Travel

De 9 Straatjes

Establishment neighborhood
Marie-Stella-Maris
Keizersgracht 357, De 9 Straatjes
As gorgeous as the line of paraben-free skin care and bath product is, the true beauty of Marie-Stella-Maris is in its mission: Every purchase of an MSM product—be it a gentle body scrub or the deeply cleansing shampoo—provides 1 euro toward clean drinking water projects all over the world. The flagship boutique is an excellent place to get familiar with the offering and stock up (the line isn't widely available in the U.S. just yet). And if the name sounds familiar, it's because the Marie-Stella-Maris brand of natural mineral water is served at most local restaurants.
JuiceBrothers
Herengracht 245, De 9 Straatjes
JuiceBrothers was founded by four friends, who decided in the summer of 2013, while on a canal boat, that Amsterdam needed a really good pressed juice place. Two years later, the first JuiceBrothers shop opened in De Pijp, followed by a second location in Amsterdam-West, and another in Centrum. (There's also a JuiceBrothers in the suburbs outside of Amsterdam, in the Amstelveen mall.) JuiceBrothers' main thing is still cold-pressed juice, using as many organic ingredients as possible. But they also make smoothies and serve a limited amount of breakfast (acai bowls, chia pudding, coconut yogurt) and lunch (a couple salads and a coconut wrap), along with some snacks and sweets (kale chips, oat bars, chocolate truffles).
The Cold Pressed Juicery
Herengracht 245, De 9 Straatjes
The Cold Pressed Juicery has two locations in Amsterdam: One in De 9 Straatges and one on Willemsparkweg near Vondlepark—both smartly situated for grabbing a juice/smoothie in the morning before touring around the city, or during a mid-afternoon pit stop. The juices are cold pressed and organic and largely made from locally grown produce. This is also a good option for a quick lunch (salads, wraps, soups). Another cool thing about The Cold Pressed Juicery is that instead of throwing out juice pulp, they use it to make nut milks and other snacks.
De Kaaskamer van Amsterdam
Runstraat 7, De 9 Straatjes
Within Amsterdam's picturesque canal-side shopping district, De 9 Straatjes ("The Nine Streets"), you'll find De Kaaskamer van Amsterdam, which has to be one of the world's most wonderful cheese shops. Obviously there's a lot of gouda, much of which is organic, along with ready-made food—homemade salads, sandwiches, and snacks—as well as specialty hams and wines. And should you be so inclined after visiting, they ship to more than 25 countries, including the U.S.
Love Stories
Herengracht 298, De 9 Straatjes
A Dutch brand through and through, Love Stories chose a well-loved, bi-level canal house as its first stand-alone location; inside, the setup is equal parts punk and French boudoir. You can easily cobble together matching bra-and-pantie sets, but the real fun lies in playing with different combinations of gauzy bralettes, cheeky panties, and silk pajama shorts. As of late, designer Marloes Hoedeman has been trying her hand at loungewear to great results.
Gerda’s Flowers
Runstraat 16, De 9 Straatjes
It’s likely you’ll get a whiff of Gerda’s freshly picked blooms while bumming around 9 Streets before you actually see it. Whether you’re looking to pick up a quick hostess bouquet or elaborate centerpiece (these guys provide florals for tons of fashion events all over the city), beautiful results are guaranteed—high praise considering flowers are serious business in Amsterdam. While they make really great use of wildflowers, the selection of orchids and other exotics is excellent, too.
The Otherist
Leliegracht 6, De 9 Straatjes
Although the shop itself is rather small, it’s easy to burn an entire afternoon here. The walls are decked out from floor to ceiling with framed curiosities of all kinds, from brilliant blue butterflies to delicate beetles and stick bugs. And while we won’t pretend to know anything about bringing taxidermied goods through customs, there are plenty of other items worthy of suitcase space, like antique globes, unique cutlery, and stationery.
Rika Studios
Oude Spiegelstraat 12, De 9 Straatjes
Rika Studios is actually an adorable single-apartment guesthouse masquerading as an achingly chic boutique-slash-gallery. Former stylist Ulrika Lundgren applied the same edgy-yet-approachable aesthetic that makes her namesake line of accessories and separates so great to the two-bedroom, canal-facing space—if it’s authenticity you’re after, this is the way to go. The ground-floor shop is where you’ll find Ulrika’s famed leather bags and star-print tees, as well as jewelry from local designers and a selection of niche fragrances.