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Lunchroom Downtown
Reguliersdwarsstraat nr. 31
1017 BJ Amsterdam
(1970 - 2021)
Closed since April 2021
Downtown is a small lunchroom, where you can get coffee and thea with homemade cake. This place has always been very popular by both gay and straight people.
The interior of Downtown is small, but light and cosy, and on the walls you can see exhibitions of modern art. During summertime there is a great sunny terrace in front of the building, as well as in the street aside.
Above the lunchroom is Edwin's Guesthouse with two rooms, that can be rented for a visit to Amsterdam.
- Closed.
- Homepage: www.lunchroomdowntown.nl
- Networks: Facebook - Instagram
- Accessibility: level access, toilet on mezzanine floor, no smoking area, debetcard accepted
History
Lunchroom Downtown is located in the oldest existing building of Reguliersdwarsstraat, dating back to 1642. As such, this is a good example of how 17th century Dutch houses with a shop at the front looked like. In 1970, two gay friends, Fokke IJsinga and Frits Blaauw, started an espresso bar here, which became the first openly gay cafe of the city. This makes Downtown also the oldest existing gay establishment of the street.
By the end of 1979 Downtown was taken over by Frans Monsma and Guus Silverentand. They began organizing the first big and fancy parties in Reguliersdwarsstraat. A year later they also started Cafe April, and both venues became the avant-garde of the Golden Eighties of Amsterdam Gay Capital. In 2010, Downtown celebrated its 40th anniversary.
- Pictures of People @ Coffeeshop Downtown in May 1980
- The illustrated history of Coffeeshop Downtown in Dutch
