Sint-Amandstraat 14, 9000 Gent
Visit us
The narrow brick front between the bike shop and the launderette, two minutes off Sint-Jacobs. There is no sign above the door — the landlord will not permit one — only the cup painted on the glass.
Roastery open to visitors every Thursday, 14:00–17:00 No bookings, no table service
Where we are
Nimbusden KoffiebranderijSint-Amandstraat 14
9000 Gent
Belgium
[email protected]
+32 9 335 21 74 — answered between 09:00 and 15:00, badly, because the grinder is loud
Getting here
On foot — eight minutes from Korenmarkt, four from Sint-Jacobs. The street is cobbled and narrow; walk down the middle, everyone does.
By tram — line 1 to Sint-Jacobs, then two minutes east. Lines 2 and 4 stop at Vlasmarkt, which is the other end of our street.
By bike — racks at the Vlasmarkt end, thirty seconds away. Please do not chain to the drainpipe; it has come off the wall twice.
By car — you cannot. Sint-Amandstraat is inside the low-traffic zone and has no parking at all. The Vrijdagmarkt underground car park is a seven-minute walk and is the nearest sensible option.
At the door
The old doorway stands 9 cm above the cobbles; behind it the floor is level, with 90 cm between the counter and the window bench. Our single toilet is too narrow for a wheelchair, and the building is protected, so we are not permitted to widen it. Send word the day before and we will hold the front table, which is the easiest of the twenty to reach.
Opening hours
Café — Sint-Amandstraat 14
The kitchen cabinet is usually empty by two, and the last filter goes on the brewer thirty minutes before closing. On Mondays and Thursdays the roaster is running from about 06:00, so the back of the room smells strongly of coffee and the front of the room is slightly warmer than it should be.
The Thursday roastery hour
Every Thursday from 14:00 to 17:00 the roastery door stands open. Come through, stand by the cooling tray, look over the week's curves on the chalkboard and ask whatever you like. No booking, no charge, nothing to buy. Closed shoes, please, and if the drum is at first crack we will hold the conversation for ninety seconds.
Holiday closures 2025
When the door stays shut
The August fortnight is not negotiable and we announce it on the door in June. Standing orders due in that window are roasted and set aside before we go; there is a note on your invoice when that happens.
Write to us
Our mailbox is [email protected], opened once a day over the afternoon coffee; the counter is quicker still. The sheet below is a memory aid and nothing more — the four things that help us answer you properly. Jot them down at your own pace, then send them our way.
We answer inside two days that the café is open, now and then the same evening if the drum is cooling and the room is quiet. There is no newsletter here: nothing to sign up for, nothing to unsubscribe from.
Before you come
Three things people are usually surprised by, so they are better said here than at the door. The room seats twenty and we keep no reservation book — on a Saturday between ten and one you will likely wait, and the waiting happens outside on the cobbles. There is no table service: you order at the counter and carry it yourself, which is also why the price is the same whether you sit or stand. And after noon on Saturdays we ask people to close laptops. It is not a rule we enjoy keeping, but a café and a reading room are two different rooms, and we have chosen which one this is.
Otherwise: come in, the water is on the table already, the biscuit comes with the coffee, and if the board says only one filter is on, a lot has run out, and we say so plainly instead of slipping something else into the grinder. The full list is on the menu page, and what is currently in the hoppers is described on the beans page.
Groups
Six is the most we can seat together, and only before 10:00 or after 15:00. Write ahead so we can put two tables side by side — that is the extent of what we can arrange.
Standing order
Twelve bags a year, one every four weeks, invoiced quarterly. Arranged at the counter in about a minute, or by e-mail using the note above.
Lost property
Umbrellas, gloves and one bicycle helmet live in a crate under the window bench. We keep things for a month. Ask.