Amsterdam is a city most people visit for just a few days. For some people visiting Amsterdam is a spur of the moment decision, for others a trip they’ve been planning for a long time. Whatever kind of traveler you are, it can be hard to find your way around Amsterdam. There is so much going on: bikes everywhere, all those canals and don’t get me started on the language.
One thing we missed when we were traveling, was really knowing where to find the best brunch, bites or beers in the cities we visited. If you ever felt this way and you’re visiting Amsterdam any time soon, this one is for you. We made you an Amsterdam eatinerary. This eatinerary takes you out of the city center and into parts of Amsterdam that are not to be missed.
This place is very cool. It has an amazing breakfast/brunch menu, the service is outstanding and the food is beautiful. There is a queue outside and they don’t take reservations. We only had to wait ten minutes before we were seated but if you have to wait longer, do it. It’s totally worth the wait.
A Michelin-star chef who now does hot dogs. With a veggie option. They have a great terrace looking out over the canal and they serve champagne and gin & tonics.
Biertuin means beer garden. Which is exactly what this is: a garden filled with tables where they serve beer and good food. This is a spot where you’ll want to stay all evening so don’t make any other plans.
If you’re ever coming to Amsterdam and have any questions on where to stay, what to do and where/what to eat, don’t hestitate to send me a message!
[disclaimer: This piece is part of the momondo experiences series. Momondo asked us to find a unique local experience and to write about it. All opinions are our own. Thank you for supporting the sponsors that make Sparrow in Space possible]
We really needed to catch up on work today, so we went to Anomali coffee in Plaza Indonesia at the Urban Food Court on level 5. This is not your usual Asian mall food court. I have never seen a food court that looks this well styled. It’s almost creepy how well everything fits together. The same goes for Anomali coffee, everything looks so great, almost too great. There is a marketing genius behind the food court and this coffee shop, there just has to be. The great thing about Anomali being inside of the food court is that you can buy any of the food court meals (which are cheap and quite tasty) and eat them at Anomali while you sip at your beautiful Indonesian, fresh brewed, coffee.
The staff knows their coffee very well,which I appreciate. They tell you about the acidity levels, origin, roast and more. They only serve Indonesian coffee and the beans come from all regions of the country. Nick really liked the coffee from Aceh. I only had tea today. Too much coffee tends to make me stressed, which I already was because…
While sitting at Anomali coffee we found out that our Indonesian visa is not extendable. Which means we have to leave Indonesia much sooner than expected. All of a sudden, there are a million decisions to be made. Where are we going, what will we be doing? Do we still want to travel as much as we do now? Or do we want to take this crazy house hunt to the next level? For those of you who don’t know this, one of the goals of this journey is to find the perfect place for us to live.
The next few weeks will be super exciting. While we decide what to do with our lives, we are going to hang around on the beach and drink cocktails.
Since we have only limited time in Indonesia we’re gonna need some help: Have you ever been in Indonesia? Where should we go? What should we do? And, do you know some nice places to have some coffee?
// pictures are all by Nick’s sister Marit, since I was too stressed to take any
This has to be the best place to eat in Chiang Mai. The owner is a Thai who worked and studied in Germany. His European influence is noticeable on the menu and in the decor. But don’t let it fool you. This guy loves Thailand. All of the products he uses for his dishes are local, and are the foundation for his ever-changing menu. He visits the local market every morning and based on what he finds there, he makes up a menu daily. My favorite tapas was the gnocchi, so simple yet so tasteful. He’s always up for a chat, so if you’ve got any questions about one of his dishes, his ingredients or his business’, ask away (provided he’s not swamped, leave him alone in that case).
Next door is Bar Fry, owned by the same guy. They sell high-end French fries. The fries are seriously delicious and come with a great variety of sauces. Being from Holland, we love fries and we hadn’t had decent fries for a long time and these were such a treat. You can order fries while eating at Jagajee.
“We are a simple, but true eatery, trying to tickle your taste buds with tapas from fresh seasonal and locally grown products with minimal seasoning to taste the nature of our tapas.” This is one of the writings on the wall of Jagajee (which means ‘tickling’ in Thai) and it pretty much sums up the food. Great, fresh products made into the best tapas you can find in Asia.
Jagajee Tapas Restaurant / Bar & Bar Fry
1/1 Nimmanhaemin Road Soi 15
(Jagajee is on the main road, near the corner of Soi 15)
Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Have you ever ever ever thought the best place to eat home-made fresh greek yogurt would be Malaysia? No, me neither. And yet I found myself sitting in The Mugshot Cafe in Georgetown, Penang, in awe of their yogurt. As the owners of Mugshot cafe were so kindly to explain, they make it themselves Jesse and Tristan believe it’s best to only have a few things on your menu that are really good. This means they only serve bagels and yogurt, both incredibly tasty.
