Back to Black — Restaurant in Amsterdam

This used to be a very nice, cozy place for coffee, but unfortunately, it's been a bit ruined by the number of customers (not anyone’s fault) and the staff’s attitude.

I had an incredibly bad experience yesterday morning, on the 20th of April. When I arrived, I joined the queue to order coffee and noticed that there were four staff members — but no one was actually taking orders. One woman was making coffee, one man was cleaning, another woman was on her phone, and the last one was preparing granola.

I had bad luck because the customer in front of me turned out to be a friend of the woman on the phone. Once she finished with her phone, she greeted him with a hug, and they started chatting about their plans for Koningsdag. Apparently, she wasn’t working that day and was making plans to celebrate. She gave her friend a croissant, and he began eating it at the counter while they continued chatting.

At this point, I was next in line, standing directly in front of them. The woman preparing granola then finished her task, picked up the bowl, and joined the conversation — still holding the granola like the Statue of Liberty. She was talking about how she couldn’t make too many plans because she had to open the café and work during Koningsdag.

There I was, standing right in front of the three of them, staring in disbelief — mouth open, intentionally showing my shock. The woman on the phone noticed my expression and smiled at me, maybe also surprised by my reaction. But instead of smiling, taking my order, was not probably part of the procedure.

Eventually, the granola woman delivered the bowl, came back, looked around, saw that the croissant guy had nearly finished, and finally acknowledged me and took my order. By then, the queue stretched all the way to the street.

We finally got our coffees and sat down. A bit later, the same granola lady came to deliver a coffee to another customer behind us who had also been waiting forever. But as she placed the cup on the table, she accidentally spilled the coffee — on the table, the floor, and even on my coat. It was clearly an accident, and she took the coffee back to remake it. But she didn’t even notice (or acknowledge) that she had spilled it on me. At that point, I had no energy left to complain. We just drank our coffee and left.

I live in Amsterdam, but I have no intention of returning to that place.

Oh, and by the way — if you have any questions about the staff’s plans for Koningsdag, feel free to ask me. I know everything!

Happy...

We have visited this coffee shop a while ago, and it was a quite good experience.

☕ We ordered pour-over coffee and a flat white, and both were tasty. They had a nice variety of coffee on the menu, with different types of coffee to choose from.

🎨 The best part of the coffee shop was the ambiance. The design was natural yet feel-good, creating a relaxed and inviting atmosphere that was perfect for a coffee break. And the staff were super friendly and welcoming, which made the experience better.

🥐 The only downside was the limited food options - there weren't too many, and the ones they had weren't perfect, but they were good enough to complement your coffee.

🪙 While the pricing was a little bit high, it didn't bother us too much, considering the quality of the product and service.

🧹 Place was quite clean despite the crowd. They clearly put in the effort to keep things tidy and organized.

🎶 The music selection was also good, adding to the overall atmosphere and vibe.

The only negative point was the wait times. There was a short line outside the coffee shop, and especially on the weekends, it can get crowded quickly because the place is a little bit small. Additionally, there was some noise from the crowd, so it's not the best place to sit and work or have a calm chat. If you're looking to catch up with friends, it's perfect.

I would recommend this place for its great coffee, friendly staff, and inviting atmosphere. While there are some drawbacks, such as limited food options and the possibility of crowds, the overall experience is worth it. So if you're in the area, you can try...

I went there because it's supposed to be one of the best places to get a good coffee in Amsterdam, but it was a disappointment! I don't recommend! Being Portuguese (Portugal is one of the countries where you can drink the best coffee in the world) I didn't expect to taste the best coffee in the world, but I didn't expect to be deceived either: I went in, got in line and when it was my turn I asked the lady what was the difference between the 2 sizes that were on the menu. She didn't say anything, just pointed to the 3 different sized cups that were on the counter. I ordered the large Cappuccino. When I went to pay, she told me they didn't accept coins or notes, just credit cards. It was funny because she had coins in her hands! I paid with credit card and she told me to wait next to the counter. While waiting for my drink I looked around and noticed that all the tables were taken, but most people had already finished eating and were just chatting. Because I was visiting the city all day, I just wanted to sit down and have a good coffee! But suddenly the gentleman who was preparing the drinks turns to me, asks me if the big cappuccino was for me, I say yes and he gives me a Cappuccino to take away. I never ordered a drink to take away! Nobody asked me if I wanted a drink to take away! That's when I realized I had overpaid. I tasted the coffee and it wasn't anything special! I've had much better cappuccinos at other Amsterdam restaurants.

Note: You can see in the photo that the top it's not right. I tried to close the cup, I asked for help and no...