Comments on: Pizza Hunter

By: alison

alison — Mon, 26 Jun 2006 00:13:00 +0000

Gioia’s may be hard to find open, but is well worth it when it is. Perfect crust, sauce and toppings. Cheese Board pizza is also great (doesn’t matter what the daily special is, it’s all good), as is Arinell’s.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sun, 05 Jun 2005 21:36:00 +0000

Pizza, Pizza, Pizza…

NYPizza is a slice. It has to have cheese and tomato sauce (Neopolitan). That leaves out some of the mentioned places. Also, what is missing in the Bay Area is trying to get pizza at off days and hours. I’ve driven to Gioia twice only to find them closed. Also, standing on line and trying to find parking makes the effort frustating. So far, (26 years), my favorite is Arinelle’s in Berkeley. Escape From NY (Portland only) is my west coast favorite – NY Times sitting all over the place, and the same people working there for years, not to mention feeling at ease with my still noticable accent.

By: Kim Goodfriend

Kim Goodfriend — Fri, 15 Apr 2005 22:18:00 +0000

I have to agree that for a really great slice, I would go to the Cheese Board or to Arinell’s. They are both great for what they are, but it’s still just not my ultimate gold standard. But everyone’s tastes are different. Look how popular Zachary’s is.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 15 Apr 2005 21:04:00 +0000

Thanks for the recommendations. Everyone should check out Gioia’s Pizzeria at 1586 Hopkins Street in Berkeley. Great thin crust pizza.

By: gimble

gimble — Sun, 27 Mar 2005 21:14:00 +0000

I too love the Cheese Board pizza. Another great non-traditional East Bay pizza place is Pizza Pazza on Piedmont Ave in Oaland. All organic ingredients. Try a combo of their pesto and tomato sauces.

I grew up in New York City without a whole lot of money, so I was never able to develop a belief that a place that sells only slices is no good. Slices of pizza and hot dogs from Gray's Papaya were what I lived off of for far too long. As a result, you would think they would turn me off, but they are instead the comfort foods of my youth.

Toward that end, the closest I have come to a walk-in, grab-a-slice, walk-down-the-street-like- John-Travolta, New York pizza experience is Arinell's... They have a pizza place on Valencia in the Mission and one in Berkeley. They must even get their water from New York, because their slices taste just like the very first pizza I had growing up. And the Sicilian pie is *exactly* as I remember New York pizza parlors serving it up.

Now if only they made zeppole and served orange soda, they would be perfect.

By: gianni w

gianni w — Fri, 25 Mar 2005 01:00:00 +0000

My vote goes, after trying all the aforementioned pies, to the Cheese Board. Not Dopo thin, not Zachary’s thick,but just right with great cheeses (what else would you expect from CB)and inventive toppings (wild mushroom pretty damn heavenly). So what if it’s not a conventional NY pizza like Johns with the same choices year in year out. What the hell’s wrong with a little variety.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 24 Mar 2005 01:13:00 +0000

I think California pizza perhaps should be in another category, apart from the very excellent New York style pizza. Like for example, the Cheeseboard, or the place mentioned above, feature great crusty pizza with fancy schmancy ingredients, delicious in its own right, but perhaps not comparable to the east coast stuff.

By: DeniseSLinc

DeniseSLinc — Mon, 21 Mar 2005 21:34:00 +0000

Although I’m a huge fan of Dopo and go there regularly, I also occassionally go to Arizmendi, in Oakland on Lakeshore Avenue. Their pizza is baked in a bread oven (as Arizmendi is a bakery). Every day they offer a different vegetarian pizza. The toppings can be a bit untraditional, such as using lemon zest, and the crust is a little thick, but it’s a consistently solid choice for pizza in the East Bay. If possible, have it baked there and either eat it on the spot or rush it home. They also offer half-baked pizzas that you can finish off in your own oven, but unless you have a pizza stone, it’s better to eat it fresh from the Arizmendi bread oven.

By: Kim Goodfriend

Kim Goodfriend — Mon, 21 Mar 2005 00:17:00 +0000

YAY Brian! That is the best news I've had in...well, a long time. You would be so welcomed here in the Bay Area. But until that time (which seems so far away), I'll just have to continue to visit you in Portland.

James, in answer to your question, yes, I tend to visit A16, Dopo, and Pizzetta more often to get my pizza fix, although I still have a place in my heart for Tommaso's. Besides, all 4 places offer different styles of pizza and I appreciate all of them.

Happy hunting!

By: Apizza Scholls

Apizza Scholls — Sun, 20 Mar 2005 22:01:00 +0000

Dear Pizza Hunter,

Thank you for your kind words about our pizza. Since you are from the Bay Area and wish we were there, I just had to let you know that it is our plan to open up a pizzeria in SF in the future. No dates or timeline yet, but my wife and I hope to do this by 2010 if all works out.

Best Regards,
Brian Spangler
Owner/Chef
Apizza Scholls