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Number 5 of 20 in Amsterdam

Café Chris

Café Chris claims to be the oldest café in Amsterdam that has never closed. The story goes that it began in 1624, when the men building the Westerkerk, a few streets away, were paid at its bar.

What it is
Brown café
Opened
1624, by tradition: no document confirms it
Area
Jordaan
Nearest museum
Our Lord in the Attic, 1.2 km

Amsterdam this week

    What Café Chris is known for

    1. The builders' bar

      By tradition the café began as the place where the builders of the Westerkerk, or of its tower, came for their wages and spent some of them.

    2. In the Jordaan

      On the corner of the Bloemstraat and the Eerste Bloemdwarsstraat, a few minutes from the Westerkerk and the Anne Frank House.

    3. A local bar

      A small, plain brown café, with stained glass in its windows and a crowd from the neighbourhood.

    What to know

    • The café gives 1624 as its founding, a date tradition supports and no document proves
    • The Westerkerk was built between 1620 and 1631
    • It is on the corner of the Bloemstraat in the Jordaan

    Where Café Chris is

    Address

    Bloemstraat 42
    1016 LC Amsterdam, Netherlands

    Nearest station

    Westermarkt, on the tram, about two minutes away

    Museums and sights nearby

    Distances are in a straight line from the restaurant.

    A tradition of 1624

    Café Chris is said to have opened in 1624 as a bar for the men building the Westerkerk, who were paid their wages here. The story is told by the city's guides, but rests on tradition rather than on documents.

    It has the reputation of being the oldest café in Amsterdam to have stayed open without a break.

    Café Chris: common questions

    Where is Café Chris?
    At Bloemstraat 42, in the Centrum district of Amsterdam. The nearest station is Westermarkt, on the tram, about two minutes away.
    Which museums and sights are near Café Chris?
    Our Lord in the Attic is 1.2 km away, Rembrandt House Museum is 1.4 km away, Rijksmuseum is 1.6 km away. Distances are in a straight line from the restaurant.
    What is Café Chris known for?
    The builders' bar, In the Jordaan, A local bar. A brown café in the Jordaan said to date from 1624, when the builders of the Westerkerk round the corner came to collect their wages here.
    When did Café Chris open?
    In 1624, by tradition: no document confirms it. The café gives 1624 as its founding, a date tradition supports and no document proves.

    What visitors say about Café Chris

    Rating from Google

    4.7

    1,276 ratings on Google

    Google's figures as read on 19 October 2026.

    Read every review on Google

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