Café De Vergulde Kruik (The Gilded Jar Café)

Café De Vergulde Kruik (The Gilded Jar Café) is one of the oldest pubs in Leiden, a city about 30 miles southwest of Amsterdam. It also has the honor of having originated the Heineken star.

The massive Amsterdam-based beer brewery liked the logo hanging above the old pub’s door so much that they bought it for the then exorbitant sum of 35 guldens (the country’s former currency), which would’ve amounted to about $400 today.

De Vergulde Kruik opened its doors in May of 1881. Little has changed throughout the years. Visiting the pub is like entering a time machine and being transported back to the 19th century. Some of the original furniture is still intact, the bar still has its massive silver beer taps, the bathroom still sports late 19th-century porcelain washbasins, and some of the windows are adorned with old stained glass. Today the pub is a beloved place among both tourists and local students.