Restaurant Review: Mazzo, Amsterdam

Eating after the marathon can by a funny beast. Pangs of intense, ravenous, hunger are followed by bouts of feeling a little queasy as your weakened body struggles to digest the food you've just stuffed inside.

Not knowing in advance if you'll want to celebrate, commiserate or frankly be able to walk, I reckon it's best not to book anywhere for your post marathon meal and play it be ear.

Before heading to Amsterdam I did some research on the cities top restaurants and one of the hottest places seems to the the Italain Mazzo.  Thankfully I was feeling pretty good post race and with Mazzo located closeby we decided to check it out.

As soon as you enter the large Vegas style sign lets you know you've come to the right place. Even though it was early on a Sunday night the place was pretty full and the waitress behind the bar was surprised that they could fit us in without a booking.

 Antipasto Misto

Dad I started with the Antipasto Misto (EUR18.50 for two people). A generous platter of olives, cured meats, tepenade topped crostini and small bowls of marinated beetroot and confit onions.

All of the ingredients were just as you wanted them to be, whether it was the succulent marinaded olives or the peppery salami. One of my favourites was the beetroot which had a fresh tang of citrus.

Salsiccia spaghetti 

 
I decided that pasta was sufficiently hearty post marathon stodge and chose the salsiccia spaghetti (EUR 16.00). The spaghetti was perfectly cylindrical, thicker than usual, almost noodle like and cooked with the perfect amount of bite.

The flavoursome salsiccia sausage and a few tomatoes provided the simple yet effective sauce.

 Rissoto funghi EUR14.50

Mum went for the rissoto funghi (EUR 14.50). The rissoto was slightly wetter / looser than usual and had a generous amount of cheese stirred through it. A single roast cherry tomato provided a burst of colour and (a small) busrt of flavour too.

 Veal Scaloppinna

Dad went for the veal scaloppinna with egg (EUR 21.50). From the menu it wasn't clear how the egg would appear in the dish and we suspected it could be a fried egg on to of the breaded veal. However, it turned out that the tender, slightly pink veal, was encased with in an eggy batter.

The veal was served with roasted celery, parsnip and potatoes.

 Tiramisu

A dessert was definitely in order. If you can't push the boat out when you've run a marathon when can you? I decided on the beautifully presented tiramisu (EUR 7.00). The square of tiramisu had some small chunks of chocolate folded through the mascarpone which for a bit of extra decadence.

Carnoli

Mum chose the carnoli served with vanilla ice cream (EUR 7.50. It must have tasted good as I didn't manage to get a taste before she devoured the lot!

Dinner at Mazzo was very enjoyable. Quality ingredients were cooked with intelligence to create simple and tasty dishes. The service was friendly, although for this hungry marathon runner, the food could have been a bit quicker out of the kitchen at times during the evening.

Mazzo
Rozengracht 114, 
Amsterdam
phone +31 20 344 64 02