lot to love at first glance. Here, traditional Turkish cooking techniques and fusion methods combine; expect zesty countertop meze with Turkish bread, as well as meat, seafood and vegetables cooked over an open fire. From whipped feta crostini with candied pumpkin and slow-roasted lamb with coriander and fenugreek tepsi (a traditional Turkish traybake) to spiced rice pudding with barbecued quince and sumac pecan crumble, this is the spot to indulge.

Esra | open Wed-Sun, 18:00-22:00 | price range €€-€€€ | C. van Eesterenlaan 35, Oost

Loop 51

The other day, someone asked us what a listening bar really was. After all, they said, isn’t every bar a listening bar in some way or form? A place to take in the atmosphere, conversation and music. That’s true, in part, but more recently, bars that specialise in special curation of music and sound have come to fore, driven by passionate vinyl collectors, curators of niche and forgotten genres and DJs who want a calmer outlook. It’s why places like Loop 51 are popping up – though not all of them do things  A venue that focuses as much on daytime events as nighttime is this brunch slash listening bar, which is for those of you who like to get into the breakfast groove. During the day, feast on buttermilk fried chicken and waffles, while from 17:00 onwards, selected DJs get their vinyls out to add a little ambience, atmosphere, and music for an all-day and night affair.

Loop 51 | open Wed-Sun, 10:00-18:00/22:00 (Fri+Sat) | price range €€-€€€ | Dusartstraat 51, De Pijp

Jinweide Beef Noodles

Noodles are in right now. Leidseplein’s Xi’an Delicious Foods and Lanzhou Noodles in Zuid have been the epicentre for noodle lovers, but newcomer Jinweide Beef Noodles makes for a newer and equally excellent option. This popular Chinese chain, which opened its first Amsterdam location last month, offers hand-pulled halal noodles rooted in the Hui Muslim community of China’s northwestern Gansu province. Expect generous bowls of their classic beef hand-pulled noodles (€14.95 or €9.99 at lunchtime Mon-Thurs) including a tea egg and a complimentary side salad like shredded potato, cabbage, wood ear and carrot.

Jinweide Beef Noodles | open all week, 11:30-21:00 | price range €-€€ | Hobbemakade 63, Oud-Zuid

Salvo Basement

If a pistachio cookie could talk, it would tell you to go to Salvo. The popularity of Salvo’s original hangout in West has meant its sought other pastures to cater to demand. This pop-up on the Keizergracht brings all the things you love – so pistachio cookies, sourdough bread and a new Salvo signature cake dubbed the hojicha caramel milk cake which is nutty, indulgent and so so moreish.

Salvo Basement | open Wed—Sun, 10:00-17:00 | price range €-€€ | Keizersgracht 703, City Centre

Late mentions (but good ones)

These aren’t as new as the above but they’re just as worthy in case you missed them. 

Taco Lindo West

The question as to whether you can find good Mexican food in Europe seems to have found an answer in Taco Lindo, which opened midway through 2024, where no-frills tacos and street eats star here. Key dish? Taco Lindo claim their birria tacos to be Amsterdam’s juiciest – and so far, people seem to agree. 

Taco Lindo | open Wed-Sun, 12:00-21:00 (17:00-21:00 Wed + Thurs) | price range €-€€ | Haarlemmerweg 509, BoLo

Bodega at SkateCafe

Spanish fare and late-night eats? Skatecafe is always a good choice but this brings the buzzy Noord eatery some Mediterranean flair. The best part? It’s open till very late (and there’s only one to find out how late!)

Skatecafé | open Thurs-Sat, 15:00-03:00 (until 01:00 on Thurs) | price range €€-€€ | Gedempt Hamerkanaal 42, Noord

KWIE KWIE

There’s no shortage of choice when it comes to Surinamese food in Amsterdam and this pop-up at Barracuda Bar brings some of its best snacks to this seafood pioneer. Think saoto soup, roasted bananas, and seabass with okra as just some of the options with star power. 

KWIE KWIE | open Thurs-Sat, 17:00-01:00 | price range €-€€ | Aambeeldstraat 28, Noord

Tom Flanagan

Culture Editor at iamsterdam.com covering online and print (I amsterdam magazine). likes: nostalgia. dislikes: overhead lighting.

Follow Tom