The last corner of the Meent and the marktplaats now finally has some potential. Van Zanten has opened her doors last summer and I like it. It’s a nice little cafe/lunch place during the day and turns into a restaurant/bar at night.

Their food is good and not as predictable as in most places (so not just your standard steak and fries). Van Zanten has lots of salads to choose from and asparagus (white) when they’re in season. They also have a lot of sandwiches to choose from, which makes it a great place for lunch.

Van Zanten is getting quite the attention now. It attracts a different crowd than Café Pol (check out the article) or the other two pubs on the corners. A lot more down to earth people.

This bar is turning into a great success!

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Van Zanten | Bars, Coffee & tea, Restaurants (European)
Meent 44 | Center | +31108435012
Sun – Thu 10:00 – 01:00, Fri – Sat 10:00 – 02:00

One of my favorite bars in Rotterdam is definitely ‘Stalles’.

The location and its terrace is ideal for some good people watching. The different type of visitors to this place is also the reason I like it so much, a nice mixture of all kind of people. One thing they all have in common is that they’re relaxed.

Next to Stalles is ‘Parket’, which is the same kind of place. In fact only one wall separates the two places from being one. They share owner, staff and bathrooms. ‘Stalles’ and ‘Parket’ are known as pubs, but the menu here is quite good and gets regular up-dates. Monday and Tuesdays are pizza night. From 15:00 pizza’s cost between € 4.50 and € 6.50.

If you stay long enough during the weekend you can walk straight into Club Vibes (check the Club Vibes article), yaay!

Exciting, if you have a RotterdamPas, you get 20% discount on the bittergarnituur!!!

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Stalles | Bars, Restaurants (European) | Plat du Jour € 10.50
Nieuwe Binnenweg 11a | Center | +31104361655
Mon – Thu 12:00 – 01:00, Fri – Sun 12:00 – 02:00 (with bad weather from 15:00)

In this small pub you can find all kinds of people, a reason for me to go there. The vibe is just really nice, even though it can be very crowded inside. This pub is open till late, so you might see the sun come up when you were just going to have one drink!

Since smoking isn’t allowed inside anymore, De Witte Aap has built a permanent terrace with heaters on the pavement right in front of the pub. A very smart thing to do I think. Smokers happy, the pub is extended and it always looks as if there are lots of people there.

Every month the pub offers an artist to show his or her art here. So you could come home a bit drunk and an art collector.

The Lonely Planet has voted ‘De Witte Aap’ the best pub in the world in 2010. Lets see what they do the coming years…

Details about this spot (Show on map)
De Witte Aap | Art & culture, Bars | Beer € 2.30
Witte de withstraat 78 | Center | +31104149565
Sun – Thu 13:00 – 04:00, Fri – Sat 13:00 – 05:00

Level is situated in the trendy area around the Meent and this describes the place a bit as well. It’s decked out very hip and lots of people come here to be seen. All the others come for the cocktails, especially the “Porn star”. I’m not the biggest cocktail drinker, but even I like some of the ones they make here.

I like Level because it’s a nice and a bit different hang out near my house. I don’t have to go far to have a night out.

Before 21:00 when the place turns into a crowded cocktail bar, Level is a restaurant. They have nice food and the way serve that food is very pretty, but that’s also what you pay for! Their chocolate dessert for chocolate lovers is to die for though!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Level | Bars, Restaurants (European) | Chocolate desert € 7.50
Pannekoekstraat 76A | Center | +31102800788
12:00 – 01:00 daily

The first rays of sunlight came out, sping has begun and so it’s off to the terrace!

Right next to the lake in ‘Het Kralingsche bos’ (check the Kralingsche bos article) is ‘De Tuin’, as people in Rotterdam call this restaurant/lunch-place/bar. This is the place I go to after a walk around the lake with my friend to have a cup of tea and eat back the calories we might have burned while walking by ordering a bittergarnituur (small deep fried snacks). My friends and I have done some thorough research and ‘De Tuin’ has definitely got best combination of ‘bittergarnituur’. So going to this place just for that is worth it.

But if you’re looking for a place to enjoy the green that Rotterdam has to offer, look no further. From the terrace there’s a great view of the skyline of the city. Plus this is a good place to enjoy the sun, although you will find that a lot of people like this place for just that reason.

Not to long ago they renovated ‘De Tuin’, which made it look trendier, but also drove the prices a bit up. Still it’s worth going to.

