Vesper Bar

Good atmosphere with a cool menu. The place is hidden in the small streets under the Haarlemmerdijk. Inspired by the speak easy attitude, with dimmed lighting, this can be a great place for an intimate cocktail with friends or lovers.
The menu includes interesting, and deliciously sounding cocktails. Should the offer in the menu not tickle your fancy, however, I recommend you take a «Leap of Faith». Well, tell your preferences, and you will most likely not be disappointed. I was not. The bartenders were very friendly, and not only served up amazing cocktails, but were up for a chat as well. Cocktails are serves with some nuts and olives to nibble on, which I always appreciate.
Since the place is quite cozy, it is not possible to make a reservation for a group. But if you are with 2 or 3 people, you should be able to squeeze in somewhere, or a place to squeeze into will probably open up soon. Meanwhile, you can enjoy a cocktail. I am looking forward to my next visit there.

An awesome place, very chik with cocktails between 12 and 15 euros. My only wish was that they had a bigger venue, because it got super crowded on the Saturday night we were there.
Cudos to the friendly staff who served us like a champion despite that!

This bar was great. A bit small but it’s Amsterdam and that’s Gezelligheid. It was packed with a lot of different people. The staff were friendly and skilled in terms of cocktails. The drinks menu was diverse and the range of spirits was great. Unlike me, I didn’t look at the beer options. I saw a Pornstar Martini soon after settling in and I was excited as I hadn’t had one in about 3 – 4 years and this was my drink in London. It was off-​menu but superbly done; done properly first Prosecco, passionfruit next, then the cocktail. Super Lekker!
Great atmosphere, lighting and music. I noticed the barmen were good at giving people water too but not in a rude way.

The drinks require patience — expect great care to be put into them. Each drink comes served looking beautiful — my tequila cocktail came in a day of dead skull shaped mug with an umbrella. To me, this seems a bit kitschy and unnecessary, but no doubt cute. The cocktails and good and strong, and the way the menu is laid out is like a graph, and makes it easy to choose a drink to your liking (sweet, not sweet, strong, or weak, etc.)

3 stars is being quite generous here. We have visited Vesper Bar four times now on different nights ranging months apart as to average my conclusion of the place. The conclusion; it is too expensive for what you get. If it is busy, which it often, the service is slow. Rightfully so since they do take care in their cocktails. Hence the three stars. Each time I’ve been there, even after consuming three or more cocktails, I haven’t even left with as much as a buzz. One night I think I had everything on the menu and could have danced a straight line home. The guys behind the bar are usually nice for the most part but there just isn’t enough guts behind this place. Actaully on the last trip there with a six person table, I vowed never to return again becuase of the service, price and content of the drinks. Find another cocktail bar.

Awesome place for cocktails. In town from the US and nice to find a proper cocktails. Love the 1920s feel and the wonderful service.

Amazing cocktails, great ambiance and super friendly staff! Even though the space is small it’s well worth the visit. Some cocktails may not be on the menu but they will do them for you. I suggest the Porn Star Martini. They will get you water sometimes you don’t even have to ask. Obviously they want you to feel well the next day and that’s always been the case for me.

Service was pretty slow but we were happy with our drinks. Until… We got served a gin and tonic in a freezer bag. WHUT?!
An actual freezer bag that you’d normally y’know, put in a freezer. We had a good old laugh and then asked for it to be transferred to a glass.
Nice place but they should drop the gimmicks.

My absolutely favourite place to grab cocktails! It’s right in the middle of Joordaan and has a great location in case you like to «pub crawl».
They have a selection of amazing and super creative cocktails! And you will love it! I high recommend you take the LEAP OF FAITH, where you tell the bartender your preferences and he will make your own custom drink! You just have to trust!
I love how original this place is (just take a look at their menu and enjoy the names and descrptions!), and how cozy you feel in there. Be careful with weekend nights or after 9pm, because thats when the bar gets packed! And i mean super packed!
Sure it’s a bit pricey but these are the best and most original cocktails you will find in the city IMO. The atmosphere is not pretentious or snobby although it’s a boutique bar, and the people are mostly locals.
I don’t recommend it for big groups though (maybe a max of 3 people) since it’s a small place.

Fantastic take on the vesper martini. The crowd is mostly local and it’s not super centrally-​located but it’s a great spot for solid cocktails and a nice atmosphere.

I love this place as it has the best cocktails in town. Always new recipes, new mixes and adventurous concoctions. The bartenders are always up for a challenge so if you want something particular, they will come up with exciting stuff for you. I have been here a couple of times on friday and saturday late nights and its a great place to get some great drinks but it can be extremely NOISY and extremely CROWDED. so be wary but if you are up for it — I would recommend it for some impressive cocktails…

Interesting concoctions of drinks in a small and cozy place. Stopped here after dinner for a drink last month. It’s a small place north of Jordan — so a little far from the main drag, but worth it for a drink and to see a new area. Not the largest selection of pre-​made drinks, but still interesting menu.

Been here a few times on a busy Saturday night… it gets so crowded that you can’t move around the bar anymore. You can make eye contact with the rest of your group on the other side, but it might take a while to reach them again :) The cocktails are very nice and the bar tenders are creative and consult with you. Unlike other fancy cocktail bars, Vesper didn’t have the pretentious vibe.

