Domenica — Restaurant in Amsterdam

We stumbled upon this restaurant by chance while walking down the street, looking for a place to have lunch. Outside, there was a sign that mentioned "Michelin," and as we entered, we realized it wasn’t actually a Michelin-starred restaurant, but we decided to give it a try. The host was a bit condescending and unpleasant, but after looking at pictures of the dishes on Google, they seemed decent enough, so we decided to stay.

At the table, we were greeted by a cheerful, friendly red-haired waitress who explained the menu and recommended the chef’s tasting menu, which included a starter, main course, and dessert for about €50 per person. She suggested a few specific items, and we understood that this was part of the deal, so we decided to go for it.

For the starter, we had sea fish tartare, which was quite nice overall, although the turmeric flavor felt out of place and overpowered the dish. However, the bresaola we ordered was absolutely exceptional—an outstanding dish!

For the main course, we received the fish of the day: red sea bass with mussels and mushrooms. Unfortunately, the dish was simply inedible—borderline disgusting. The flavors didn’t blend well at all, the mushrooms tasted unpleasant and unrelated to the dish, and I suspect they might not have been fresh. Hours later, I’m still dealing with severe nausea from that dish. We didn’t feel comfortable saying anything at the time, and no one asked for feedback until we had finished eating. Since we were very hungry, we added some salt and ate it as best we could.

After we finished, the host came to clear the plates and asked how everything was. I told him it wasn’t very good and that I wouldn’t recommend the main dish. In response, he gave me a sour, angry look, which I found incredibly rude and unprofessional, continuing the unpleasant atmosphere he had created since we arrived.

The set menu included dessert, and the host returned to inform us about the options. It turned out there was only one predetermined dessert—some kind of ice cream. On a freezing winter day, ice cream felt like an entirely inappropriate choice. We asked for something more fitting for the weather, and he became visibly angry and rude, pointing out that they had already accommodated us earlier by allowing a substitution for the starter. To be honest, we didn’t even realize that was an issue, and ironically, the bresaola was the only good dish of the entire meal. The rest ranged from mediocre to terrible and was absolutely not worth the price or the service level.

Eventually, after making us feel very uncomfortable, the host brought the desserts we had chosen. One of them was bland and almost unidentifiable in flavor, while the pear tart was quite good.

Service: The service from the red-haired waitress was excellent (5/5). The host’s attitude was abysmal (0/5) and far below the standard the restaurant claims to uphold.

Food and Flavors: Starters: Bresaola: Excellent (5/5). Pear Tart: Good (4/5). Sea Fish Tartare: Okay (3/5). Mains: Terrible (0/5). Desserts: The cream-based dessert: Mediocre to poor (2/5).

Prices: The prices are on the higher end, at €50 per person.

Conclusion: There’s a lot of room for improvement. I wouldn’t return or recommend this...

We weren't shown the prices of anything they offered to us. The tasting menu/ the wines/ the champagne. This made us really uncomfortable not knowing what is happening. They brought us wines after every course making it seem like its a complimentary taster but in the end we were slammed with a bill of 40 euros per glass. It is only fair to be transparent about the prices so that both parties know what they're signing up for. A rude shock in the end is not a happy feeling for anyone. We wanted a classic and amazing italian experience for a sunday lunch. Had the restaurant informed us upfront about this "special menu" we would be prepared with what to expect. You pay a deposit to hold your reservation and we weren't informed about this Dutch-Italian fusion menu as the only option. If you have dietary restrictions - reconsider. I am most upset by the lack of transparency of the staff and of this experience. We felt uncomfortable to intervene as we were hosting our family. I have been to renowned restaurants such as Osteria Francescana where the sommelier first asks us for the price range of the wines and then suggests options. We spent 200+ euros per person for lunch. Past reviews suggest avg prices ~50 euros pp. Tasting menu was 85 pp. Let the customer choose his/her price level aka comfort level not the waiter. Unfortunately it’s seemed that inflating the bill was more important than a customer’s experience and thus despite the great suggestions we left feeling taken...

We visited Domenica last year for my birthday dinner and we had a great experience. Therefore we decided to re-visit the restaurant this weekend for a birthday lunch. The service was quite slow and at time careless even though the restaurant was not full at all (only the terrace was fully booked) and there were 3 servers + floor manager covering the whole area. As an example we asked the bread 3 times before it was brought to us. The atmosphere was okay. What ruined it for us was a big table making a lot of noise right behind us. What struck me was that one of the people belonging to the table was either an owner or part of the management of the restaurant, being so focus on their experience they actually manage to affect negatively the experience of others. The food was good, but oddly overpriced for what we actually had. Since at lunch apparently the Chef's menu is not available, we opted for the Sunday roast. Prices are not available for this, so we just decided to share the Cote de Boeuf. We ended up paying €110 for 1 steak to share with a little salad and some chips. When the bill arrived I was quite flabbergasted to see 3 numbers next to 1 Sunday Roast. To wrap up, the lack of attention to details from the service, the lack of awareness of the guests, and the increasing prices with declining food quality made sure that this will be our last visit to Domenica for at least...