Saarein has been on the Elandsstraat in the Jordaan since August 1978, which makes it Amsterdam's oldest lesbian bar by a wide margin. It began as a women-only feminist cafe and has opened out over the decades into a bar for the whole queer community.
It is now run by the Saarein Foundation rather than as a straightforward business, with the stated aim of keeping an inclusive, safe and visible meeting place going and supporting work towards a fairer society. That is unusual for a bar and it shapes the programming, which leans on community events rather than club nights.
The bar posts its house rules publicly and runs a Signal group for announcements instead of relying on the big platforms, which is a deliberate privacy choice.
