Del Popolo, a custom-mobile-pizzeria-on-wheels, is due to roll out next month from self-proclaimed “dough guy” Jon Darsky. The name Del Popolo means 'of the people' and represents the "simple and egalitarian nature of pizza." Darsky is most recently known to pizza fans for his gently blistered, thin-crust, award-winning pizzas from flour + water. He is the primary designer of this new Bay Area mobile pizzeria, which started as a transatlantic shipping container and will be morphed into a pizza kitchen on wheels, custom-tricked out in ways that are different from other food trucks. He employed a local designer to translate his ideas and “make the concept real on the computer,” as well as produce the detailed drawings and plans required to actually build it. Mclellan Industries, based in Hanford, California, handled the fabrication and production. Darsky said of his approach, “Most food trucks start from the same place, with a repurposed step van, and incorporate similar modifications, designs and equipment. I started with the idea that I wanted to use an unconventional appliance in a custom format that would expand the idea of what mobile food can be.”

Darsky hails from New York and currently lives in Noe Valley. He has worked locally at Pizzaiolo, Pizzeria Delfina and flour + water, after an initial career as a pro baseball scout. He is newly married and just back from his honeymoon.

Jon Darsky and his wife, Sara on their honeymoon. Photo courtesy of Del Popolo

How did you and your spouse Sara meet?
In late summer 2004, we were set up and went on a blind date at a bar in Manhattan. In 2007, she got a job with YouTube in entertainment marketing, and we moved from Brooklyn to San Francisco.

Do you have any children?
We have a six-year old named Rocco. He's a Jack Russell terrier.

Tell us about getting married.
We ran out of red wine half through the night, and were forced to hit Safeway in Pope Valley (Napa Valley) for some Woodbridge. Humphry Slocombe made us a custom flavor of sorbet -- peach moscato -- and Anastasia at Sweet Revolution made a small box of caramels for each guest.

How was the honeymoon?
We went to Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam. In Bangkok's Chinatown, off the back of a pickup truck, we shared a plate of durian and sticky rice with a little condensed milk. On its’ own durian is difficult. It smells bad and is somewhere between savory and sweet. But with the sticky rice and the sweet condensed milk, it's delicious. We got a great photo of the woman preparing food in the truck.

Bangkok Chinatown food truck. Photo courtesy of Del Popolo

In Siem reap, I had an eggplant, pork and fermented soybean dish that was awesome. It was part of a $17 tasting menu that culminated with a black sticky rice creme brûlée.

In Hanoi, my two favorites were the pho I ate in the morning. It was the best food I've ever experienced on a stool a foot off the ground; invigorating and super flavorful. I also had fried fish with turmeric, dill, chili and rice noodles, and a papaya salad with air-dried beef.

How are things going with Del Popolo?
Swell. The project was born in June of 2010, a few months after my departure from flour + water. It's closer to launching now than ever before.

Did you have to get any sort of certification or training to operate your mobile?
There’s no certification and no training. Only a commercial drivers license, which requires that you pass the CDL test. It’s not that easy. I spent an entire day in Fresno. In addition to the road test, there's a test of your familiarity with the air brake system. I failed it the first time….

How did you begin working with Mclellan Industries?
I found them online. When I contacted them initially, business was slow and they were receptive. They're not in the food truck business, but they had the necessary expertise, facilities and tools to carry out the project.

What are your favorite Bay Area spots to shop for food?
I like to buy Twizzlers at Office Max on Harrison Street. They're always fresh. I feel sick, stupid and guilty afterwards, but the first ten are really good. Also, Thai eggplant, tamarind, and sweet basil from the Battambang market on Eddy Street. It's a Thai market owned by a Cambodian woman.
I also like Oscar's Deli on Cesar Chavez, for good, inexpensive falafel.

Where is your favorite date-night spot?
La Ciccia, where I like to order the spaghetti with bottarga. I go there for the spaghetti and the hospitality.

If you had to pick one pizza as your favorite, which one would it be?
In S.F., Una Pizza Napoletana.
In L.A., my brother-in-law makes delicious pizza at Sotto. Both are thoughtful in terms of process, ingredients and the tools they use. There is no randomness to what they do, and it is born out in the end product. Similarly, my style is built around asking as many questions as possible in order to really understand what I am doing.

