Café ‘t Mandje is a small brown café at Zeedijk 63, on the edge of Amsterdam’s Red Light District. Bet van Beeren took it over in 1927, and it became one of the first bars in the city where gay men and lesbians could meet openly. The interior has been kept close to how it looked in her time, so you’re drinking in a room full of cut-off ties, old photos and royal portraits. The bar was closed from 1982 to 2008. Today it gets a mixed crowd of locals and visitors most evenings from Tuesday to Sunday.
Café ‘t Mandje at a glance
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Address | Zeedijk 63, 1012 AS Amsterdam |
| Neighborhood | De Wallen (Red Light District), beside Chinatown and Nieuwmarkt |
| Founded | 1927, by Bet van Beeren (1902-1967) |
| Closed | 1982-2008 (briefly reopened for the 1998 Gay Games) |
| Reopened | 29 April 2008 |
| Typical hours | Mon closed; Tue-Thu 4pm-1am; Fri-Sat 3pm-3am; Sun 3pm-1am |
| Phone | +31 20 622 5375 |
| Nearest metro | Nieuwmarkt (lines 51, 53, 54) |
| Capacity | About 45 people |
Hours are published by several listings and can change around holidays, Pride and private events. Check the bar’s own channels before a late visit.
Why visit Café ‘t Mandje
Most visitors come for the history, and the room itself tells it. Men’s ties and underwear hang from the ceiling, photos cover the walls, and there’s an accordion sitting on the jukebox. You’ll also find at least four pairs of shoes. The current managers say they aren’t allowed to change the bar beyond maintenance, so what you see is close to what regulars saw in Bet’s day.
It’s also still a working local bar rather than a staged attraction. In 2023, co-manager Laura Molenkamp estimated the crowd at about 20 percent tourists and 80 percent locals, with visitors coming from Amsterdam and from elsewhere in the Netherlands. The mix of men and women changes from night to night. As she put it, “it was always mixed,” even when a lesbian ran it.
What to look for inside
- Ties on the ceiling. Bet liked to cut the neckties off well-dressed customers with a butcher’s knife and hang them up as trophies.
- The shoes. When a customer couldn’t pay, Bet sometimes kept their shoes so they couldn’t run up a tab in another bar. They could collect them the next day once they paid.
- Royal family photos. Bet was a committed royalist, and she kept portraits of the Dutch royals on display even during the German occupation.
- The jukebox and sing-alongs. The current programme includes performances, sing-alongs and student nights, with dancing on Friday and Saturday after about 9pm.
- Unlabeled objects. Many items hanging from the ceiling have stories the staff no longer know, so ask about the ones that catch your eye.
The history of ‘t Mandje and Bet van Beeren
Bet van Beeren was born in 1902 and grew up in the Jordaan. She was 25 when she took over Café De Amstelstroom from her uncle, Toon Engelen, in 1927. She renamed it ‘t Mandje (“the little basket”), reportedly because her mother brought her food every day in a small basket.
Back then, police regularly raided bars where they suspected gay people were gathering. Bet let gay men and women in alongside sailors, neighbors, artists and sex workers, but she also kept strict rules and banned kissing. The big exception was Queen’s Day (30 April), when men could dance with men and women with women. In the 1950s she reportedly kept an owl figure on the bar with eyes that lit up to warn dancers that police were coming, so couples could quickly switch to mixed-sex pairs.
Stories about the war years say she hid weapons for Gerrit van der Veen’s resistance group and sheltered Jewish people at the café. People on the Zeedijk called her the “Queen of the Zeedijk,” and she was known for riding a motorbike in leather. After she died in 1967, her body lay in state on the café’s billiard table.
