Det er den café, vi plejer at gå på efter arbejde, hvis der er plads.

Det er ... is a very common Danish way to identify or point something out, similar to English It is ... or That’s ....

So:

• Det er den café ... = That’s the café ... / It’s the café ...

Here det does not mean the café itself is a neuter noun. It is just the standard pronoun used in this kind of identifying sentence.

Because café is a common gender noun in Danish, so it takes den.

• en café
• den café

In Danish, nouns are either:

• common gender → en / den
• neuter gender → et / det

So even though the sentence starts with Det er ..., the noun itself is still den café because café is an en-word.

Plejer at + infinitive means usually do / tend to do / be in the habit of doing.

So:

• vi plejer at gå på ... = we usually go to ...

Examples:

• Jeg plejer at cykle på arbejde. = I usually bike to work.
• Hun plejer at komme tidligt. = She usually comes early.

It describes a habit or something typical.

Because pleje normally takes at + infinitive.

So the pattern is:

• pleje at gøre noget = to usually do something

In this sentence:

• vi plejer at gå på ...

This is similar to English verbs that need another verb after them, although Danish and English do not always match exactly.

On its own, gå often means walk, but in many expressions it has a broader meaning.
Here gå på en café means something like:

• go to a café
• frequent a café

So gå på is part of the expression here.

Also, Danish often leaves the preposition at the end in relative clauses, just like English can:

• the café we go to
• den café, vi går på

So på belongs with the idea of going to that café.

Because this is a relative clause:

• den café, vi plejer at gå på

Literally, this is like English:

• the café we usually go to

The preposition på is connected to café, but Danish commonly allows it to stay at the end of the clause. This is called preposition stranding.

You could also say:

• den café, som vi plejer at gå på

But you would still normally keep på at the end.

In Danish, the relative pronoun som is often optional when it is not the subject of the relative clause.

So both are possible:

• den café, vi plejer at gå på
• den café, som vi plejer at gå på

Both mean the same thing.

Why can it be omitted here? Because vi is the subject of the relative clause, not som. The missing relative word is more like that/which in English:

• the café (that) we usually go to

Because efter arbejde is a common idiomatic expression meaning after work.

In Danish, some time expressions and fixed phrases use a noun without the definite article, where English also often uses no article:

• efter arbejde = after work
• i skole = at school / in school
• på arbejde = at work

You may also hear efter arbejdet in some contexts, but efter arbejde is the very common general expression.

It means if there is space / if there’s room / if there are seats available.

With a café, plads usually suggests:

• there is room to sit
• the café is not full
• there is space for us

So the phrase is slightly broader than just physical space. It often means if they have room for us.

Here der is an existential word, like English there in:

• there is space
• there are seats

So:

• der er plads = there is room

This der does not mean a specific place like there over there. It is just part of the structure used to say that something exists or is available.

Other examples:

• Der er en bog på bordet. = There is a book on the table.
• Der er mange mennesker her. = There are many people here.

Because hvis introduces a subordinate clause, and subordinate clauses do not use normal main-clause V2 word order.

Main clause:

• Der er plads.

Question:

• Er der plads?

Subordinate clause:

• hvis der er plads

So after hvis, the subject usually comes before the verb:

• hvis der er plads
• når vi har tid
• fordi hun kommer senere

That is normal Danish subordinate clause word order.

The commas mark extra clause boundaries.

• Det er den café, vi plejer at gå på efter arbejde, hvis der er plads.

They separate:

1. the main clause
   
   • Det er den café
2. the relative clause
   
   • vi plejer at gå på efter arbejde
3. the conditional clause
   
   • hvis der er plads

Danish comma use is often more systematic around subordinate clauses than English comma use, so learners often notice more commas in Danish.

Sometimes yes, but the meaning shifts a little.

• den café = that café / the café in a more demonstrative or identifying sense
• caféen = the café

In this sentence, den café sounds very natural because the speaker is identifying a specific one:

• Det er den café, vi plejer at gå på ...
  = That’s the café we usually go to ...

If you say Det er caféen, vi plejer at gå på ..., it is still possible, but den café often sounds more natural in this kind of pointing-out structure.

Yes, very natural.

It sounds like something someone would say when identifying a place:

• Det er den café, vi plejer at gå på efter arbejde, hvis der er plads.

The sentence combines several very common features of spoken and written Danish:

• Det er ... for identification
• omission of som in a relative clause
• plejer at for habit
• preposition stranded at the end: gå på
• hvis der er plads as a common condition

So this is a good example of natural Danish syntax.