Three former colleagues, one wine bar
Sophia, Tjarco and Scato know the neighborhood well - Sophia and Scato live on Van Boetzelaerstraat; Tjarco was pretty much their neighbor. As former colleagues, they previously worked together at pasta chain Spaghetteria. Sophia previously had a fine dining restaurant in Oost, but for Tjarco and Scato, De Pimpelmees is their first business of their own.
You notice that backstory in how the place works. It is not a concept flown in from the outside - it is a neighborhood café by people who live there themselves and know what was missing. The Staatsliedenbuurt neighborhood already had a few good coffee shops and some small eateries, but an approachable wine café where you spontaneously walk in on a Thursday evening: that wasn't there yet.
What's on the table
The wine list has red, orange and white wines starting at 6 euros per glass and 30 euros per bottle, rosé and sparkling wine. Many of the wines are natural wines, but Sophia says they also just pour a good Burgundy alongside them. With each drink you get a bowl of chips as a gift.
The snack menu is small, but what we have is good quality - that's De Pimpelmees' approach, and you can tell by the choice of suppliers.
On the drinks menu: liver sausage and ox sausage from Louman with pickles and mustard, bread from Louf with 'nduja butter, toast with Calabrese anchovies and a cheese board with three cheeses from Fromagerie Kef. No aisle-by-aisle construction, but stuff you share as you talk through.
What it looks like on a weeknight
On a Thursday night, just about tout Staatsliedenbuurt sits pimping in and around the establishment: young and old, on sneakers or silver boots. The establishment is open seven days a week, which is not a given for a new wine bar in this segment.
The location is the former site of The Shamrock - a brown pub that was in the neighborhood for years. That the new owners are putting a wine bar in its place that is immediately embraced by local residents says something about what the Staatslieden neighborhood is looking for right now: a place to land for a while after work, without immediately turning it into an event.