What is your favorite meal to have with your family?
Beans. I like to make beans, with almost any kind from Rancho Gordo. It’s hands-down my favorite thing to make… add some herbs and some sherry vinegar.

What will you do for Valentine’s Day?
We're going to the SF ballet to see Chroma.

What’s your guiltiest food pleasure?
Anything with meat.

Del Popolo Website
Twitter: @pizzadelpopolo

Jeff Hertzberg and Zoë Francois of Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day fame (and the followup, Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day), have just put out the third book in their wildly popular series: Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day. The duo, which consists of a medical doctor (Jeff) and an award-winning pastry chef (that would be Zoë), have spread their wings and launched an exploration of global flatbreads and the world of flavors that can be paired with them.

Jeff and Zoë were kind enough to take a break from their busy book tour to answer a few questions for Bay Area Bites readers. Here's a peek into what inspired their international journey, and how they spent an entire year eating countless pizzas. Oh, the sacrifice!

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This is your third book. Now that you've covered Artisan Bread In Five Minutes a Day and Healthy Bread In Five Minutes a Day, how did you come up with the idea for pizza and flatbreads?


Jeff: It seemed to us that the country was being swept up into a high-end pizzeria craze.  These places are popping up all over the country, claiming Pizza Vera Napoletana status and all that, but it's a pretty expensive night out and our readers want something they can do at home.  Plus, we already knew that the pizzas and flatbreads were clearly the fastest things in our books.  After you stretch them flat, they're ready for the oven.  That's not true for loaf breads, which need to rest for 45 to 90 minutes after shaping.  So pizza and flatbread works for a busy weeknight.

Zoë: Pizza is one of my favorite foods and this project was an excuse to eat it at every meal. My sons love this book best of all, even after two years of serving them pizza for breakfast, lunch and dinner. In fact, my oldest son now makes his own, start to finish. It is an excellent way to get kids in the kitchen.
 

How did working on this book differ from working on the others?


Jeff: It meant thinking back to all my travel experiences around the Mediterranean -- so for me, that's Spain, Morocco, Italy, and France.  When I travel, I eat, and that's how I categorize everything.  This book was basically a travelogue for me, because these breads originated in the Middle East, and spread by water.  It's my favorite part of the world.  

Zoë: I took my family on a research trip to Turkey, Greece and Italy. We ate our way through the countries and then I came home to recreate the flavors. It was so inspiring and I discovered a whole new world of spices being in Turkey. This book is a real adventure of flavors, beyond the pizzas that we all know and love.
 

Besides the obvious pizza topic, how is Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day different from Artisan Bread and Healthy Bread? How is it similar?


Jeff: What's similar is that we start with dough that we optimized for long-term storage in the fridge-- up to two weeks for doughs without eggs or dairy.  That's what changes everything, because you mix once, and bake up to eight half-pound pizzas, and it makes doing this nightly possible.  And we have whole grain and gluten-free options in the book.  

So what's different?  For one thing, it's a whole book of offbeat and familiar pizza toppings, fully explored.  Then, about the doughs -- for the whole grain, we didn't need vital wheat gluten for this book (as we did in Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day) because these don't have to support a tall loaf, so less structure is needed.  And in our white dough recipes, we ventured into the territory of true Italian-style flours and how to approximate them with more readily-available stuff.  

And, in this book, we wanted to get into our readers' entire meal, so there are more soups and dips than in our other books.  These breads can form the basis for everything you eat. 

Zoë: We also try to make our books a tool to help people feel confident about baking everything from simple breads to a roasted-vegetable stuffed, Italian torta. Our Tips and Techniques chapters are as valuable as the recipes themselves. We want to teach people to bake, so they share the joy we get from it.
 
For more about Jeff and Zoë, you can visit their blog, artisanbreadinfive.com. And try their gluten-free brioche recipe!

Lidia Bastianich and her fabulous shows on Italian cooking have always had a special place in my heart. As an Italian American originally from New York, I love to not only watch Lidia cook up a storm but hear her talk about how Italian food has influenced American culture. Watching Lidia is something my mother and I do together when she visits, and her shows invariably lead to my mother telling animated tales of enormous family meals at her Neapolitan grandparents house in the Bronx and remembrances of my own grandmother’s take on various dishes. But more than that Ms. Bastianich inspires us to get into the kitchen and cook.

