Pizzeria Mandolino — Restaurant in Saronno

We went there for lunch wirt family. My Italian brother in law told us that we need a reservation, because it is a popular place but it was ok even without it. This is just my personal opinion, but the restaurant does not look like a fancy establishment. To be honest maybe it even is good thing. Do not get me wrong, the place is nice and clean!

Staff & service 5/5 Super fast and kind, nothing to complain about, quite the opposite. The wait for food was just few minutes!

Food 5/5 The pizza in general was extremely fluffy and light. We got Modena, Quattro stagioni and sadly do not remember the last one. Pasta was Bolognese and the other one some vegetable pasta. And Panna cotta with chocolte for desert. This is probably just my opininion, but the dough could use more salt - this is like if you want to find something, you will find it. It was simply amazing!

Price 5/5 We paid 68 EUR for all this even with two espresso and two bottles of water. Totally...

Here’s the full list of pizzas from the menu (both rosse = with tomato sauce, and bianche = without tomato sauce, plus the Mandolino specialty pizzas), with their translations and prices:

🍕 Le pizze Mandolino (Special Pizzas)

Mandolino – Basil pesto, lard, yellow tomatoes, provola cheese, escarole, and tarallo ("sugna e pepe") – €12

San Matteo – Tomato sauce, provola, mortadella, pistachio cream, and roasted mushrooms – €13.5

Cynara – Artichokes from Paestum in cream and roasted, provola, buffalo salami, and basil – €13

Parmigianella – Eggplant parmigiana, provola, grated cheese, and basil – €12

Nonandré – Provola, gorgonzola, grated cheese, crunchy pear, and walnuts – €14

Domenicale 2.0 – Beef and veal ragù, parmesan fondue, provola, and basil – €13

Bosco d’Acerno – Porcini mushrooms from Acerno (Salerno) in cream and roasted, provola, speck from Val Venosta, walnuts, and parmesan fondue – €12

Siciliano a Bologna – Fig jam, mortadella, pistachio cream, roasted pistachios, burrata from Andria – €13

Blu-Falà – Lard, buffalo D.O.P. from Battipaglia, buffalo salami, tarallo ("sugna e pepe") – €12

🍕 Le Rosse (Red Pizzas – with tomato sauce)

Marinara – Tomato, oregano, and garlic oil – €5.5

Margherita – Tomato, fior di latte mozzarella, oil, and basil – €7

Regina – Tomato, buffalo mozzarella D.O.P. from Battipaglia, oil, and basil – €9.5

Capricciosa – Tomato, mozzarella, cooked ham, mushrooms, slightly spicy salami, artichokes – €11

Norma – Tomato, fior di latte, sautéed eggplant, ricotta salata, and basil – €10

Ortolana – Tomato, zucchini, eggplant, peppers, and mozzarella – €10

Don Antonio – Tomato, provola, pepper, oil, and basil – €10

Merola – Tomato, provola, black olives, oregano, dried tomatoes, and anchovy sauce – €9.5

Casereccia – Tomato, buffalo mozzarella D.O.P. from Battipaglia, and basil – €10

San Daniele – Tomato, mozzarella, Parma ham, burrata from Andria (125 g), and basil – €12

🍕 Le Bianche (White Pizzas – without tomato sauce)

4 Formaggi – Provola, gorgonzola, parmesan, pecorino, and ricotta salata – €10

Filetto – Yellow cherry tomatoes, provola, tuna in oil, Tropea red onion, olives, and basil – €10

Fiocco – Fio di latte mozzarella, prosciutto cotto, ricotta, and basil – €11

Friarielli e Salsiccia – Provola, Neapolitan broccoli rabe, and sausage – €10

Sarchiapone – Provola, pumpkin cream, sausage, and basil – €11

Perfect 👍 Here are the Calzoni (Stuffed Pizzas) with translation and prices:

🥟 i Calzoni

Dubbi Non Ho – Fiordilatte mozzarella, cooked ham, provola, tomato – €8.5

Alleria – Fiordilatte mozzarella, slightly spicy salami, cooked ham, mushrooms, roasted artichokes, basil, and tomato – €10

Battipagliese – Fiordilatte mozzarella, buffalo mozzarella (very abundant!) from Battipaglia, and basil – €10

A Me Me Piace o’ Blues 2.0 – Ricotta, mozzarella, slightly spicy salami, bacon, provola, and black...

The pizza was deliveried 40 minutes late, with no apology from the driver - not such a problem. The biggest dissapointing was for me the taste and quality. I would have expected more from an Italian pizza. Poor quality ingredients (definitely not prosciutto cotto on the pizza, but some cheap ham). Overstuffed with ingredients, the dough was wet. I've had better pizza in the Czech Republic, Germany and in fact any other country. Very disappointing and I definitely do not recommend this...