Something seemed off when we ate at the original Lanesplitter recently. They’d torn out the bar so the space felt sort of unfinished and weird. Pizza was good but different.
I remember seeing the review on check please bay area. Well that’s sad . Good reviews looked good.
I’ll check out the Emeryville location, though with all the others closed, it seems unlikely to last.
The Temescal one turned into an Artichoke Basile’s.
I was really busy with work and had nothing easy for lunch so got a pizza delivered from Square Pie Guys.
It looked right but it wasn’t crisp or crunchy. Maybe if I’d eaten it fresh from the oven it would have been, but the flavor wasn’t great either. Ellen Supreme with “vodka sauce, pepperoni, Italian sausage, caramelized onions, Mama Lil’s pickled peppers, and roasted mushroom medley,” $25 if you pick up. $40 delivered before tip. Not terrible but I’d have enjoyed a Motor City from Costco more.
I heard Lanesplitter Emeryville had a new owner so went to check it out. This is a photo of a Carnivore from 2016:
Here’s what we got this week:
Definitely a different style, you can see that they used to put cheese on top of the pepperoni etc. It was good but Rotten City is more the style of thin crust I like (though no indoor seating these days). 16 taps of draft beer, not as hip a selection as in the old days but some good stuff. Open until midnight weekdays, 2:30 am weekends.
Holy crap, how did I miss this? Baonecci moved to Frisco.
Seems like a solid list. Zero Zero’s pies are not Neapolitan-style, they’re sort of NY-Neapolitan hybrid, similar to Delfina’s. Pizzetta 211’s crust is the thinnest I’ve had anywhere.
Updated list:
I’ve found Tony’s wildly inconsistent and probably won’t go back.
I’m glad to see Pizzetta 211 is still going. Too bad about Zero Zero.
does Bruce ill still operate Pizzeria Picco in Larkspur?
Reportedly not.
bummer…any great pizza in the North Bay, Robert?
Diavola in Cloverdale. Oenotri in Napa. Cafe Reyes in Point Reyes Station. Might be more, I’m not really up on the Marin / Sonoma scene.
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It’s not sublime neopolitan or anything, but Mary’s Pizza Shack has been slinging exceptionally tasty neighborhood pies for many many years. Several locations in Marin, Sonoma, and Yolo counties.
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Oh yeah, old-school California, kind of similar to Tommaso’s. I haven’t been to one in years.
many thanks, Robert, thats a good start!
Mentions:
- Arizmendi
- Casa Barotti
- Cheese Board
- Chez Panisse [Cafe]
- de Laura
- Gioia
- Lucia’s
- Nabolom
- Pollara
- Rose
- Sliver
- State Flour
- Three.OneFour
They opened Gioia Pizza on Hopkins Street in May 2004 at a time when, as the couple recalls, pizza felt “totally unrepresented.” “There was no pizza scene back 18 years ago at all — San Francisco was not known for pizza.”
Ignorant arrivistes. Pizzas of note in SF before Gioia opened:
- Amici’s
- Arinell
- Escape from New York
- L’Osteria del Forno
- LuLu
- Patxi’s
- Pauline’s
- Pazzia > Ideale
- Pizzetta 211
- Prego (where Wolfgang Puck found Spago’s opening pizza chef Ed LaDou)
- Tommaso’s (inspired Chez Panisse Cafe > Prego > Spago)
- Zuni Cafe
And the East Bay had:
- Arinell
- Bucci’s
- Cheese Board
- Chez Panisse
- Little Chicago
- LoCoco’s
- LoCoCo’s (cousins)
- Nizza La Bella (best NY-style pizza ever in the Bay Area)
- Oliveto
- Pizzaiolo
Flour + Water Pizzeria taking over the old Rose Pistola space. Reservations now available for 6/28 on.
I looked up Matt Molina, the chef at Graffiti Pizza, and after getting very confused about his biography realized that there’s another award-winning pizzaiolo Matt Molina, formerly of Pizzeria Mozza.
Tried a grandma pie the other night. The texture of the crust reminded me of a montanara. I could have done without the balsamic glaze. I’ll stick with regular pies.
