The latest one to be drawn to my attention is in De Pijp, one of my old stamping grounds. My first Amsterdam flat wasn't far away. And De Pijp was an interesting, multicultutal neighbourhood with lots of odd specialist and ethnic shops.
Based on what I saw on Eerste van der Helststraat, those days are gone. The old shops on the short streeet have now mostly been replaced by various kinds of trendy emporia.The same gentrification that's sweeping most of Amsterdam inside the motorway ring.
The Wateringhole, I suppose, is a symptom of that process. I try to look on it in a positive way: another place to buy interesting beer. And it least it isn't another bloody trendy cofffee bar.
This was supposed to be just a photo essay. But I've ended up giving you far more words than intende. Yoiu'd best be grateful. I'll mostly let the pictures do the descriptive thingy. Bit cold looking inside. But that's the way these sort of places are decorated. The taps, in the form of amsterdammetjes, are pretty cool.
Rather too many imported beers in the selection. But that could just have been the day that I was there. And they did have St. Bernardus Christmas beer on draught. Also a snack that mostly consisted of strips of bacon with a tiny token sliver of bread.
The Wateringhole
Eerste van der Helststraat 72,
1073 Amsterdam.
Tel: +31 20 237 4714
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4 comments:
Hi Ron
I'll have to check that one out in June. Have you seen this place?
https://www.facebook.com/Foeders/
Cheers
..It's really werid..
Maybe 10+ years ago, I personally would have been enthusiastic about such places anywhere in europe.
But now.......it's like globally, most bigger cities have at least one such pub, in the "western world" often way more than one, and they all look and feel so alike. I mean heck, if you look past the salt and pepper labels on the tabels, it is hard to judge in which country, yet alone city, this pub is,it could be anywhere.
Don't get me wrong, I think there is pobably a lot worthwhile to drink there, it's just starting to feel generic and lifeless, part of a unified global beer geek culture. I admire that you try to see the positives about it, I'm not so sure if it is that easy for me to do so.
Elektrolurch,
I'm with you on the smainess of these places. Often true of the beer, too. I've seen the same beers in San Francisco and Copenhagen.
What's supposedly new, exciting and fresh just turns out to have been copied from somewhere else.
John,
no, hadn't heard of that. It really is hard to keep up in Amsterdam.
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