TCB Courier: Pizza + Candy on Vimeo
These dudes rock. They weren’t sure if Taqueria Cancun took phone orders, so they offered to take our order down for us AND drop off our burritos. AND they delivered super-fast. AND they were super-nice.
[San Francisco is] a city where pizza is only consumed as a booze sponge.
Caroline McCarthy
Question to all: What is it with San Francisco’s reputation concerning pizza?
Is it because I only ever eat from Little Star and Delfina that I’m ignorant to some twisted, dark underbelly of San Francisco, where terrible cheese-lathered bread-product unworthy of the name ‘pizza’ is rubbed against a dog and baked in the warmth of someone’s flatulence? Is there really pizza that bad in this city? Is New York really that good? Am I going to have to fly across the country to find out? Who wants to come? When?
(via benw)
Delfina is fine. Paxti’s is fine. So are Beretta, Pauline’s, Pizza Nostra and Flour + Water. (Little Star is very fine.) But none of them are great, really. I have no idea what the magic ingredient is, but visit Lost Dog Pizza in Arlington, Pizza Paradiso in Georgetown, or Two Amys in DC and you’ll have had a better pizza than I’ve ever had in San Francisco.
I haven’t had a lot of pizza in New York—definitely nothing exciting, anyway— and I’ve never been to Chicago to try their deep-dish offerings. So this is just me, saying, after only having great pizza in DC, that San Francisco’s pizza really, really, weirdly!, oddly!, isn’t that great.
My running theory is that, since American-style pizza is kind of the anti-slow-food, Bay Area chefs really can’t get into it.
Tonight I went to Healthy Spirits, my 100% absolute favorite place to get beer in the city. This is why:
Mmm. Rows and rows and rows of beautiful beers. I’m pretty excited about what I got tonight. Some of it was random of-the-shelf grabs, like J.W. Lee’s Harvest Ale, but Dave gave lots of great recommendations, and particularly pulled out the Black Albert Royal Stout & the Holiday Ale. (Thank you Dave! You’re awesome!)
(Click through to see the beers labeled on Flickr, if you like.) From left to right:
- Brooklyn’s Blue Apron Ale
Belgian-style dubbel especially created for the French Laundry. Ooo la la! (Beer Advocate)
- Mikkeller’s It’s Alright! Belgian Wild Ale
An ‘unbuffered’ Lambic. Mixed reviews, but hey, I’m game. (Beer Advocate)
- Brouwerij Het Anker Golden Carolus Hopsinjoor
Light Belgian IPA.
Already drunk by the time I posted this. It was pleasant, but not especially memorable. (Beer Advocate)
- Jolly Pumpkin, Nogne, & Stone Brewing Co’s Special Holiday Ale
Three-brewery Winter Warmer collaboration. The bottle design is gorgeous. Definitely looking forward to trying it—apparently this was a tricky beer to brew. (Beer Advocate)
- J.W. Lee’s Harvest Ale 1999
Exciting English Barleywine: “Literally this stuff smells like a cross between a gingerbread and chocolate chip cookie” says a Beer Advocate reviewer (Beer Advocate).
- De Struise Brouwers’ collaboration with Ebenezer Kezar’s Pub, the Black Albert Royal Stout
‘Blacker than black stout’, aged in bourbon barrels, and recently the #1 beer in the world (Beer Advocate, totally bizarre review* from De Struise Brouwers). Well. Thanks for pulling it out from under the counter, Dave!
- Port Brewing’s Old Viscosity
“Massive chewy and thick” dark ale. Drinking right now. It is definitely all of these things, plus a little buttery besides. (Beer Advocate)
*Quote: “Among the three giants, you slide into a vortex of delirium, captivated, and wrapped in satin-esque fire. No need to choose your master. The masters have conquered.”
—Timoni