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De Tuin van de vier windstreken | Bars, Restaurants (Intern.) | Sandwich € 8.75
Plaszoom 354 | Kralingen | +31104527743
10:00 – 00:00 daily (kitchen till 22:00)

This place is always nice to go to, but on Mondays it’s the best. With every drink you buy you get a free bingo ticket. Around 01:00, when you have enough tickets to have a good shot at a price, and enough to drink to minimize that chance, the party begins…..LET PLAY BINGO!!!! !

I always went on Mondays, but I have only recently discovered the Wednesday night quiz! Okay, nothing beats the bingo, but the trivia is lots of fun too.(if you win, don’t go for the surprise bag!)

There are several other things Paddy organises, like a big Queensday party and of course St. Patrick’s day festivities. Plus they have a sports channel TV in a separate part of the pub. There’s also always nice live music and friendly people to chat to.

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Paddy Murphy’s Irish Pub | Bars | Pint € 4.00
Rodezand 15 | Center | +31104110078
Mon 16:00 – 04:00, Tue – Thu 16:00 – 01:00, Fri 16:00 – 02:00, Sat – Sun 16:00 – 03:00

How silly is it, that I’ve only put this place up now. It’s around the corner from my house and it’s the best place for spare ribs. This ensures that we often go here when we don’t feel like cooking. Mostly on Mondays when it’s unlimited spare ribs at the Hofnar!

Next to spare ribs the have great stuff on their menu and every now and then they have theme weeks. Like the Australian week, when you can order kangaroo or crocodille. The place is really cozy and the staff so very friendly. It’s one of my favorites!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
De Hofnar | Bars, Restaurants (Intern.) | Spare Ribs Monday (unlimited) € 10
Jonker Fransstraat 66 | Crooswijk | +31104138886
Sun – Thu 16:00 – 22:00, Fri – Sat 16:00 – 23:00

To me this place is a little fun factory. I have had the best nights out in this place and the most fun. The music is never the same, but they do have theme nights, like ‘Dirty Disco’ or ‘Karaoke night’.

The place has just gotten a bit of a make over and isn’t as dark as it used to be.

Don’t go too early to this place, it’s not the same if it’s not a bit busy. So have an other beer at ‘Stalles’ (check the Stalles article) or Parket’ and walk right on through to ‘Vibes’. And don’t take yourself too serious when you’re going here.

Just relax, be a bit crazy and have lots and lots of fun.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Club Vibes | Bars, Music | Late entrance € 5.00
Westersingel 50a | Center | +31104361655
Thu – Sat 00:00 – 05:00

My boyfriend and I were on our way to my spots to take some new pictures. We passed ‘Pol’ and decided to have a quick drink, as we do more often. I hadn’t even gotten to the bar yet when we ran into a couple of friends of mine. This was at about half past five and at 9ish we left the place. Whoops… no new photo’s of old spots, but hey what a great way to spend the Sunday.

That’s what ‘Pol’ is about. One time you jump in for a quick cup of coffee to have a little rest after shopping at the market right next to it. And the other day you go in with the same idea, but you leave a bit more drunk and full from the ‘bittergarnituur’.

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Café Pol | Bars, Coffee & tea | Beer € 2.00
Meent 46-48 | Center | +31104112335
Sun – Mon & Wed – Thu 11:00 – 01:00, Tue 10:00 – 01:00, Fri 11:00 – 02:00, Sat 10:00 – 02:00

A very old student pub on the corner of Oostplein with a nice fireplace -good for the cold winters-, an okay terrace-good for the summer- and a range of special beers. The bartenders, all male and student, have a good knowledge of all those beers. The locus is a pub made to really enjoy your beer. It’s not too big and the pub rules tell you to switch off your phone.

This place is good for relaxing when it’s not that crowded, but on Thursday and Friday evenings it can get quite busy. People who come here are mostly students or those who used to be.

Last year they built a massive set of stairs in the corner all the way up to the attic. This is where some functions are being held. Anyway, big improvement. Don’t know how they did it, but the ‘Locus’ feels even more like a cosy house then ever!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Locus Publicus | Bars | Small beer € 2.00
Oostzeedijk 364 | Kralingen | +31104331761
Mon – Thu 16:30 – 01:00, Fri 16:00 – 02:00, Sat 16:30 – 02:00, Sun 20:00 – 01:00