When I was a kid I didn’t realize that the food I was eating on a daily basis was not actually eaten in Italy. My mother’s Sunday Gravy was a cherished weekly event and I figured Italians were eating this dish not only in New York and California, but Naples and Palermo as well. Same with her tangy vinegar pepper Chicken Cacciatore and Christmas Eve black olive pizza. It wasn’t until I was older that I realized Italian American food falls into its own special category, full of ingredients that immigrants found after my great grandparents and others traveled through Ellis Island or landed at airports later in the century.

You see, it wasn’t until recently that ingredients like farro, San Marzano tomatoes and Parmigiano-Reggiano started to appear regularly in American grocery stores. Before this, Italian immigrants and their children were limited to using ingredients that were local to their new homes and often distinctly American in taste. So America’s love for beef led to the aforementioned Sunday Gravy, a rich tomato-based sauce full of meatballs, sausages and bragiolle that isn't made in Italy itself.

I have quite a few of Lidia Bastianich’s books, but I use them a little differently than my other cookbooks. While I might open up my new "Sunday Suppers at Lucques" by Suzanne Goin or the gorgeous "Tender" by Nigel Slater to drool over the photos and feel inspired to try something new, Lidia’s books are like visiting my grandmother’s and mother’s recipe files. So much is comfortable and familiar, but with the clear difference that they also provide well-detailed instructions -- something my mother and grandmother thought was covered by phrases like “cook until done” or “add a little of this and that until it tastes right” (all said with a heavy Bronx accent).

Ms. Bastianich’s new book “Lidia’s Italy in America,” which she wrote with her daughter Tanya Bastianich Manuali, is no different. The focus here is the unique ways Italian American immigrants interpreted dishes from their homeland throughout the United States. The book is broken down into the standard sections of antipasti, zuppe, pasta, etc., but within are pages that highlight specific specialties from different areas along with descriptions of the Italian American neighborhoods that created them. So in Poultry we find a vignette about Federal Hill in Providence Rhode Island but soon after follows a recipe for Roberto’s Chicken Piccante from a chef on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx (a neighborhood dear to my heart as it’s where my father grew up). The gamut of Italian American cooking is covered with descriptions of the people who make these neighborhoods distinct and some history as well.

Although I’ve never met her, Ms. Bastianich’s is sort of like my TV culinary mother. Sweet and nurturing while also firm with her advice and directions, I trust her to help me navigate the path of Italian cookery. I will admit that I have occasionally been disappointed, as I was with the deep dish pizza in this book which was more bread than pizza. I can’t really complain, however, as the recipe says “it is a cross between focaccia and a pizza," so she warned me. My suggestion if you make it is to cut the dough in half and add more filling to the top, but remember I’m a Neapolitan-American raised on thin crusts so I’m a bit biased. More often than not, however, I have been quite happy with the results. The baked Rollatini of Sole offered a delightfully lemony take on fish cooked with breadcrumbs and the Italian American Meatloaf is, without a doubt, the best meatloaf I have ever made. My kids and husband raved about it and we all had seconds. Note, however, that the recipe is so big it makes either one incredibly large loaf, or, if you’re like me, one for your own family and one to share with the mom who took your kids for the afternoon.

"Lidia’s Italy in America" has that type of easy cookbook style I like best when reading recipes I will actually use. The recipes are laid out clearly and are easy to follow. I also enjoyed her stories on American neighborhoods and their Italian citizens. My only criticism is that there are hardly any pictures of food (most are of the people in the neighborhoods she visited). I love recipe photos in cookbooks because it’s reassuring to know what dishes are supposed to look like when you cook them and I felt this book could have used a few more. But that is a minor criticism. As she’s done many times before, Lidia Bastianich has provided a solid compilation of Italian American recipes, this time with an emphasis on those that truly reflect the diverse and eclectic nature of the many types of Italian neighborhoods there are in America. So if you’re in the mood for authentic Italian American recipes from the embodiment of Italian mama-ness, pick up a copy of "Lidia’s Italy in America."

Italian American Meatloaf, salad and roasted potatoes. Photo by Denise Santoro Lincoln.

Recipe: Italian American Meatloaf (Polpettone)

One would think that meatloaf is very American, but its origins are actually in a German colonial dish of minced pork mixed with cornmeal. Italians serve it a lot as well, and in this rendition the cultures blend deliciously with the addition of a pestata, a paste of carrots, celery, and onions. Not only does the meatloaf taste delicious, but it is foolproof, moist every time. The leftovers reheat as if just cooked, and Italians love to serve it with roasted potato wedges.