Amazing amazing amazing place and cocktails.
The bartenders are experts, just tell them what you like in your cocktail and they’ll make you something fabulous. Love it.
Small but chique and cozy. Great place to go for a date, but also fun with friends.
5stars well deserved!

Easily the best cocktails I found in Amsterdam!
On the outside, Vesper Bar looks like any other one of the many little bars in Amsterdam, however, this place is gold. Super classy, upscale and exactly what the doctor ordered after I’d consumed a steady liquid diet of coffee and vodka sodas.
We were greeted with a lovely drink menu and a little bowl of crunchy, salty cracker/​snacks. Love that. Our server told us to take our time perusing the menu.
I loved that while the drink menu is very expansive and has many options, there’s also a note where you can ask the bartender to just make you a cocktail of their choice. Um, yes. Done and done. I told him I like whiskey and orange and was served up an amazing drink that was delicious, fruity and perfect for a rainy night.
Expensive? Sure. But it’s what you’d expect to pay for a craft cocktail in a nice atmosphere.
I also have to give props to the bartender. Super friendly, very knowledgeable and managed to take care of the entire bar all by himself.
Kudos, Vesper Bar! Can’t wait to come back!

Vesper is a great place for some serious cocktails. From a small, unassuming storefront, Vesper is an excellent example of cocktail culture in Amsterdam. As you enter, you can see shelves stocked with some hard to find bottles, tons of fresh fruit/​herbs, and bitters. Definitely impressed with the layout and inventory, which was a good indication of things to come!
As it was a warm summer day, I started off with a Johnnie Taylor– Ketel 1 Jenever with freshly squeezed lime juice and Fever Tree ginger ale, which was very refreshing. I then started to order drinks that were off-​menu, and took advantage of the very knowledgeable bar tender and also some aged genever, which was available. Tried a very nice and expensive genever as an Old Fashioned which totally worked, as you do not want to overwhelm a nice spirit with too many mixers or flavors. Also tried another genever as a Negroni, which also worked very well. Service was friendly and excellent, and it was great to learn about the cocktail culture in Amsterdam.
I am in Amsterdam only a few times a year, but I plan to come back to Vesper for sure!

To be fair I didn’t know I was going to a cocktail bar when my friends invited me to this tiny little place. It was alright. Bartenders weren’t very friendly, maybe because they were exhausted from not only making the cocktails but also running around getting orders and handing the drinks out — no cocktails waitresses at this cocktail bar. I wasn’t up for paying 11EUR for a small cocktail so went with a beer instead. Not going back.

This is THE PLACE TO BE on a vrijdag night in Amsterdam. Fun, well dressed, good looking crowd and delicious drinks. The small lounge got a bit packed when I was there, but you can probably wedge in if you don’t mind standing. It’s in a quiet area of town at night, but only a 10 minute walk from the action.
The drinks are tasty, but many of them are around € 10, so be ready to blow some cash. The staff is super friendly and will make anything they can for you. Nice touch is they don’t make you wait at the bar — they will navigate the crowd with your drinks and find you.
Vind het leuk.

Was für eine tolle Bar: Wir wollten gestern Abend eigentlich nur für eine Cocktail reinschauen, und am Ende sind es für jedne 3 geworden, und wir haben in jeder Hinsicht gestrahlt ;-) Die Barkeeper betreiben Ihr Geschäft ganz offensichtlich aus Lkeidenschaft und das schmeckt man den Cocktails auch an.

You’ll dig this place if you dig class.
How do you define class? At a bar, classy would be:
* Great interior
* Great clientele
* Well dressed staff behind the bar
* Great furniture
* Low key music which isn’t so loud as to inhibit all conversation
* Safe place for you and your date to indulge in the company of one another without overbearing interference from others
* A very thorough drinks menu
* Friendly staff that has time to tend to every customer without making them wait a long time for attention and drinks
* A lot many more subtle things…
Vesper in the Jordaan is an embodiment of all these traits. Andrew is my favorite bartender and legend has it that his mastery of the trade keeps him busy with global travel. You’d be lucky to have him mix up your cocktails for you.
Every once in a while, Vesper has nights where they serve various punches. It’s always a great time to be there.
Location really works in the benefit of Vesper as you feel cut off, in a very good manner, from the hubbub that is otherwise the city of Amsterdam. In case you end up spending your entire evening here (which you easily could), there are a few snack bars within walking distance to satisfy that hunger.
Vesper is arguably one of the best cocktail bars in the city. You will definitely have a great time, and as always please tip responsibly as these people work really hard to make sure you have a great time.
Cheers!

Top cocktail bar in Amsterdam!
Located in the Jordaan area, this bar was very intimate and cozy. When we went there, it was not crowded at all, there were only two other locals which I loved.
The award winning bartender/​mixologist was GREAT. Such a friendly guy, loved speaking to him. We both tried two cocktails and did they ever hit the spot! I tried the pornstar martini (i know with a name like that i was hesitant – but so glad i picked it). It was a THREE STEP drink. so interactive… My boyfriend tried the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club wtih Jamaican rum – smelled amazing.
Not cheap, but who cares? These drinks were on a whole other level!
Great experience.