Whiskycafé L&B Brown Bar / Whiskey Bar

Leidseplein, Amsterdam –

Outside, fogged and white-framed windows reveal a typical Dutch brown bar – cozy and brimming with character. Inside, the award-winning Whiskycafé L&B is a soothing and resoundingly mellow spot that practically begs for a snort or two of whiskey to accompany it.

Luckily, there’s a whiskcrapload on hand.

Nearly 1,500 whiskey bottles line the walls, hang from the ceiling, and overflow from the few glass cupboards squeezed into the small bar. The menu includes a dozen pages of its signature libation compiled by region or theme, and the vibe is straight out of the Cary Grant era, when after-work drinkers favored singles or doubles on the rocks.

Maybe it’s the whiskey boxes posing as books on the shelves, but the scene seems more attuned to the philosophical type who enjoys sipping Blue Label rather than downing Daniels (though both are offered).

The thick menus and large drinks lists scrawled on the walls can be a little overwhelming, but the bartenders are very friendly and can offer helpful advice in picking the proper poison – though they’re known to scowl upon newbies who ask for ice cubes if their drink of choice wasn't meant to be watered down.

The setting at the bar is also very social and naturally encourages a flow of small talk that travels from the people at the bar to those at the tables to the milling wallflowers.

Patrons pour outside and fill the benches on weekends, when beer lovers from the surrounding Leidseplein bars tend to crowd in and displace the weekday “intellectuals.”

Nonetheless, it doesn’t take a genius to realize Whiskycafé L&B is probably the best bar in town to grab a little scotch-infused R&R.