Rockcafe Backstage & Fortarock – Nijmegen

June 2018 – Bloemerstraat 131, 6511 EH Nijmegen, Netherlands

We were in town for the Fortarock festival and I had Googled metal bars in Nijmegen, but nothing came up. So we were pleasantly surprised when we walked past this place while exploring the town the day before the festival.

As you can see they have some pretty badass murals, art and general decorations.

I don’t remember what kind of music they were playing. According to my Untappd checkins my battery was about to die, so I didn’t write much. It was definitely metal though, and the bar was quite busy. I was surprised and impressed that a town that size could support a dedicated metal bar. I’m curious what it would be like there when Fortarock isn’t going on.

They had several beers on taps, but it was all macros from Holland and some from Belgium. I’m still learning that you need to look at the bottles and cans for micros much of the time. 🤔

One thing I found really interesting about Holland was the popularity of Untappd. I’ve never seen anything like it. Bars even had Untappd verified venue stickers in the windows and signs on tables. There’s 14 in Nijmegen alone, and it’s a quarter the size of my city which has 19. I can’t even count how many there are in Amsterdam.

Now for the most exciting thing that happened in Nijmegen. Nightwish were playing the festival, and I got mistaken for Floor Jansen!! In Holland!! This couple full on came and asked for a photo with me. I was pretty stoked.

The festival itself was fantastic too. One of the best I’ve been too. We stayed in this amazing old restored houseboat hotel on the river, and it was about an hour walk to the site. The town is really pretty with lots of squares and pedestrian streets. I liked it a lot more than Amsterdam. I think there’s a decent chance I’ll be back there someday.