Closure, reopening and new management
Bet’s younger sister Greet ran the bar after her death, then closed it in 1982 because of drug problems on the Zeedijk. (Some sources date the closure to 1981 or 1983.) Greet left the interior in place, and the bar reopened only once in that period, during the 1998 Gay Games. In 1999, a replica of the interior went into the Amsterdam Museum. Before Greet died in 2007, she started the process of reopening the bar. Her niece Diana van Laar restored it and reopened it on 29 April 2008, the day before Queen’s Day. That same year, ‘t Mandje was added to the Canon of Amsterdam.
In 2020, NV Zeedijk bought the building. It’s a company that is majority-owned by the City of Amsterdam. Laura Molenkamp and her partner Marinda Filk took over running the bar in July 2022, under an agreement to protect its heritage. That means the bar is once again run by lesbian women, as it was under Bet.
Best times to visit
How the bar feels depends a lot on when you go. With only about 45 places, it can feel busy even when just a handful of people are inside.
- Right after opening (from 4pm Tuesday to Thursday, or 3pm Friday to Sunday) is the easiest time to look at the memorabilia and chat with the bartender.
- Weekday evenings are usually calmer and more about the regulars.
- Friday and Saturday after about 9pm bring dancing and a packed room.
- King’s Day (27 April) continues the Queen’s Day tradition that Bet made famous. Expect big crowds.
- Amsterdam Pride in late July and early August is the busiest and most festive time on the Zeedijk.
The bar is closed on Mondays. The bar sometimes hosts heritage events too. For example, in 2026 it held talks about Bet van Beeren and De Wallen during the war as part of Amsterdam’s 4 and 5 May Remembrance and Liberation programme.
Location and how to get there
Café ‘t Mandje is at Zeedijk 63. That’s about halfway along the Zeedijk, between Amsterdam Centraal and Nieuwmarkt square. It’s easy to walk past, so look for the small “‘t Mandje” sign above a window full of framed photos.
- From Amsterdam Centraal: roughly a 5-7 minute walk. Cross toward Prins Hendrikkade and head south down the Zeedijk.
- By metro: take line 51, 53 or 54 to Nieuwmarkt, then walk north up the Zeedijk for a few minutes.
- By tram: most central tram lines stop at Amsterdam Centraal, and it’s a short walk from there.
- From Dam Square: about a 10-minute walk east through the old center.
Nearby places to pair with a visit
- Chinatown: the streets around the Zeedijk and Geldersekade, good for dinner before or after.
- Nieuwmarkt and the Waag: the square and the 15th-century former city gate are a few minutes’ walk south.
- Oude Kerk: Amsterdam’s oldest building, about a 5-minute walk away in the heart of De Wallen.
- Café Dijk 120: another traditional brown café further along the Zeedijk.
- Dutch Courage: a cocktail bar at Zeedijk 12, if you’d like a second stop near the station.
- Eagle Amsterdam: a long-running gay bar on nearby Warmoesstraat.
For the city’s main cluster of gay bars around Reguliersdwarsstraat, see our Rembrandtplein neighborhood guide.
Frequently asked questions
Is Café ‘t Mandje the oldest gay bar in Amsterdam?
It opened in 1927 and is widely described as one of the first bars in Amsterdam where gay men and lesbians could meet openly. It has not been open the whole time, though. It closed from 1982 to 2008, apart from a short reopening during the 1998 Gay Games.
Do you have to be LGBTQ+ to visit?
No. Everyone is welcome. The crowd has always been mixed, and the current managers say it still is, with a different balance of men and women depending on the night.
What does ‘t Mandje mean?
It means ‘the little basket.’ Bet van Beeren reportedly picked the name because her mother brought her food every day in a small basket.
Who runs Café ‘t Mandje today?
Laura Molenkamp and Marinda Filk have run the bar since July 2022. They work under an agreement with NV Zeedijk, the city-backed company that owns the building, to keep the bar’s historic interior and character.
Can you still see the replica of ‘t Mandje at the Amsterdam Museum?
A replica of the interior was added to the Amsterdam Museum in 1999. A 2025 article said it was there ‘until recently,’ so check with the museum before you go. The original bar on the Zeedijk is open to visitors.
