Very Italian Pizza - The Hague Restaurant Review in Brief
It's easy to scoff at a restaurant that brands itself "Very Italian Pizza", but my dinner party and I - Italians included - were all pleasantly surprised by the above-par (if not so very Italian) pizza at "VIP". The pizzeria franchise has earned a name for itself - and expanded to multiple cities - thanks to its reliable formula (one that's echoed by the very similar Happy Italy franchise): wood-oven-fired pizza served in a positively cavernous venue (some franchises seat as many as 500 diners).
A selection of other Italian-inspired dishes round out the menu - foccacia, antipasti (appetizers), salads, pasta and desserts from tiramisu to Dutch apple pie; the pizza, however, is the real crowd-pleaser. Some 30 varieties of pizza are on offer, from the conservative (margherita - mozzarella and tomato sauce) to the novel (pizza Hawaii, while widely popular in the Netherlands, is neither Italian nor Hawaiian, but Canadian), all under 10 euro a pie; there are also child-sized pizzas and pastas.
While it's not the best pizza in any of its respective cities (even in little Leiden), Very Italian Pizza would pass muster in many Italian cities north of Naples - not to mention that it's less expensive than most of the (Dutch) competition. Just beware that the restaurants become enormously crowded at dinner hours, especially from Thursday to Sunday, so do make reservations. Do not, on the other hand, look to VIP for a quiet, intimate meal, because this boisterous restaurant is precisely the opposite at peak times, and its unfortunate acoustics only amplify the din of its hundreds of diners.
In search of excellent pizza up north in Amsterdam? Try one from this list of best pizzerias in Amsterdam. Most of these pizzerias are dinner-only; for a quick lunch option, check out Da Portare Via (Lange Niezel 16), with an especially convenient location on a side street in the Amsterdam Binnenstad.
Description
A selection of other Italian-inspired dishes round out the menu - foccacia, antipasti (appetizers), salads, pasta and desserts from tiramisu to Dutch apple pie; the pizza, however, is the real crowd-pleaser. Some 30 varieties of pizza are on offer, from the conservative (margherita - mozzarella and tomato sauce) to the novel (pizza Hawaii, while widely popular in the Netherlands, is neither Italian nor Hawaiian, but Canadian), all under 10 euro a pie; there are also child-sized pizzas and pastas.
While it's not the best pizza in any of its respective cities (even in little Leiden), Very Italian Pizza would pass muster in many Italian cities north of Naples - not to mention that it's less expensive than most of the (Dutch) competition. Just beware that the restaurants become enormously crowded at dinner hours, especially from Thursday to Sunday, so do make reservations. Do not, on the other hand, look to VIP for a quiet, intimate meal, because this boisterous restaurant is precisely the opposite at peak times, and its unfortunate acoustics only amplify the din of its hundreds of diners.
In search of excellent pizza up north in Amsterdam? Try one from this list of best pizzerias in Amsterdam. Most of these pizzerias are dinner-only; for a quick lunch option, check out Da Portare Via (Lange Niezel 16), with an especially convenient location on a side street in the Amsterdam Binnenstad.
Description
- Address:
Kettingstraat 13
2511 AM Den Haag
Phone: +31 (0)70 3654541
www.veryitalianpizza.nl
Other locations in Rotterdam and Leiden; see web site for information. - Location: Zuidwal
- Directions: The restaurant is about 15 minutes on foot from The Hague Central Station. From Koningjulianaplein, the square in front of the station, turn left onto Bezuidenhoutseweg; this becomes Herengracht after the canal. Continue straight onto Korte Poten, which turns into Lange Poten after the Plein (square); make a right onto Hofweg, take the next left onto Achterom, and then another right onto Kettingstraat to reach the pizzeria.
- Decor: Casual
- Payment: Cash and (Dutch) debit cards accepted.
