The typical Dutch 'bruine kroeg' (brown pub) has functioned as a city living room for hundreds of years, with every seam and crack steeped in history. A timeless place you would think. Yet for a while, it seemed that even the ‘bruine kroeg’ did not have eternal life. Many classics disappeared from the scene. Fortunately, the pub has made a comeback in recent years. Nostalgia is all the rage and drinking an old jenever surrounded by brown is being embraced again.
In this ode, author Jelle Koolschijn and photographer David van Dartel take us along ten iconic Amsterdam ‘bruine kroegen’. From white curtains and Dutch crooner André Hazes on repeat, to live piano music and chess boards on the table. The variety within the rediscovered pubs is great. Jelle talks to the owners and staff of the various Amsterdam pubs to find out about their individuality and history. He also dives into Dutch pub culture. Where does the name ‘kopstootje’ (Beer plus a jenever shot) come from and what about boiled eggs on the bar? You will learn all about it in ‘Ode aan de Amsterdamse bruine kroeg’ (Ode to the Amsterdams brown pub).
