What Everybody Ought To Know About Amsterdam Coffee Shops and Brown Cafes
Do you know the difference between Amsterdam coffee shops and brown cafes? They both sound like places where you could stop for a bite to eat, though you might not be sure why one is brown.
This is one destination where you could be in for more of a surprise than you planned for if you just wander in for a cup of coffee. In Amsterdam coffee shops are totally different from cafes, restaurants, and even bars. Walk into one, and you're apt to get a buzz just from the smoke… and we're not talking cigarettes here.
In Amsterdam coffee shops are where the Dutch and tourists go to buy and smoke marijuana…. pot. What???
Yep, very little coffee here. Since the 1970s, the Dutch have been tolerant of "soft drugs", and it is legal for coffee shops to sell up to five grams of cannabis per person to their customers. You can smoke there or take it with you. There are laws that govern these shops.
They can't sell alcohol and cannabis on the same premises for instance. It's ironic that it's become harder to smoke cigarettes in public places than to smoke dope. Tobacco laws around Europe make smoking cigarettes more of a problem!
Many who may have never smoked a joint, are easily tempted to give it a try under these circumstances, since you can just pop into one of Amsterdam's coffee shops and legally buy one. The bartender… yes, bartender… will give you a menu… yes a menu!
The menus tell you what kind of pot is available and where it came from. The bartender (or sometimes the patrons) can advise you what you might want to try…. Something mild, so you can still walk out. You'll find a selection of marijuana and hashish… and how you can smoke them.
Wow, did you know there were choices?
So are Amsterdam coffee shops and brown cafes the same thing?
No… Brown cafes (Bruin cafes) are more like traditional pubs or corner cafe bars with dark wood from years of being smoke filled rooms. They are places where you can get a simple meal and a beer… or that coffee you might have been looking for when you stumbled into that coffee shop! A brown cafe might be a place you wanted to find when you inadvertently visited a coffee shop.
Brown cafes tend to be local hangouts. Some of them have been around for years, so they'll look well worn. They may seem old and crowded, but think of them as cozy. Settle in and expect a warm welcome.
The Dutch say they have "gezelligheid" — a comfortable "hang-out-here" feeling. They aren't really tourists hangouts… they're local hangouts, but the people are friendly, and you can get an inexpensive light meal while you meet real Amsterdamers.
There are plenty of traditional restaurants and cafes and bars all over the city if you're not feeling quite so adventurous.
So when you're in the Netherlands, should you try Amsterdam coffee shops and brown cafes? That's up to you, but at least now you know what you'll be getting into! As for us, we will stick with the brown cafes!! We recommend you do the same.
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