Meet and Eat: That’s ‘Sir’ hummus to you, sir
They tell me they didn’t even announce the opening – just tore down the paper covering the windows, a gesture to their neighbourhood that they were open, that everyone was welcome. Six months later and you can still tune in to those local vibes (..more)
Your daily bread at Pekmarkt
Considering how many people were at the IJ-Hallen last weekend, it’s safe to say that markets are a way to go. If you need another moment to consider the investment someone’s sinking into an old tram depot around the corner from the suddenly-on-the-map Ten Katemarkt, take that moment, too. (..more)
A harbour rises at De Ceuvel
De Ceuvel has risen out of the toxic wastelands and waters of a former industrial plot in Noord, forming a sustainable urban development floating on the backs of disused houseboats, beached like whales. The hub will be a hive for creative and social enterprises and, once the artists, architects, cooks, urban planners and designers have moved in, will be testament to the importance of smart urban planning in our pursuit of sustainability. At the very least, it’s a nice place to read your book and drink a beer. (..more)
Public goes public
Even though we’ve been told that the Netherlands had slouched its way out of recession, not all is as it once was. Especially in terms of funding (unless you were a part of the disproportionate police operation to raid the Valreep); a life stream crucial to the cultural sector. (..more)
Tank tops, tunes, you and Harry
Sustainable fashion brand and way of life ‘Harry’ was launched Thursday 10 April at brother and sister store, Charlie + Mary. It was a more than a celebration of a pretty new thing to wear; it was the birthday party of our newest friend and the first day of a new way of life. (..more)
Proost, Troost
The second brewery I visited in as many weeks after was Troost, newly opened in de Pijp. Can and should the experiences be compared? (..more)
Butcher’s Tears is a sea of gold
The location couldn't be more unlikely. An old garage in Oud Zuid a few doors down from an ambulance depot. Inside, the place is clinical; bare and tiled white like a butchers. A good time to introduce one of the butchers then (amongst his friends): the brewer at Butcher’s Tears. (..more)
Be a barista at Lot Sixty One
Perhaps I’m a little behind the curve in adding my observations to those already growing stale surrounding the Rise of the Barista, but then not all observers have had the vantage point I enjoyed last Friday: behind the barista’s bar for a two hour workshop. This was on a Friday in a city where at the best of times it’s hard to tell what people do for a living because they’re always out having coffee, let alone on Fridays where even if these people do work during the week, they certainly don’t on Fridays. (..more)
No rum but cake at Rum Baba
Because we’re still on the right pages of the calendar to be talking of new beginnings, I thought I might try out the newest coffee addition on my way home from my newest ritual of (sometimes) doing yoga. However, had I realised that half of Oost’s young mothers were also thinking they’d ‘just stop by for a cup of coffee on a Saturday after a morning’s whatever’ (with their kids so probably no yoga but certainly a bakfiets ride to the market later), I wouldn’t have gone. Or at least not on a Saturday. (..more)
The beautiful HungryPeople
Facebook, the NSA, Google+, food, Instagram; social networking, its benefits and failures, and how it lead to HungryPeople. Have a social bite! (..more)