The shipbuilders
and trading companies left the Eastern Dockland in
the 1970s and redevelopment of the area started in the 1980s.
During the seventies the local community was made up of artists, city nomads and houseboat dwellers, living in and around the vacant warehouses.
Social life in the
Eastern Docklands is still influenced
by this
history, although the majority of current residents are professionals.
Many local cafes and
restaurants have an artistic or creative
atmosphere.
Some of them evoke
the memories of the time of overseas
travel or of the time of the artists and city-nomads.
This web page gives
a selection of local restaurants, cafes,
dancings, clubs, theatres, museums and shops.
Most cafes and restaurants
are at or near Levantkade, Azartplein and notably Veemkade, Oostelijke
Handelskade and Cruciusweg. This is the
central area
of the Eastern Docklands.
On Oostelijke
Handelskade you can find Lloyd Hotel, club Panama, Cantine and LLoyd
Coffeehouse.
On Azartplein you will find AMP dance studios, Wladiwostok and
restaurant De Zuid.
The Eastern
Docklands are well-known for offering a lot of live music
performances and festivals. Many cafes and restaurants have live music
in the weekends.
Club Panama and club AMP have several podiums and an excellent
reputation in music and performances.
The grand new music
theatre 'Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ' (IJsbreker /
Bimhuis) was recently opened. It is situated in the western part of the
Eastern Docklands, next to the passengers terminal for cruise ships.
Bimhuis is specialised in jazz music. De IJsbreker has a more varied
programme of music, theatre and shows.
Eating
and drinking
Very good cuisine is
found in the restaurants Gare de l’Est (the former railway station) and
Voorbij het Einde (a chique place with a view on a garden), for
example.
La Trattoria is a pleasant place serving good Italian food.
Einde van de Wereld
(end of the world) is a restaurant ship run by
people belonging to the former squatters community. They serve good,
basic food; the atmosphere is friendly and alternative.
The Ocean and KNSM-eiland are both
atrractive, trendy cafes, often
packed with artists, professionals, bohemians and
people who want to been seen among them.
Swimming is possible
from the
lakeside terrace of KNSM. The Ocean has a lakeside terrace and
occasional performances.
The ship Odessa is
a
restaurant
in a refurbished seventeenth century ship. The place is chique and
latin with a
definite rough edge.
Another restaurant ship,
Lisboa, is next to it.
It has an attractive
view over the lake and various performances from time to time.
Azart is a ship
cafe on an artists ship called ‘ship of fools’.
There is live music; and occasionally improvised operas. The place is
quite unconventional.
Lloyd Coffeehouse is
a cafe
with a small restaurant in a historical building with an attractive
garden. They sometimes have performances or live music.
De Cantine in the
old Quarantine building, close to the former
coffeehouse of the Lloyd, also has a restaurant and cafe. From time to
time there are exhibitions, performances and dance
evenings.
Both places have
attractive Sunday afternoon performances, presenting
bands, singer/songwriters or other artists.
Boulevard Cafe and
Y-land are two examples of pleasant, easy-going local places. Boulevard
sometimes has live music and it has a pleasant, small garden.
Y-land is situated
right at the lakeside.
Het Haventje is a
simple restaurant with a pleasant terrace and a
friendly atmosphere.
Jaap
Hannis is an attractive cafe-restaurant on a small island
resembling a former bulwark. This is a very relaxing spot.
Restaurant de Zuid is a pleasant, popular place with a very attractive view over the lake.
Jerry’s is a simple
restaurant with a great view of the lake. It
also has a roof garden, a fitness center, and sometimes live music and
dancing.
De Wereldbol (the
globe) is probably the
smallest restaurant in the Eastern Docklands. It has four tables and it
serves sandwiches in a no-nonsense atmosphere.
The historical ship
Kapitein Kok is also a restaurant, which tours
the lake at night.
Kaap Kot, to the east of the Eastern Docklands and at the Markermeer, is a trendy restaurant, with a beach of its own.
Lakeside hotels
In the early
twentieth century the Lloyd Hotel was a hotel for
emigrants from Central and
Eastern Europe to the Americas.
It has been renovated and now it is again a hotel and a cultural
centre. It has a good and attractive restaurant.
The hotel is situated at the lakeside. The atmosphere is somewhat
unconventional.
This place, and notably the restaurant, has become quite trendy by now.
Next to the
Passengers Terminal for cruise ships, a new hotel, the Movenpick
City Harbour Hotel, is now under construction. It will probably become
attractive for international tourists joining tour groups, but we
cannot be sure about that as yet. Time will tell.
Dance
and music
AMP is a club with live performances of rock bands. It also has an pleasant dancing with club and pop music and some studios for rock bands. AMP also offers various courses in music and dance.
Panama is a trendy
place featuring shows,
Latin, Caribbean and Northern American music, with a stylish cafe, a
restaurant and a dancefloor. It also hosts tv-shows.
The grand music
theatre Bimhuis / de IJsbreker is situated at the lakeside in the
western part of the Eastern Docklands.
Bimhuis is specialised in jazz music. De IJsbreker has a more varied
programme of music, theatre and shows.
The restaurant ships
Odessa, Lizboa and Einde van de Wereld have
dance
nights or live music in the weekends or monthly.
Lloyd Coffeehouse and
de Cantine have live music or performances in the weekends (usually
Saturday
night or Sunday afternoon).
Courses
and other local and cultural activities
The communal living
project Wladiwostok hosts courses about new age
topics, yoga and tai-chi training.
The neighborhood center De Balk also
organizes courses and trainings.
The Eastern
Docklands Internet community has various activities,
like discussion groups and information sites on upcoming local
activities.
For more information about social life and nightlife in the
Eastern Docklands, see also our webpages:
layout,
architecture and facilities
urban and
outdoor
leisure
walking and
cycling in the Eastern Docklands
More information on other websites:
www.oostelijkhavengebied.nl
(links to many artist sites)
www.lloydhotel.com
(Lloyd hotel)
www.voorbijheteinde.nl (restaurant
Voorbij het Einde)
www.openhavenpodium.nl
(performances)
www.ampstudios.nl (club
AMP)
www.panama.nl (club Panama)
www.azart.org (ship of fools
activities)
www.uitlijn.nl (information
about nightlife)
www.kroegenweb.nl
(information about local pubs)
www.psycholoog-amsterdam.com
(psychological practice)
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