Café de Doffer is a traditional Amsterdam brown café (bruin café or bruine kroeg) on Runstraat in De 9 Straatjes, the Nine Streets shopping area between the Keizersgracht and Prinsengracht. It opens at 11:00 every day, serves lunch and dinner from its own kitchen, stays open until 01:00 Sunday to Thursday and 03:00 on Friday and Saturday, and does not take reservations.
It works best for a long afternoon beer, a drink after the Nine Streets shops close, or an unfussy café meal. It suits you less if you want a guaranteed table at a set time on a busy weekend night.
Café de Doffer at a glance
| Address | Runstraat 12-14, 1016 GK Amsterdam (the café’s printed menu uses Runstraat 14) |
|---|---|
| Area | De 9 Straatjes, Canal Belt, Amsterdam Centrum |
| Opening hours | Sunday to Thursday 11:00-01:00; Friday and Saturday 11:00-03:00 |
| Lunch | 12:00-16:30 |
| Dinner | From 18:00; the café’s Dutch site lists 21:30 as the end time and its English page lists 22:00 |
| Reservations | Walk-in only; groups of up to 20 can arrange drinks by email |
| Phone | 020 622 6686 |
| [email protected] | |
| Website | cafededoffer.nl |
Hours and kitchen times checked against the café’s official website in September 2026. Confirm before a late visit, as times can change.
What to expect inside
Brown cafés take their name from dark wood and nicotine-darkened walls, and De Doffer fits the type: low light, a busy front bar, and a crowd that mixes regulars with visitors. The café describes its regulars as locals, artists, students and people who simply like a good drink. I amsterdam, the city’s official tourism site, compares walking in to stepping into an episode of Cheers. The Nine Streets business association sums it up as friendly, timeless, seventies and no-frills.
The space has two parts: the bar at the front and a former billiard room behind it, which can be closed off for groups. The Nine Streets association has long described De Doffer as unusual for combining two adjoining businesses, a day café and a night café, on Runstraat.
History and the Smelt connection
De Doffer has been open for at least five decades, but its own materials don’t agree on the start date. The café’s 2024 menu says “since 1971”, its listing on Tripadvisor says the 1970s, and its current website says the 1960s. The website also mentions literary evenings and artists’ gatherings, and says it has been a meeting point for the Jordaan and surrounding neighborhoods.
Since January 2022, Runstraat 12 has been home to Restaurant Smelt, a cheese fondue restaurant created by De Doffer and the cheese shop De Kaaskamer van Amsterdam. The two now run a joint “Doffer x Smelt” setup. De Doffer serves bar food, wine and craft beer, and its cheeseburger is made with Smelt. For fondue, you need to eat at Smelt itself. Smelt’s Amsterdam page lists daily hours of 12:00-23:30, with the kitchen closing around 21:30.
Food and drinks
The current bar menu covers Dutch drinking food: bitterballen, bar snacks, sharing boards and cheese platters. For a full meal, the café points to its two signatures: the cheeseburger and “Satay by Ray”, which it jokingly calls world-famous, at least in Amsterdam. At lunch, the kitchen uses sourdough bread and artisanal products, many from De Kaaskamer across the street.
The café’s 2024 menu (dishes and prices may have changed since) shows the range:
- Lunch: eggs Benedict, croque monsieur, homemade tomato soup, and croquette and meatball sandwiches
- Dinner: the satay (three chicken skewers with homemade peanut sauce, atjar and fries, €19.50), a rendang stew, steak tartare and the cheeseburger
- Beer: Heineken from a small kleintje pils up to a 1.5-litre pitcher, plus Dutch craft beers from Brouwerij ‘t IJ, Jopen, Oedipus and Texels
- Dutch spirits: young and old jenever and a kopstootje, a beer served with a glass of jenever
The tap beers change regularly, so ask at the bar what’s pouring.
When to go
On sunny days, the street terrace on Runstraat is the main draw. Check the Amsterdam weather before you count on an outdoor seat. In colder months, the café promotes stew and beer indoors.
Most Nine Streets shops close around 18:00 or 19:00. That makes De Doffer useful in the evening, when the area’s retail side has shut but the bar is open until 01:00, or 03:00 at weekends. Because tables can’t be booked, a weekday afternoon is the easiest time to get a seat. Groups of up to 20 people who want to come for drinks can email [email protected].
Getting to Runstraat
Runstraat is the southernmost of the three Nine Streets between the Keizersgracht and Prinsengracht. From Amsterdam Centraal, it’s about a 20-minute walk via Dam Square and the Raadhuisstraat. By tram, line 2 stops at Keizersgracht, a short walk away. Lines 5, 7 and 19 stop at Elandsgracht on the Marnixstraat, about 10 minutes away on foot. Construction on the Oranje Loper route has diverted some trams around Westermarkt, so check the GVB journey planner before you travel.
Nearby brown cafés and guides
- Explore the rest of the area with our De 9 Straatjes guide
- Walk north into the Jordaan for Café Chris, open on Bloemstraat since 1624
- Try Café ‘t Smalle for a canalside terrace on the Egelantiersgracht
- Compare more options in our list of historic brown cafés in Amsterdam
Frequently asked questions
Can you make a reservation at Café de Doffer?
No. The café is walk-in only. Groups of up to 20 people who want to come for drinks can email [email protected] to arrange it.
Is Café de Doffer the same place as Restaurant Smelt?
No, but they are linked. Smelt, the cheese fondue restaurant at Runstraat 12, was created in 2022 by Café de Doffer and the cheese shop De Kaaskamer van Amsterdam. You can only order fondue at Smelt. De Doffer serves bar food and café meals.
What time does the kitchen close at Café de Doffer?
Lunch runs from 12:00 to 16:30, and dinner starts at 18:00. The café’s Dutch website says dinner ends at 21:30, while its English page says 22:00, so arrive by 21:30 to be safe. The bar stays open later.
What does doffer mean in Dutch?
A doffer is a male pigeon.
