Smack in the middle of tourist district and right on the border of the red light district. My good friend (and super talented photographer Qiu Yang, check it out folks!) is part of the furniture there and because of him, we - his friends - are allowed to order outside of the menu. So none of that westernized mild gruel, but the real spicy tongue-numbing-deal. Before going out to parties, after gallery openings or just when we’re hungry, our bunch always gathers there. Good times!

The portal between the Leidseplein nightlife area and the Max Eeuweplein is pompously accentuated by a classical looking façade, designed in 1991 by Zaanen Spanjers Architects. On the frieze, supported by columns, the architect has carved an inscription: ‘Homo sapiens non urinat in ventum’ - ‘A wise man does not piss into the wind’. A ‘wisecrack’, disguised in Latin.

This place has, beside the excellent pastry, the best shrimp croquettes in town. 

We love having ramen here - it's a beautiful space, feels a bit like being back in NYC, and the food is incredible. There are two locations, the one in De Pijp is bigger, so easier to get a table, but the other location is very cosy, so get there early if you go to that location.

Under the city, the extraordinary Gesamtkunstwerk by Louis van Gasteren, Jan Sierhuis and others is located in Nieuwmarkt underground. This is one of the public artworks of the Seventies and early Eighties endangered due to station renovation on the Underground Eastline. At present there is a notice hanging at different spots on the wall: ‘‘This artwork has been temporally removed due to renovations”.