Elsa's Café image

Elsa's Café

Restaurant Cafe Bar Jazz club Dutch restaurant

Stalwart cafe for Dutch microbrews & hearty meals, plus regular live music & big-screen sports. People often mention good, Amsterdam, service, nice,


Address

Middenweg 73, 1098 AE Amsterdam, Netherlands

Website

www.elsascafe.nl

Contact

+31 20 668 5010

Price rating

$$ $$

Rating on Google Maps

4.40 (909 reviews)

Open on Google Maps

Working Hours

  • Friday: 11 AM to 2 AM
  • Saturday: 11 AM to 2 AM
  • Sunday: 11 AM to 1 AM
  • Monday: 11 AM to 1 AM
  • Tuesday: 11 AM to 1 AM
  • Wednesday: 11 AM to 1 AM
  • Thursday: 11 AM to 1 AM

Featured Reviews


Frequently mentioned in reviews: good (15) Amsterdam (8) service (8) nice (8)
Reviews are sorted by relevance, prioritizing the most helpful and insightful feedback at the top for easier reference.
  • 5/5 Mike F. 5 years ago on Google • 83 reviews
    19 years ago I was working in Amsterdam for a few weeks, this place was so good we ate here every night. I was so happy to return only to discover the food is as good as I remember, great atmosphere, good drinks selection and on Tuesdays there’s live jazz playing. This is a must visit place for any meat eater whilst in Amsterdam, well worth the trip out the centre in an Über, go on, you’ll not be disappointed! Can’t wait until I’m back again. Update to my original review, I’m back again 3 years later and still epic, glad to see this place has survived covid intact and the quality remains the same.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 DmitriiG 6 years ago on Google • 136 reviews
    Free WiFi. Live music. Great tap bar. Well cooked food! Both meat and fish are delicious. Be sure to book in advance as it is always crowded

  • 5/5 Nathan A. 10 months ago on Google • 93 reviews
    Fantastic burger, amazing staff

  • 2/5 Linda L. 4 years ago on Google
    I try Elsa's every now and then, and while I've had good experiences when it comes to the quality of the food, I've had bad experiences when just getting drinks. To start positive: I've ordered the goat cheese salad multiple times and loved it every time, the same can be said about the sate. Even though this isn't the cheapest place in the area, the pub food they serve is a bit more than just that and usually it's well flavoured. Unfortunately, the service isn't something I would return for. If it's still considered dinner time the staff doesn't like it if you occupy a table just for drinks. And as written in other reviews here, they can refuse to serve you something. Last winter I tried to order a hot chocolate, I saw the mugs on several other tables, and was told that that drink was "just for the kids". It was cold outside, and it seemed like the perfect drink after the walk we just had. I'm from Amsterdam and I know that the Dutch have a certain reputation when it comes to service in the food industry, however I've never encountered this attitude before and was completely flabbergasted. I ordered something else instead, but we decided to head out not long after. It was a bad end to what was a nice day over all.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Jeroen N. 4 years ago on Google
    Nice, comfy neighborhood Cafe with Amsterdam vibe and good food. Friendly and helpful staff with pro active attitude. Can get quite busy on any day of the week. Parking is a challenge, but the underground super market parking garage is a good option if you keep tabs on the closing time.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 David B. 3 months ago on Google • 91 reviews New
    It had been six years since my last visit to Amsterdam and old friends invited me to dinner at Elsa's Café, a short walk from their home. What a great place. Very lively and wonderful atmosphere. The service was excellent, a plus given how crowded the place was. The food (salmon for me) was excellent. Definitely a neighbourhood place. I think that my husband and I were the only non-Dutch people in the place. One of the very best restaurants I visited during my vacation in the Netherlands.

  • 4/5 Ryu N. 7 years ago on Google • 33 reviews
    Nice Jazz, nice food. There are many different types of beers.

  • 5/5 Silicon C. 1 month ago on Google • 9 reviews New
    Good food and atmosphere, friendly service.

  • 5/5 Maurizio P. 6 years ago on Google • 7 reviews
    Great pub, excellent meat at reasonable prices. Try also the onion soup or the fondue. Good choice of beers.

  • 5/5 B M. 1 year ago on Google
    We organized a party after a wedding dinner at De Kas (across the street). They were super attentive and supportive, showing proactiveness and willingness to help that we didn't see in a lot of places we tried scheduling. The night was great and the staff was super friendly and helpful. Definitely recommend.

  • 5/5 Demirhan K. 1 month ago on Google • 5 reviews New
    Great place to enjoy an Ajax game. Big smiles and lovely service by bartenders, rare to see in Amsterdam

  • 5/5 Chris M. 2 months ago on Google New
    5/5 Café, good price and quality

  • 5/5 AD S. 1 year ago on Google
    Very nice food and cozy place for dining

  • 5/5 Ronald J. 1 year ago on Google
    Good food, great service

  • 4/5 Lorenzo De A. 6 years ago on Google
    This is a quite nice location in Middenweg. One of the few pub I know in Amsterdam that preserve a very strong pub atmosphere. Also good for sport events, especially when it's about Ajax or other Dutch-related competitions. The food is not something very special but still good compared to average pub food. Recommended for an evening with friends as well as for a tasty brunch.

  • 4/5 Annette V. 1 year ago on Google
    Very good coffee

  • 5/5 Isadora P. 1 year ago on Google
    We were hungry al late hours, even though I had a nice tasty portion of fried calamari. Nice ambience a d good service.

  • 5/5 Marek S. 2 years ago on Google
    Good coffee, friendly service, nice selection of beer, good looked very tempting.

  • 3/5 Richard M. 2 years ago on Google
    Good food. But alot of loude drunk people, and the staff did not know how to handle them. So instead of controlling the drunk people they kept serving them more alcohol. I strongly recoment to come here for the food. But only in the day time.

  • 4/5 Ari S. 4 years ago on Google
    Great place for locals to see sports events

  • 5/5 A Google U. 4 years ago on Google
    We dined here on our arrival in Amsterdam, with our kids. We did not have great expectations but we were wrong. The place is a typical pub with a good selection of beers, authentic local customers, friendly waiters. The best thing has been the food however: we tried the mixed grill, the ribs, the burgers, the onion soup and the fondue. All really good, especially the meat cooked to perfection. We enjoyed it so much we visited again our last evening and we were not disappointed.

  • 5/5 Omri R. 2 years ago on Google
    Lovely spot for beers and good food. Mussels recommended!

  • 4/5 ramssis 2 years ago on Google
    Was invited to celebrate a birthday with friends, friendly team and attentive nice food menu as well delicious dishes decently will come back it was a nice discovery


Call +31 20 668 5010 Open on Google Maps

Amenities


  • Parking
    • ✓️ Paid street parking
  • Payments
    • ✓️ Debit cards
    • ✓️ Credit cards
    • ✓️ NFC mobile payments
  • Offerings
    • ✓️ Beer
    • ✓️ Wine
    • ✓️ Coffee
    • ✓️ Alcohol
    • ✓️ Cocktails
    • ✓️ Hard liquor
    • ✓️ Small plates
    • ✓️ Late-night food
  • Accessibility
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible seating
  • Dining options
    • ✓️ Lunch
    • ✓️ Brunch
    • ✓️ Dinner
    • ✓️ Dessert
    • ✓️ Seating
  • Service options
    • ✓️ Dine-in
    • ✗ Takeout
    • ✗ Delivery
    • ✓️ Outdoor seating

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