Paradise Damstraat 8-10, Amsterdam

Street	Damstraat
District	Centrum
Town	Amsterdam
Province	Noord Holland
Postcode	1012 JM
Telephone	0031 (0)20 6269939
Open	(opening hours not known)
Map	Centrum Map spot: 55 (D7)

	Description

	3 2 8 Comments

Cathleen from USA. Sent 6 Aug 2005.
We bought coffees here, and stopped in to smoke one. It was a nice coffeeshop but nothing really special.

Lucy and Stacey from UK. Sent 29 May 2005.
This was our first joint in Amsterdam. We found them friendly and helpful. We were there for about an hour and a half and felt relaxed the whole time and he even asked us "how's the smoke". We sat in the window and watched the world go by. And opposite is a pizza place-yum yum, perfect for the munchies after a smoke! I rate this place, if you are passing pop in there for the window seat. Couldn't fault the music.

Patrick from USA. Visited March '04. Sent 6 Nov 2004.
Bad music, and seedy bud. The vibes I received from this coffeeshop weren't good. We didn't even smoke the whole joint. Yelp, that bad!

Tom from England. Sent 19 Oct 2004.
This place was horrible. They'd crammed as many tables as humanly possible in to it and the staff were only interested in getting you to buy a drink, don't ever go here!

Lee and Deb from South Africa. Sent 17 Oct 2004.
An attempt at a Bob Marley sort of theme here but I think the plastic flowers and the fact it was run by a couple of Indian/Pakistani Jamaican wannabes kinda let it down. There was a very laid back cat in here - he knows where his bread is buttered.

Claire & Andrea from UK. Visited 15 Sept 04. Sent 16 Sep 2004.
We have tried many coffee shops on our 3 visits to Dam and this is one of our favourite places. It is an excellent place to chill out. Huge Bob Marley painting on the back wall and plenty of seating. The guys here really make you feel at home and the menu is vast with great prices. Check out the Northern Lights, nicest Northern Lights we have ever sampled in Dam, it had us in fits of laughter in no time. Space cakes here are a must you can trust. This coffee shop will always have a special place in our hearts.

Chris from UK. Sent 6 Aug 2004.
I have visited this place twice and have vowed never to return. On our first visit we bought weed and drinks and then after 2-3 mins were asked to leave as they were going to shut. Why couldn't we have been told when purchasing? Especially as they seemed to be closing early 12-40? On the second visit I was told I could not sit in their shop unless I was buying some cannabis. This is regardless of the fact that I had ordered a coffee, and was about to smoke the weed I had purchased off them the night before (Northern Lights- My Arse). The weed in the UK is both cheaper and often better than the crap for sale in this place. Don't waste your hard earned cash on this tacky reggae shrine, which should not be using Bob Marley images to sell its commercial crud. Incidentally if you like Shaggy (it's up to you I suppose) you might like it as that's all they seem to play.

Grumpy from UK. Sent 10 Mar 2004.
Found just off Dam Square, this is a pushy cafe; as soon as I walked in I had a menu rammed under my nose. Bought a coffee and sat down, was watched right until I finished my drink, prices slightly higher than most places, not a place to sit and chill.

Jeremy from USA. Sent 15 Jul 2003.
This place is located just off the Damrak on Damstraat among several other businesses. It really jumps right out at you with the heavy greenery in the large windows. Once inside though it's pretty much a bust. Kind of institutionalized looking with seedy looking employees. After I glanced at the high-priced menu and noticed the pre-packaged weed, I quickly withdrew from the dealer area of the bar and ordered a drink. Sat down at one of the uncomfortable tables and proceeded to roll a spliff. This was the first and only time I have received unwelcome looks from employees. Most of the time everyone is laid back, as long as you purchase something (anything) they generally don't give you a hard time. Still, I did not like the feeling of the place and quickly bolted after slamming a LOOZA and smoking the fore-mentioned spliff.

Jamie from UK. Sent 9 Apr 2003.
[0/10]: A disgusting example of the weed and its loyal followers being ripped off and abused. I stumbled into Paradise after the Stop the War Protest in 'dam square. I was desperate for a smoke and walked into the first coffee shop I saw. Unfortunately this turned out to be Paradise. I was suspicious of the shop before I went in due to its tacky and touristy looking exterior so I initially only bought one gram of white widow. Once smoked I knew immediately it wasn't white widow and left as soon as I could. From the moment I entered the shop with a few friends we were ushered into an overly crowded shop where it was literally difficult to move your arms freely and were then pressured into buying something quickly and rudely. One of my friends didn't want a drink but was willing to order some weed along with the rest of us but he was threatened with being chucked out unless he bought a drink. We were treated as if they were doing us a favour by having us in there. Beyond our treatment from the management I was also disappointed by the insincere daubs of Bob Marley spread across the walls trying to draw some trendy link between Bob Marley and dope. Bob Marley smoked for the love of weed, not for fashion or for a trendy status; he'd be turning in his grave to see money being made of the herb in such a cynical, exploitive manner. The management showed no interest in their product which leads me to presume that they are not buying good quality dope off their suppliers to give to their customers. Places such as the Bluebird, Homegrown Fantasy and the Greenhouses are fine examples of coffee shops who care about their customers and are dedicated to smoking and supplying fine quality weed. Paradise simply couldn't give a shit. Much like the chain of Bulldogs that pollute the cannabis market. Avoid this tourist trap; there is not one satisfactory element to this shop to mention.

The Magnificent 7 from UK.
Myself and My Six Budz have just yesterday returned from The Dam where among our coffeeshop visits was the ironically named Paradise Coffeeshop.
First impressions were good, with the chilled music and decor, but then after a while it felt like we were in the way. The prices are a little on the dear side and the soft drinks are watered down. My Fanta Orange was barely orange in colour, piss weak and cost a fortune.Bounty bars, if you like coconut chocolate are a whopping 2euros, which to us is a bloody rip off (50pence in the UK is dear enough, but £1.25 is too much) Needless to say we quickly smoked up, left our drinks and cleared off. For a real nice smoke and nice surroundings, check out the Bluebird, with a wide choice of strong weed and friendly helpfull staff.

Abbie from UK. Sent 7 Sep 1998.
On our travels we found a really great Coffee Shop called Paradise which is literally off Dam Square on Damstraat (a few shops down on the right). It's totally Bob Marley orientated with mellow music playing all day. It's very dark and the seats aren't as uncomfortable as most. It just has little round tables with candles everywhere. The space cake and tea is excellent and everyone is very very friendly plus it's waiter service rather than queuing at the bar which is obviously much needed at certain times!!!! I would definitely recommend a visit if you're planning on chilling there for a couple of hours.

	Paradise

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