The 5 best places to have a good cup of coffee

Francesco and Elmer opened their coffee roastery and bar in early 2014, after meeting in the Espressofabriek in Westerpark. It’s the perfect hangout for a tremendous flat white or you can also just sit and read at their reading table. Their homeroasted beans are for sale, as are the artisanal chocolate bars from Amsterdam-based shop Chocolátl. 

This bright and airy corner shop is a veritable spot of sunshine in the eastern part of Amsterdam. It’s the sister of nearby Cafe Bru and serves loose leaf tea imported straight from China as well as freshly-roasted coffee. Peckish? Their bakery serves American classics such as mud pie and lemon drizzle cake. 

This place serves Italian-style coffee in a cosy interior with beautiful stained glass windows. It is a lovely place to start your day with a cappuccino. If you’re lucky, you can catch a few rays of sun on their tiny terrace. 

The Coffee Virus is located in the former Shell laboratories, but it’s definitely not your average cafeteria. This coffee hotspot is located in the lobby of A Lab, a work space where new media and technology start-ups and professionals meet. The Coffee Virus serves coffee from local roasters, as well as fresh salads, sandwiches and cakes. 

The blonde wood and white walls of the Scandinavian Embassy, on the fringe of Sarphati Park, make for a minimalistic but warm coffee bar. The owner is the award-winning Argentinean-born roaster Nicolas Castagno. After moving to Sweden in his twenties, he became involved in the Swedish coffee scene. He relocated to Amsterdam, where he started his own spot with a Scandinavian flavour.