Serves 10 or more

2 cups cubes of country bread with crust
1 cup milk
2 medium carrots, cut into chunks
2 medium stalks celery, cut into chunks
1 medium onion, cut into chunks
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 1/2 pounds ground pork
1 bunch scallions, trimmed and chopped
1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano
1 cup marinara sauce or puréed canned tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Put the bread cubes in a medium bowl, and pour the milk over them. Let the bread soak until it is soft. Meanwhile, combine the carrots, celery, and onion in a food processor, and pulse to make a fine-textured paste or pestata.

When the bread is soft, squeeze out the excess milk and put the bread in a large mixing bowl. Mix the pestata, ground meats, scallions, grated cheese, marinara sauce, parsley,salt, and oregano with the bread, using your hands to distribute all of the ingredients evenly. Oil a 10-by-15-inch Pyrex or ceramic baking dish with the olive oil. Form the meat mixture into a loaf in the oiled pan.

Place in the oven, and bake until browned and cooked through (the center of the meatloaf should read 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer), about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before slicing.

Chicago Deep-Dish Pizza. Photo: Lidia Matticchio Bastianich.

Recipe: Chicago Deep-Dish Pizza (Pizza Alta di Chicago)

One could call this dish pizza bread, and it is a cross between a focaccia and a pizza. In Sicily, they make a high pizza called sfincione, topped with tomatoes, oregano, and a few anchovies. It is sold in warm squares as street food from a cart. The idea for deep- dish pizza came from the early Sicilian immigrants that settled in Chicago, although the excessive toppings are not something one would find in Sicily.

Makes 1 pizza

FOR THE DOUGH
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 packet instant dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading the dough
1/2 cup fine cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for bowl and pan

FOR THE TOPPING
4 ounces provolone, sliced
4 ounces mozzarella, sliced
1 to 1 1/2 cups marinara sauce
2 ounces pepperoni, sliced
1/2 cup grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Pour 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons warm (90 to 110 degrees F) water into a bowl, then stir in the sugar and yeast. Let sit until the yeast begins to bubble, about 5 minutes.

In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, cornmeal, and salt on low to combine. Pour in the yeast mixture and the olive oil to combine while still mixing. Once the dough comes together, switch to the dough hook, and knead on medium-high speed to make a smooth dough, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add a little more water or fl our as needed to make a soft dough. Put the dough in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled in size, from 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Punch down the dough, and press it into a 14-x-10-inch oiled baking pan or an oiled 12-inch cast-iron skillet, gently pressing the dough up the sides to make a shell. Fill the shell with an even layer of the provolone and mozzarella, then spread the sauce to cover the cheese completely. Top with the pepperoni, and sprinkle with the grated cheese and oregano. Cover with foil, and bake 45 minutes. Then uncover, and bake until the crust is deep golden brown and the pizza is bubbly, about 20 minutes more. Let sit about 5 to 10 minutes before cutting into wedges and serving.

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Recipes excerpted from Lidia's Italy in America by Lidia Bastianich. Copyright © 2011 by Lidia Bastianich. Excerpted by permission of Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

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Related Programs:
• Watch Lidia Celebrates America -- Holiday Tables & Traditions on KQED TV tonight 12/20/11 at 8pm. View additional airtimes.

In the vibrant neighborhood around 16th Street and Guerrero, a new Italian restaurant is taking shape. As opening day draws closer, construction continues around the clock. Come by and you may hear the squeal of the electric saw, the clattering of lumber, the whine of an electric drill. But, despite the fact that several people are conversing simultaneously, one noise that’s notably absent is the sound of voices. That’s because the conversations are all in sign language. The owners and operators of Mozzeria, Melody and Russell Stein, and many of their workers are deaf.

For this food writer—whose other job as a sign language interpreter has given her the gift of another language and a window into a fascinating culture—this is the dream interview. As I visit with Melody and Russ, we effortlessly chat in ASL (American Sign Language).

Make no mistake, however, the Steins are designing their restaurant and menu for the general public. And Melody has done her homework: besides studying Hospitality Management, she did a tour of Italy in 2010, taking cooking classes in several Italian cities to hone her recipes and perfect her pizza technique.

