SUSTAINABILITY
Café de Ceuvel wants to make a difference in the world, and it starts on your plate. The global food system is the largest cause of climate change and a range of other social issues. That’s why we’re searching for what truly makes food and drinks good. It goes beyond just a label that says ‘organic’.
We collaborate with a wide range of initiatives that ensure every plate, beer, and drink we serve contributes to making the world a little better. For example, we make our own soft drinks using organic syrups from Saru Soda, and our beer comes from sustainable family brewer Gulpener or small breweries. Since 2020, we cook completely vegan, serve CO₂-free coffee from Kaap Koffie, and are completely off the gas grid!
Click here to learn more about the origin of our products.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY
To us, the social component of sustainability is just as important as the ecological one—and sometimes an even greater challenge. It’s about offering a sustainable product for everyone in society, from all walks of life. Unfortunately, organic and local products, as strange as it sounds, are often more expensive than vegetables and fruits flown in from thousands of kilometers away.
While we would love to keep all our prices below average, that’s not always feasible. That’s why we’ve partnered with the Stadspas program so we can always offer an affordable meal and drink for people on a tighter budget who still want to consume responsibly. It remains a constant search for how to make sustainability accessible for everyone—not just the wealthy.
passing the bar on
In 2014, Toon Maassen, Joey Hodde, Esmee Jiskoot, and Bart van Overbeek made a radical decision: they quit their studies and, at the age of 22, started the sustainable Café de Ceuvel at the newly established creative hub De Ceuvel. After years of pouring their blood, sweat, tears, dancing, and joy into Café de Ceuvel, the time came in 2020 for new adventures. But how do you let go of a place you’ve fought so hard for? Rather then selling the place to the highest bidder, they decided to affordably pass the bar on, to two of their own employees. Since November 1st, 2020, Café de Ceuvel is being run by the cultural programmer and the Café’s head bartender; Esther and Gideon, supported by a boat builder from the NDSM wharf.
the first Dutch fossil free pension fund
From the very start of Café de Ceuvel, we’ve been counting every penny so we could make even more sustainable choices. We were therefore extremely frustrated when we discovered that a large proportion of the money we are obliged to pay into the pension fund was being invested directly in the fossil fuel industry! After years of lobbying, research and campaigning, we achieved a major milestone; the Horeca and Catering Pension Fund became the first fund in the country to divest entirely from the fossil fuel industry. Shortly afterwards, the PME and even ABP – Europe’s largest pension fund – followed suit. As a result, our little café has had an impact worth billions of euros on the international market.
The Building
The building was designed by architect Wouter Valkenier. He constructed the entire structure using upcycled materials. For example, the café is built from 80-year-old mooring posts from the Port of Amsterdam and the former lifeguard pavilion from Scheveningen.
Studio Valkenier is also known for designing Hannekes Boom, BRET, and the Stadstimmertuin.
