The Jordaan is the Amsterdam people fall in love with: narrow canals, leaning houses, hidden courtyards and a village feel a few minutes from the centre. It is also a brilliant place to eat, from old brown cafes to market stalls to a serious coffee and dessert scene. Here is a local guide to where to eat in the Jordaan in Amsterdam, savoury and sweet.
We sit right on the edge of it: Ruma (formerly De Beste Lekkernij), a Mediterranean bakery where the Nine Streets meets the Jordaan. So this is the area we know best, and the food we would actually send you toward.
Getting your bearings
The Jordaan sits just west of the main canal belt, bordered roughly by the Prinsengracht and the Lijnbaansgracht, with the Anne Frank House on its eastern edge and the Noordermarkt at its heart. It flows straight out of the Nine Streets, so the two are easy to combine into one walk.
Where to eat in the Jordaan
1. The Noordermarkt
The Jordaan's market square. On Saturdays it hosts a farmers and organic market, and on Mondays a flea market, both great for grazing. This is also where you find Winkel 43 and its famous warm Dutch apple pie, a Jordaan institution.
2. Brown cafes
The classic Amsterdam bruin cafe, wood-panelled, cosy and old, is at its best in the Jordaan. They are the place for a beer, a bitterball and an afternoon that slips away from you. Plenty line the canals and side streets.
3. Specialty coffee
The Jordaan has some of the city's best coffee. Sango roasts its own, Haku on the Rozengracht does a calm, Japanese-inspired pour, and BRUNO's is the local takeaway favourite. See our best coffee in Amsterdam guide.
4. Dessert and bakeries
For something sweet, you are spoilt. The warm cookie at Van Stapele is just into the Nine Streets, the apple pie at Winkel 43 is on the Noordermarkt, and our own counter does the viral trilece, baklava and pistachio cannoli on Herenstraat. Our best desserts in Amsterdam guide has the full list.
5. Mediterranean and global kitchens
The Jordaan and its edges are full of small, good restaurants spanning Italian, Levantine, Turkish and more. For the Mediterranean side, our best Mediterranean food in Amsterdam guide is a good start.
A day of eating in the Jordaan
- Morning: coffee and cold trilece at Ruma on Herenstraat.
- Midday: graze the Noordermarkt, then apple pie at Winkel 43.
- Afternoon: a specialty coffee at Haku or Sango, a wander past the canals and courtyards.
- Evening: a brown cafe for a drink, then dinner at one of the neighbourhood kitchens.
Tips for eating in the Jordaan
Time the Noordermarkt for a Saturday if you can. Book ahead for popular dinner spots, especially at weekends. And leave room between stops, the whole neighbourhood is walkable and made for grazing rather than one big meal. For things to see between bites, our things to do in the Nine Streets guide pairs well.
A bit about the Jordaan
The Jordaan was built in the seventeenth century as a working-class district, home to labourers, immigrants and tradespeople, sitting just outside the grand canal belt. For centuries it was crowded and poor, and it kept a strong, tight-knit local identity that still flavours the neighbourhood today. Over the last few decades it has become one of the most sought-after parts of the city, but the village feel survives in the narrow streets, the hidden hofjes (almshouse courtyards), and the old brown cafes where regulars still gather. Eating here, you are eating in a neighbourhood with a real and stubborn character, not a tourist invention.
The hidden courtyards
One of the Jordaan's quiet pleasures has nothing to do with food directly, but everything to do with a good afternoon. Tucked behind unmarked doors are the hofjes, peaceful garden courtyards originally built as charitable housing. Several are open to respectful visitors during the day. They make a lovely, calm pause between a coffee and a slice of cake, and they are the kind of thing most visitors walk straight past without knowing. Pair one with a dessert stop and you have the Jordaan at its best: a sweet bite and a quiet green corner, minutes from the bustle.
Practical tips for eating in the Jordaan
A few things worth knowing. The Noordermarkt is best on a Saturday morning for the farmers market, or a Monday for the flea market. Popular restaurants book up at weekends, so reserve ahead for dinner. Many of the best spots are small and cash or card both work, but it never hurts to have a little cash for market stalls. And leave gaps between stops: the Jordaan rewards grazing across an afternoon rather than one big sitting. For the dessert highlights specifically, see our best desserts in Amsterdam and best cafes in the Nine Streets guides.
Where to find us
Ruma is at Herenstraat 24A, where the Nine Streets meets the Jordaan, a short walk from the Anne Frank House, Dam Square and Amsterdam Centraal. Come for the trilece, see the menu, plan a visit, or order across the city.