Melody also draws on support and inspiration from her father, who ran two successful restaurants in Hong Kong, where she was born. When her parents realized that Melody and her younger brother were both deaf, they began a search for the best school for their children. After short stints in deaf schools in the Philippines and Singapore, the whole family relocated to Northern California, where Melody and her brother attended CSD (California School for the Deaf in Fremont) and her father opened another branch of his Wu Kong restaurant in San Francisco’s Rincon Center.

Actually, Russ is the reason behind the pizza. Growing up in a large deaf family in New York City, Russ has always been a pizza addict, devouring cheesy slices almost every day. Melody and Russ met when they were both studying Business Administration at Gallaudet University in Washington D.C. (the world’s only university specifically designed for deaf people).

After they married and had two children (now 10 and 12) and worked for a large non-profit in South Dakota for 10 years, they moved back to California (partly because they missed the food) and started a management consulting company. Melody’s dream, however, was to open a restaurant. “So the compromise,” she jokes, “is that to please Russ it had to be a pizza restaurant. Now I know that my husband will be happy every day.”

Of course, only the world’s best pizza would satisfy this pizza gourmet and that’s why Mozzeria will be serving Neapolitan style pizza made in their new 5,000 pound Stefano Ferrara wood-burning oven, imported from Italy. Russ will use almond, oak or apple wood to feed the shiny black-tiled mountain that dominates the dining room of their cozy 49-seat space. As for the rest of the décor, Melody uses the vivid economy of ASL signs to paint a quick picture of the kind of Italian restaurant this is NOT going to be. She deftly describes a red-and-white-checkered tablecloth and old wine bottle overflowing with colored wax drippings, then gently shakes her head as she smiles sweetly.

Instead, Melody envisions a combination of modern and vintage styles. The vintage is inherently part of this historic 1908 building and is stunningly represented in the 100 year old hardwood floor they were thrilled to discover hiding under grungy old tile.

As is the custom in collectivist Deaf Culture, the Steins looked first for deaf artisans or laborers to fill their needs and found Michael E. Sharnov and Samuel Reynolds, deaf wood refinishers who brought out the warm luster in the dark brown Douglas fir floor. They also hired Nathan Dingel, a deaf electrician and HVAC professional who was Melody’s classmate at CSD and Ron Trumble, a deaf woodworker, to design and make their door, tables, shelves, banquette seating and a counter topped with marble. Interior designer, Patty Foo Hampton, who has deaf parents, created a stark black and white color scheme, set off by shiny red chairs that are sitting in patient stacks, waiting for opening night, which is planned for December 9.

As for the menu, Melody is keeping some surprises up her sleeve until the big day. She does say that Mozzeria will feature “traditional and non-traditional pizzas to celebrate San Francisco’s cultural diversity.” Pasta and inventive small plates (developed by lead cook Justin Belluomini) will be served with local beer on tap, Californian and Italian wine and vintage sodas. Their wood fired oven will reach a temperature of 1000 degrees and bake pizzas to crispy, melty goodness in a flash—60-90 seconds. Dinner will be offered Tuesday-Sunday nights with addition of brunch on the weekends.

“There are only a handful of deaf owned restaurants around the country, “ says Russell proudly, “ We are the first one in a major city—and a famous food city too.” Although, the Steins expect that most of their customers will be “hearing” (the ASL term for those who are not deaf), they want to make sure their deaf supporters, many of whom have been cheering on Mozzeria’s progress over the past year on their blog, are comfortable too.

Lighting is the most important component for deaf diners and Russ says that Mozzeria will have plenty of lighting. Melody adds that dim interiors make her eyes tired and teases that candle-lit tables could be dangerous during an emphatically signed exchange. Their big screen TV will have its captions on permanently, emergency lights will be strobe-enabled and flashing light signals will alert them when the phone rings or someone is at the door.

Customers can make reservations online using Open Table and the restaurant is also equipped with a videophone which hearing customers can access through a video-relay service.

Melody has already hired two deaf dishwashers through CSD’s Work Readiness program and hopes to hire servers who can sign. Communication is not expected to be a big problem as Melody and Russ are both comfortable writing notes with their hearing vendors and customers. “Our UPS man has gotten used to Deaf culture now that he has been making so many deliveries here,” says Melody, smiling. “He knows to wave his arms outside the window to get my attention when there is a package for me.”

