Overall the quality of Dutch pizza is pretty low, mostly because of the fact that there are few pizzeria’s here that may still use a wood burning oven, so the dough is often too thick and hard, and the bakers put way too much cheese on it.
After all those bad pizza’s I ate in The Netherlands I got sick of it and decided to do some research on the internet where I can find the best pizza, and where they still use wood burning ovens.

This way I have obtained a few addresses, including the ‘traiteur’ Mangiamore. I had already read a lot about this place on the web, and often it was called the best pizza in The Netherlands. It was a long time ago before I ate a good quality pizza here so I couldn’t wait to check this place out.

With high hopes me and my dad drove to Mangiamore, and when we came there we thought it was a very small, very cute looking shop, where they served all kinds of Italian products. When I asked for the menu the lady behind the desk said ‘we are not a restaurant, so we don’t have menu’s’. However there was a card hanging on the wall where I could choose between all sorts of pizza, so my dad could still choose. My choice was made long before this, because I only eat margherita, or marinara pies.

We picked one of 4 tables, which was next to the Neapolitan baker named Ciro. My dad happens to speak Italian so they had some pretty long conversations together. When I saw Ciro throw the dough through the air and work it like a real Neapolitan pizzaioli, I could not wait any longer. I knew something special was coming my way, especially since Ciro happened to import everything, from the Mozzarella to the napkins and plates, straight from Napoli. I saw the pizza going in and out off the wood fired oven, which Ciro made himself, and I knew this could not go wrong.

And it didn’t. My margherita was finally done and it looked really good, like a real Neapolitan pizza. The dough felt good and the bottom was nicely thin. After my first bite I realised this was something special. This was way better then all of the pizza’s I ate in The Netherlands, compared to this pie they were just horrible! It even tasted better then most of the pizza’s I ate in Italy, and could easily compete with real Neapolitan pizza’s.
Eating a pizza in Holland that makes you feel like you are in Napoli was something I thought that would never happen, but it did, right here in Mangiamore.

The margherita tasted really good, especially the dough....it was perfect  It had the typical fat edges, and very thin bottom which we know so well from the Neapolitan pizza’s. The toppings were great too, not too many, not too little. Softly molten mozzarella with a great rich taste, and very sweet, very nice tomato sauce, all topped with some deliciously fresh basil. The crust was good too, but in my opinion it could have been a little ‘softer’, like the Neapolitan pizza’s. There was a reason for the crust to be a little harder then normal, Ciro explained. It was because mostly people come here to take away the pizza’s in a box, and the crust is made a little harder then the usual Neapolitan pizza so it won’t break inside the box. Ciro preferred the crust to be less cracker-ish too, so when there are no customers and he or his Neapolitan friend that comes by every once in a while want a pizza, he adjusts the temperature of the oven from 500 to probably 800 degrees to get the best out of it.

The pizza was quite expensive,  costing 4-5 euro more then the average dutch pizza. But it’s so much better, and after I ate the pizza I didn’t feel like I needed another one. It was just enough to keep me satisfied, tasting this pizza is worth your money.

Overall I was very happy with this pizza, it was a relief to eat a pizza of this quality in The Netherlands. If you live in The Netherlands or if you are coming by Amsterdam you simply cannot go wrong with Mangiamore.

I will give Mangiamore’s pizza 7 out of 8 slices.