GRANO — Restaurant in Mook en Middelaar

During our stay in Plasmolen we were lucky to have been to Valentino's.

Located in an "abandoned" location, the team really build a modern, cool and cosy place to spend a great time. You can dine inside or on the terrace. The staff is super friendly and makes you feel very welcome and cherished as a guest. They also seemed to have a good time themselves, which added nicely to the relaxed atmosphere.

The food was excellent. My girlfriend and I shared Antipasti as starter. We got a really nice selection of high quality. As a main we shared a pizza. It was a traditional one with a modern and individual touch. The dough itself was super tasty, thin and crisp. Although the topping was not "minimal" like in some parts of Italy, the dough didn't get soggy - very well executed. And the topping itself was fresh and delicious. One of the best pizzas we've ever eaten. And for dessert we were lucky to get the very last serving of Tiramisu. We can describe it as absolutely YUMMY 😋 Great texture, very well balanced aromas. Just right in every way. As wine enthusiasts we also can highly recommend their selection of wine. During our dinner we tried 3 different ones and each was a lot to our taste. Also highly recommended: their cocktails. With the right amount of alcohol and nicely blended together, we enjoyed them a lot.

This place is dog friendly, too.

Accessibility I don't know about. I know that we had to climb some stairs to get there. So if accessibility is an issue, you better contact them beforehand to ask about it.

Of course there are small things to "criticize". With the Antipasti selection you get "just" two slices of Focaccia (very tasty one). We would have liked to have a little more for the amount of homemade dip that was served (because the dip was very tasty too 😉). On the other hand it was Focaccia and not "plain" bread and you can't expect to get a basket full of this because it's special. The service and also the preparation of the food actually was not the fastest, to be honest. Maybe during high season they have more staff in action, because the quite large amount of tables they offer means they can host a lot of guests which means a lot of work. But for us it wasn't a problem. Because: This is a place to have a nice time. Go there, relax, have a nice drink and conversations, take your time while waiting for the food. It's absolutely worth the wait. It needs the proper amount of time to prepare a dish with care and also love for the food/ingredients. And that's what they do. Passion is a very important ingredient. And passion they have a lot of at Valentino's. We can highly recommend to pay...

Like a phoenix rising from the ashes Pizza di Valentino settles itself upon the bones of what was once Grano, an old favorite of ours. Ascending the double stairs you are greeted by a wonderful rooftop terrace with a great mixture of sunny spots and shade. The outdoor oven and casual atmosphere are welcoming and prime your senses through visual stimulation and wonderful smells.

The staff is kind and amicable. Creating an atmosphere of friendly professionalism rather than an overtly casual experience. They made our visit take a step up from good to great.

The owner introduced himself and the concept (and his wonderful future plans!!) and suggested that rather than going strictly by the menu he'd be happy to prepare a taste menu for us.

With a group of 4 (and a large dog!) We shared a wonderful anti pasta plank, specifically the fuccasia was amazing. And several pizzas with a tasty risotto dish in the middle.

Taking in account we had a few beers, several bottles of prosecco and left with fully bellies and a satisfied sensation the price of just shy of 200 euro was very reasonable and fits the price/quality criteria perfectly.

In short, wonderful location, amazing staff and fantastic food.

Niels, well be...

I'll start off by saying that I have travelled far and eaten many pizzas. So have my wife and children. In conclusion we all decided that the pizzas were the best pizzas we have EVER had. To be clear this is not an exaggeration. I have certainly never had a nicer pizza, it was outstanding, simply outstanding. Otherwise what a beautiful restaurant - it sits on a nice little hill and is light, airy and very classy inside but very relaxed with very kind and helpful waiting staff. We arrived 10 minutes before opening because our poor children had not eaten pizza in like two weeks or something while we came to the area on holiday and there was a certain sense of desperation. The waitress arrived shortly afterwards with a smile on her face and invited us straight inside which was nice. Inside you can see the chef preparing and cooking all the food from fresh. I have literally nothing negative to say about our experience today. We might come all the way back here from the UK just to visit this restaurant - it's only 700km or so. Thanks to the people there for such a memorable experience and caring about your...