For updates and to check opening date, go to mozzeria.com.
Address: 3228 16th Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
Twitter: @MozzeriaSF
Facebook: Mozzeria

Guests and host Leslie Sbrocco taping episode 611 of Check, Please! Bay Area at KQED. Photo: Wendy Goodfriend

Check, Please! Bay Area Season 6: episode 11 airs Thursday October 20 at 7:30pm on KQED TV 9. View other airtimes and channels.

You can watch individual restaurant segments as well as view the entire episode online. The website also provides restaurant information not specified on the show, written reviews from the guests and restaurant recipes. If you have opinions on the restaurants featured please feel free to share your thoughts. This season, Leslie Sbrocco will be sharing wine tips with each episode.

The eleventh episode of the season features these restaurants: Café Aquarius (Emeryville), Tanguito Argentinean Grill & Empanadas (San Francisco) and VEGA (San Francisco).

Leslie Sbrocco: Wine Tips -- Pairing Dessert Wines

Guests and host Leslie Sbrocco, having fun taping episode 610 of Check, Please! Bay Area at KQED. Photo: Wendy Goodfriend

Check, Please! Bay Area Season 6: episode 10 airs Thursday October 13 at 7:30pm on KQED TV 9. View other airtimes and channels.

You can watch individual restaurant segments as well as view the entire episode online. The website also provides restaurant information not specified on the show, written reviews from the guests and restaurant recipes. If you have opinions on the restaurants featured please feel free to share your thoughts. This season, Leslie Sbrocco will be sharing wine tips with each episode.

The tenth episode of the season features these restaurants: La Mexicana Restaurant (Oakland), Kabuto Sushi (San Francisco) and Pazzia Restaurant & Pizzeria (San Francisco).

Leslie Sbrocco: Wine Tips -- Making Vinegar from Leftover Wine

Kitchen at Headland Center for the Arts

Sometimes, being a single, freelancing, non-home-owner with an old car and no kids can have its benefits. Like the opportunity to move into a tent in Santa Cruz to be an apprentice farmer at the Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems at UCSC for six months; couldn't have done that with a mortgage to pay. Or now, my latest adventure, being a live-in cook-intern in the kitchen at the Headlands Center for the Arts, just across the bridge in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

For those of you who haven't made the fifteen-minute drive over the water lately, the Headlands Center for the Arts is an artists' residency program occupying a collection of former military buildings in the Marin Headlands. Built in 1907, the buildings were abandoned by the military in 1972. In the late 1970s, an intrepid group of local artists began to renovate them for use. By 1982, the Center had a board of directors, and by 1985, it was granting commissions for renovations of everything from the latrines to the Mess Hall to the storage depot. Now, nearly 30 years later, the place is a well-recognized part of the Bay Area art scene, attracting artists from all around the world for its residency program.

Mess Hall Dining Room

There are lots of good things about being an artist in residence here. Time, unfettered time, time to breathe and think, look and hear and create. A studio for work, an airy room for sleep, the folded, elephantine hills of the Headlands and the whole Pacific ocean laid out at your feet. The rattle of the eucalyptus leaves and the shriek of the wild turkeys at night, the deer browsing under the fog-dripping cypress branches in the early morning. Support and appreciation for your work and its whims, wherever it takes you.

And, of course, you get fed, an organic, made-from-scratch, sit-down dinner cooked for you, your fellow artists, and your guests four nights a week, plus a mid-day brunch on Sundays, cooked and served in the Mess Hall, itself designed into a particularly warm community space by artist Anne Hamilton. Nearly everything on the table is local: those frilly, multi-colored little lettuces picked yesterday at County Line Harvest in Petaluma, the whole-wheat sesame-sourdough bread baked in the kitchen twice a week by Eduardo Morell in the wood-burning brick oven designed by Alan Scott. When you get peckish, or bored, in need of coffee and conversation (or wifi), you can dawdle in the Mess Hall, foraging for last night's leftovers (mmm, salmon! Mexican wedding cookies!) and chatting up the kitchen staff: myself, fellow intern Damon Little, and head chef Keith Mercovich.

Wood-burning brick oven designed by Alan Scott

We'll probably be chopping huge piles of chard, skinning halibut, shucking oysters or hulling strawberries for tarts. We might be making things from scratch that you didn't know could be made from scratch, like macaroni, or hot dogs, or bacon. We might be laying out sides of salmon on a bed of fennel for gravlax, kneading dough for Tuesday's pizza night, slicing multicolored, palm-sized tomatoes, or stirring up caramel gelato. Whatever we're busy with, you'll be having it for dinner in just a few hours.