If you’re not feeling bagels or yoghurt, you can go next door to The Rainforest Bakery (which is owned by Jesse’s family) to get your sugar high. Or, as we did, 0ur daily bread fix. It’s Asia, good bread is rare. We spent a week and a half in Georgetown and we dropped in almost every day for a cup of coffee and most of the time, some yoghurt. We saw a lot of people doing the same. These guys have a special way of making everyone feel at home.
They’ve got plans to turn the unused upstairs area into a hostel. We’re really curious what the future is going to bring for this place, and we’ll make sure to keep an eye out. We’ll be back!
Tuba is not an undiscovered piece of Bangkok. It’s one of the better known places to relax after a hard day of working and/or shopping.
Tuba is on Ekamai, a street known for its upscale restaurants and bars. It isn’t the cheapest place to have a beer, but you don’t just go here for the beer. You go here for the incredible furniture. And the crazy big cocktails.
The music is really bad, think 90’s mixed with Justin Bieber. And it’s loud. But the furniture.. it’s so pretty! During the day they actually double up as a secondhand furniture shop, so if you really like a piece, you can go and get it for your home.
URL: https://www.facebook.com/tubabkk Address: 34 Ekamai, Soi 21, Bangkok
Bangkok is one of the most inspiring cities I’ve ever been too. Although we were only there for a month, I feel like we got to know the city. I truly loved it. Since we were both raised in small(-ish) Dutch cities that have nothing on a huge city like Bangkok, we were continuously in awe as we were wandering around.
There is so much going on in Bangkok, new cafes and shops are opening every day, and each one is even better than the last one. Because we are running our company while traveling, we are always looking for places that have an inspiring interior, fast wifi, tasty food, good drinks and a crowd that’s not spilling beer over our laptops.
Bangkok can be quite overwhelming at times. It’s so ginormous and busy and hot (oh god it’s so hot). If you are looking to escape the heat, have good coffee, work, or drink a beer or two (not all of them serve beer), these are the places to go. And there are so many more places like this, go out and explore!
If you find anything similar, let us know one way or another so we can visit them when we get to Bangkok sometime in the future!
We don’t know the exact address for this place, and neither do we know the correct name. It’s on Thanon Pradiphat and it has a huge garden. You’ll find it if you look for a retro looking cafe with a garden. They’ve got lots of outside tables and even a swing! The coffee and Thai food are great here. The cafe is full of retro furniture and they have every childhood collectible you could ever think of. My favorite was a tiny E.T. doll.
The staff doesn’t really speak English. Translating for us, was a girl with a pet squirrel. She just let it run around, climbing on the furniture and eating peanuts. I asked/begged Nick if I could have one, but here I am, squirrel-less.
Cafe Bicycle is our favorite place to work in Bangkok. And it’s not just us that like to work here. This cafe is constantly filled with people with laptops, sipping their coffee and stuffing their faces with all the delights on the menu.
Every day around lunch they have a special offer with cheap local food. Very tasty!
I just really like places that look right. It’s all about the details and the owners of cafe Bicycle understand that.
Library Cafe is kind of hard to find if you don’t know where to look. It’s in a side street of a side street of Sukhumvit Road.
This cafe stands out for its extremely good styling. The style is 70’s mixed with contemporary stuff. Everything just goes together perfectly. The little wooden spoons (which we are looking for, if you know where to get ‘m let us know!) complement the good coffee. Upstairs is a Japanese style sitting area with pillows on the floor. Shoes off before you go upstairs!
Library Cafe gets a Sparrow-in-Space-award for the prettiest toilets I’ve ever seen. I kept drinking lots of water so I could pee again, just to spend some more time there. If you don’t like interior design, coffee, tea or food, just go here to pee. Seriously, this toilet is better than eighty percent of the hotel rooms I’ve slept in.
The food is good as well, although some of the dishes come in quite small portions. The pies are great. Try them all!
We’ve heard that this cafe is owned by a famous Thailand artist who has a wife that loves to cook and bake, it would explain the delicious pies and cakes. Someone has been working hard on making this place on of the nicest places in Chiang Mai. In an area where you trip over new hip places opening every day, this is quite an accomplishment.
Each of the menus of Mood Mellow is handmade and unique and don’t get me started on the food. It’s delicious! Great Italian food, great Thai/European fusion and some very healthy things as well. Our personal favorites: the sour dough bread with cashew hummus, bell pepper paté and raw vegetable ‘fries’, the lemon pie and the chocolate & salty caramel cupcakes.
