It was my very first time visiting Alkmaar for a show and food was also on my mind. After a short…read morewalk from the train station we spotted Happy Italy near the venue and decided to eat here without hesitation. This place is absolutely massive in size and offers both a ton of seating, but also a ball pit for kids which was heavily used when we were there. The menu here has a ton of different pizza, pasta, and salad options as well as some appetizers, desserts, and drinks to round out the meal. I had one thing on the mind and it was pizza, BBQ chicken pizza (I also tried a piece of the Pizza Prosciutto di Parma and it was very, very good). Let me tell you, this is the type of pizza I want at all times of the day. The pizza itself was the perfect size while the dough was on the softer side, which I absolutely love. Both the chicken and the BBQ sauce on top were great as well, making this a great pizza that I absolutely finished off. Overall, Happy Italy cured my hunger and treated me well at the same time. This place was insanely busy during my visit and the staff did seem to be stretching themselves out a bit, but they were all very kind and did a great job. Good food? Good staff? And to top it all off the restaurant itself looks cool as well! This place is covered in books, art, and everything in between to make the whole visit wonderful. Hungry for the pizza? This place has you covered.

I have been here with my two daughters. Both ordered the same pizza, one was well done, one wasn't…read morecooked well. We asked the waitress if the second pizza could have a second round in the pizza oven. After ten minutes, she brought a new, again half cooked pizza. Again, we asked to fix this (pizza #1 was very fine). A manager waiter came by, discussing about dough, cheese etc, but not fixing the problem. At the end, my daughter more or less ate half of it. There was no sorry, not a scoop of ice-cream for my daughter or anything else, just the full bill. I asked if it wasn't strange to pay full for half cooked food. That was not her decision to make. We will not come back here. Sometimes it just happens, the food is not cooked well. It matters how you respond. It was very clear, their 100% satisfaction guarantee only exists on paper, not in real life.

Great location for Italian and much much better than Portofino but at a more expensive price. I…read morehad a the two course meal, perfectly creamy risotto to start followed by delicious ravioli (buffalo mozz, basil and tomato) with each bite like a margarita pizza! Very good house wine and friendly service. I would certainly swing back through next time I am in the mood for Italian.

What can I say....?…read more Fantastic, modern Italian food in this brand new restaurant. Best I had in years, better then most (any?) michelin star restaurants I tried over the years. Also amazing wines (arrangements possible). If you're in the neighborhood don't miss out on this one. Prices are very good.. 2 courses for 25,50, 3 for 28,50, 4 for 32,50

We had been to Portofino with 10 guys during a bachelor trip to Alkmaar…read more We all had different pizzas which were, as far as i can say, all very delicious.. atmosphere was ok, not great but definitely more than ok! Prices (pizzas were big portions) and service was good.. On the whole, i can definitely recommend this restaurant, doesnt matter for what purpose you're planning to go there.

Portofino's isn't terrible it is just not the best restaurant in town. It does have great portion…read moresize and as with most Italian restaurants it is perfect for large groups but the service was a bit less than the typical super friendly North-Holland I have come to know although they were responsive...just no smiles...well on with the show. My first visit was in a large group and as I mentioned the restaurant does a good job in this arena. We shared a few carafes of the house red (light-medium body and minimal flavor but good selection for our group) and then ordered some soups to start. Strike one out of my favorite the pomodoro...sniffle..but the minestrone was good if a bit on salty side. Main course was a slice of good pretty traditional lasagna..the Italian bread was good :) but I have come to expect good bread everywhere in Alkmaar. Desert for me was a glass of port which was nice and fruity (seemed to be a ruby as when I asked if they had a Tawny i received a quizzical look). Service during this visit was a bit friendlier than my second.. Second was just myself and a colleague grabbing a dinner and discussing business. Perhaps we gave off a do not disturb vibe but we had three different waiters and once again out of my pomodoro soup..sigh..i went with the Tris (spaghetti, ravioli and rigatoni) and it was filling and..meh..ok. Colleague went with a creme/tomato sauce on linguine with mushrooms and salmon..also reported no major issues. Bread and port continue too book end dinner nicely..although now that i think of it no refill on bread..huh..odd. Price point is great but quality in area is better (De Buren is next door and Salem and Irodion is around corner..)