Stephanie Shares Pizza-Making Tips from the Headlands. Video: Laiko Bahrs

Of course, I feel a little guilty writing about this, since the artists' dinner at the Headlands isn't open to the public. Only artists, staff, and a limited number of their guests can attend a typical weeknight dinner, much to the chagrin of the hikers and hostel-stayers who wander in, draw by the smells and conviviality. But there are ways to get a seat at the table. You can become a member, which gets you invited to the quarterly members' dinners with the artists. You can come to one of the Headlands' public programs, which often include an optional dinner or brunch. You can do what I did, and volunteer during one of the public programs, which earns you a meal. (Naturally, I volunteered in the kitchen, but there are always varied volunteer slots open for any given event.) This Sunday, in fact, I'll be one of a group of artists leading a series of hikes, each with a different theme around the area, followed by brunch in the Mess Hall.

Such will be my Sunday: up early to make Jonagold apple coffee cake for 75, lead my hike for an hour, then return to the kitchen, put my apron back on, help finish cooking and serving, eat, then wash dishes and help clean the kitchen, getting it ready for dinner prep the following day. In between, deep breaths of the clear, ocean-scented air, particularly lovely now that our equinoctial summer has arrived, banishing (most of) the brooding fog at long last. It's part supper club, part dinner party, part co-op (dessert doesn't appear until after everyone has pitched in to help with the dishes), but it all comes together to make a community.

Stephanie Rosenbaum will be leading "Plants of Pleasure, Plants of Pain," a visual foraging hike about the area's edible and poisonous plants as part of the Desire Trails program on Sunday, Sept 25, at 1pm, followed by brunch at 3pm. The hike is free; brunch is $15 for Headlands members, $20 for the public.

Dining in Marin is tough. I've said it before and I'll say it again: there's just not a whole lot to choose from when you're seeking really good quality food without twenty-seven small children running amuck in a spot that's actually open past 9 p.m. Because my folks live in Marin and I visit often, I'm always on the lookout for new restaurant openings and places to try, and ever since Bar Bocce opened a few months back, it's been at the top of my list. Wood-fired pizzas, beautiful patio right on the water, bocce ball courts, inexpensive/local wine list, kind of infamous brownie? This had to be mostly hype, right?

First thing's first: Bar Bocce has the menu and the kitchen staff under control. The menu is a simple, straight-forward and inspired mix of American and Mediterranean food and Robert Price (former Buckeye Roadhouse chef) is manning the kitchen. So far, life is good. The appetizers are all small plates--perfect for sharing--and we found the pizza to be an ideal size for two people as long as you're ordering a few other things for the table. So we did. I suggested the meatballs; my mom was dying to try the oven-roasted asparagus with pecorino. And the pizza? It was a unanimous choice with the Dungeness crab pizza with Meyer lemon and avocado creme fraiche.

After ordering, we had a chance to take in the scenery, the amazing view, and the crowd inside the restaurant. There's no way to quibble with the fact that the 22-person outdoor seating area is one of the more beautiful in the county. It sits right next to the Bay with a dramatic pergola and an inviting fire pit and bocce ball court. This is the new spot to gather for happy hour drinks and watch the sun drift off into another day. The best news? There weren't twenty-seven screaming toddlers. But after experiencing the dramatic outdoor space, there's something about coming inside that seems a bit anticlimactic. It's almost as if they literally ran out of money before they began developing and designing the interior space. It looks much more like an average pizza shop, complete with large televisions broadcasting live sports games. We could've lived without this.

But when it all comes down to it, the food is what will bring people back. And Bar Bocce has the food down. Our meatballs--a blend of three different kinds of meat, bread crumbs, and a secret blend of spices-- were incredibly flavorful and left us actually wishing we'd ordered the meatball pizza. The asparagus was perfectly roasted, and the Crab pizza was almost an order-again. The sourdough crust was perfectly chewy with a nice, slight char on the edges. Just the way it should be. But the crab itself was a little sparse and we thought the creme fraiche just came off as a little showy. A Dungeness crab pizza should stand on its own. And this one could, absolutely, with just a few tweaks.

