The beauty of my hidden gems is that they can occur in the least likely of places – most definitely the case when it comes to the best pizza in De Pijp, Amsterdam. It’s no surprise that De Pijp is full of cool bars and restaurants, it is the trendy neighbourhood of Amsterdam after all, but little did I suspect that the best pizza in De Pijp was literally round the corner from where we were staying. I’d walked past Angoletto, an Italian restaurant tucked away on the corner of Hermonystraat on numerous occasions. Sharps had been wanting to check it out for ages. While it looks cute from the outside, there are a couple of wooden tables out front for al fresco dining in the summer, I was a little reticent having checked out the TripAdvisor reviews.

Walk past this hidden gem and you’ll miss out on the best pizza in De Pijp

First off people were complaining that it was expensive. Clearly they never eat out in Amsterdam, or if they do they must only ever eat at Febo, if they think that €11 for a pizza in an authentic Italian trattoria in Amsterdam is expensive. Next up people were slagging off the owner of Angoletto, saying it was the best pizza in De Pijp Amsterdam but that the owner was incredibly rude and moody. Perhaps rude and moody mean something else to the Dutch but when we were there the staff were incredibly friendly, including the owner who was busy at work freshly preparing each dish (I was mesmerised by him making the pizza dough). The menu was in Italian and Dutch and being fluent in neither (sadly GCSE Italian doesn’t count) the waitresses were only to happy to help with anything that got lost in translation. Plus we were served complementary bread that included a deliciously doughy bread topped with tomato sauce.

Just make sure you leave room for the best pizza in De Pijp

Angoletto doesn’t just serve pizza, it has a range of pasta dishes, salads, fish and meat and specials of the day, all at surprisingly good value for money. While I was tempted by the fish and gnocchi dishes, having heard that Angoletto serves the best pizza in De Pijp it would have been amiss of both of us not to try it. The pizza when it arrived was oozing with cheese, the base not too soggy or thick with a crispy crust, and just the right balance of toppings. I ordered a Napolitana (anchovies, capers, olives) with an additional artichoke topping and Sharps went for a meaty sausage pizza, and would be more than fair to say that it’s the best pizza in de Pijp. I also opted for a glass of house wine, served on tap from a huge wooden barrel which, for €3 was pretty decent.

Sharps’ meaty feast – the best pizza in De Pijp

What I also loved about the Angoletto restaurant is that it really is an Amsterdam hidden gem. It’s cosy, with about eight tables all close together, and additional seating upstairs and this also creates a sociable atmosphere. Because Angoletto is a hidden gem you won’t fond any tourists here, it’s an Amsterdam local neighbourhood restaurant.

I loved the barrel of wine and the quirky nick-nacks inside L’Angoletto

We ended up chatting to two ladies on the next table who had lived in De Pijp all their lives and were regulars. They told me people didn’t like Angoletto because they felt it was dated. To me the wooden tables, pictures of fish and vegetables on the walls and quirky objects (I especially liked a lamp that was in the shape of grapes) only add to its charm. All I can say is it’s their loss as not only are they missing out on a pizzeria with personality, they’re also missing out on the best pizza in De Pijp.