The word tasting room used to cover exactly one thing: the space next to a distillery where the distilled product produced was inspected and sold. That tradition still exists, but the term is now broader. You'll find gin, Dutch specialty beers and home-brewed beer on tap. Here are the best in town, from Amsterdam's oldest tasting room to a brewery in a windmill.
Wynand Fockink - Center
Wynand Fockink has been around since 1679 and is the city's most famous tasting room. In Pijlsteeg, an alley near Dam Square, they serve more than fifty liqueurs and a range of gins from a tulip glass filled to the brim. The tradition: at the first sip, you bend over and drink without hands. The interior has changed little in three centuries: a low wooden bar, shelves full of bottles, no music. Open from three to nine, daily. - Arrow Lane 31, Center
The Three Little Bottles - Center
The Three Bottles on Gravenstraat, behind the Nieuwe Kerk, is Amsterdam's oldest tasting room, opened in 1650. Behind the bar hang barrels filled with gin from local regulars, a custom that goes back to the tasting room's origins. The bartenders know the menu and take the time to explain. In addition to gin, there are bitterballs, ox sausage, cheese and beer. - Gravenstraat 18, Center
“Wynand Fockink started a liqueur distillery and distillery here in the late 17th century. The authentic tasting room still has a 17th century character.” - Wynand Fockink, own description (wynand-fockink.co.uk, 2024)
Proeflokaal A. van Wees - Grachtengordel
Van Wees is the distillery De Ooievaar, anno 1782, with a tasting room on the Herengracht. Seventeen different genevers, more than fifty liqueurs, all from its own distillery. The bar has a canal-side terrace and a house cat that has been roaming there for years. In addition to the spirits, they also serve chicken satay, entrecote and Dutch cheese fondue to go with the headbutt. Open daily from noon. - Herengracht 319, Canal Belt
Proeflokaal Arendsnest - Grachtengordel
Eagle's Nest is the beer tasting room for those who take Dutch breweries seriously. Exclusively Dutch products: 52 beers on tap, about 50 in bottle, from breweries like Gulpener, Two Chefs, De Kromme Haring and Walhalla. The bar staff knows what they're tapping and offers advice. In the basement, a tasting room for groups. Terrace on the Herengracht. Open from noon to midnight, Friday and Saturday until two. - Herengracht 90, Grachtengordel
“In our tasting room you can taste 52 different beers on tap, exclusively from Dutch origin. We also have our own house beers, brewed at Poesiat and Kater.” - Proeflokaal Arendsnest, own description (arendsnest.nl, 2024)
Beer tasting room In the Wildeman - Center
In the Savage is in a former distillery from 1690 and is one of the oldest beer bars in Amsterdam. Wooden barrels line the walls, old billboards hang, and a 1940s mosaic adorns one of the walls. No music, just eighteen beers on tap and 250 varieties in the bottle, mostly from the Netherlands and Belgium but also beyond. Owner Simon Fokkema has been behind the bar for more than twenty years. Closed on Sundays. - Kolksteeg 3, Center
Brewery ’t IJ - East
Brewery ’t IJ has been brewing in the Funenmolen, one of the few windmills in the city, since 1985. The tasting room on Funenkade pours its own beers: IJwit, Zatte, Natte, Struis and a changing seasonal beer. Tours of the brewery on request. Large waterfront terrace. The Vondelpark tasting room, the Blue Tea House, also has draught beers from the IJ. The combination of mill, beer and terrace makes this one of the most visited addresses on the map. - Funenkade 7, East
“Brewery ’t IJ has two tasting rooms: The Mill and Café Struis on Funenkade, and ’t Blauwe Theehuis in Vondelpark.” - Brouwerij ’t IJ, own description (brouwerijhetij.nl, 2025)
Distillery ’t Nieuwe Diep - East
’t Nieuwe Diep sits in a nineteenth-century pumping station in the middle of Flevopark, on a quiet pond overlooking the trees. Established in 1993, its own gin and liqueur, homemade ciders. You order at the hatch and drink on the terrace. Cheese and meats from local producers on the side. The combination of the park, the old building and the handmade drinks makes this one of the most special places in East. Easily accessible by bike. - Flevopark 13, East
The tasting rooms in this list are no ordinary pubs. They all have a story that goes beyond the liquor they serve. At Wynand Fockink and De Drie Fleschjes, it's about time-honored traditions. At Eagle's Nest and In de Wildeman, it's about the knowledge of the people behind the bar. And at ’t IJ and ’t Nieuwe Diep, it's about a location you won't soon forget. For a tour of Amsterdam's drinking history, this is the starting point.