The Stud

Founded in 1982 in the Indische Buurt, a working-class, multicultural corner of Oost, and relocated in November 2013 to Molukkenstraat — about 500 metres from the original premises on the Niasstraat. The name means a breeding bull, which is why one has been on the logo since the blue-and-black rebrand in 1991; before that it was a pitbull.

It's a small corner shop with a smoking lounge, and the lounge is the point. There's free Wi-Fi, a computer for customers, newspapers and games, and — the thing that comes up in review after review — the owner is usually in, will sit down with you, talk through the menu and often smoke with you. Visitors who've been treated as walking wallets elsewhere in the city notice the difference immediately and say so at length.

The menu is broad across both flower and hash, with Cali strains, moonrocks and imported hash all singled out, and prices among the lowest in Amsterdam. There's shop merchandise too.