Left: Roasted Asparagus and a Meatball; Right: Dungeness Crab Pizza

In addition to refreshingly good Marin food, I'd return for the atmosphere alone. Especially in the summer when that outdoor patio will be just a smidge warmer and early mornings at work don't seem quite as urgent. And you won't feel nearly as guilty about spending $8 on a brownie.

Bar Bocce's Brownie

I just couldn't resist trying the Bar Bocce brownie served with a cognac whipped cream. I asked our server what the story was with it and she explained that it's made with a dark, dark cocoa powder and includes espresso powder to enhance the depth even further. Now there are two types of people in this world: people who enjoy chewier, fudgy brownies and others who enjoy cakey brownies. I think both will be pleased here. The Bar Bocce brownie falls comfortably in between the two camps with a fudgy center, chewy edges and the ever-lovely mound of whipped cream.

Need a new place to try in Marin? Inspiration for your next date night? Patio-hopping after a long hike? Bar Bocce can (and will, in time) answer all of these questions. I'm willing to go out on a limb here and say that summers in Sausalito just got a whole lot sweeter.

Bar Bocce
1250 Bridgeway 1, Sausalito CA 94965
(415) 331-0555
Monday-Saturday 11:30 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Sunday 10:30 a.m. -10 p.m.; Brunch on Sat. and Sun. served until 2:30 p.m.

Today, after the last of the snow in our backyard melted, it snowed again. It has been a long winter -- as it usually is in Minnesota (although I’ve only experienced two). This extended period of long-underwear, wool socks, and root vegetable stews is the reason why more people don’t live here. But as the snow melts and the temperature rises above 32 degrees, there is real joy. It’s not just a nice day for us… it’s excitement, anticipation and even a relaxation (of whatever muscles are used in shivering). And for me, most of all, it’s the search for wild foods that gets me out walking in the woods.

Over the course of the last year making episodes about food in Minnesota, of all the topics, foraging has been the most prominent. I suppose it is so with any subject, but the more you learn, the more wonderful and intriguing it becomes. A walk in the woods is not just beautiful, it is a shopping trip and a treasure hunt. So this time of year is the most exciting of all.

At this point in April when we (Minnesotans) have a few wild edibles popping out of the ground, you (Californians) have been eating them for months. But that doesn't make them any less special. So, this last Saturday we had a pizza party in celebration of Spring. It was quite ironic as the temperature dropped into the 30's that evening. Regardless, that morning we went foraging for the first of spring's offerings. A ritual that I wish was part of every cooking job: first go harvest, then go cook.

We found garlic mustard, nettles, ramps, daylilies and dandelion greens. The nettles were small and purple in color. They aren't woodsy or bitter at this point, more like spinach. We used these as a base for our pesto. The ramps were still a little young, so we didn't over pick them. If you haven't had a ramp yet, they are garlicky and delicious. I usually use the leaves for pesto while pickling the stems. The daylilies are shooting up all along the edge of my house, if you get them when they are young, they add a nice crunch with a very slight onion flavor. And dandelion greens -- they are bitter of course, but add a taste that connects you to the earth.

Recipe: Ramp Pesto

Ingredients:
• 1 part ramp leaves
• 3 parts nettles
• 1 part garlic mustard
• 1 part dandelion greens
• 1/2 part Extra Virgin Olive oil (more if needed)
• Salt

Instructions:
Blanch the nettles in hot water followed by an ice bath. Wring out the water. Puree all the ingredients together. You can add nuts or Parmesan if you want, but we we're going for more of a sauce type consistency. This could be used in pasta or as a sauce for more full flavored fish or a lighter meat. We used it on pizza, with a few dollops of chevre and cooked it in a wood-fired oven then garnished with some micro greens. A delicious spring.

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Recipe: Pizza Dough

The pizza oven and the levain used in the dough were both created by Lisa Ringer of Two Pony Gardens. She spent the last year collecting large stones from her property to decorate the oven all the while managing her wild yeast "mother." I used her levain to create my pizza dough, no commercial yeast added.

Ingredients:
• 1 Cup levain
• 3 Cups flour
• 1/2 Cup warm water
• 2 Tablespoons EVO
• 2 teaspoons sea salt

Instructions:
Because I was making dough for 150, I mixed the dough in a mixer. But for a small batch, do it in a bowl. Add a little extra water if necessary, you want the dough to be nice and wet. Once the dough is formed (as little mixing as possible, just knead until combined), I let it rise for a couple hours in the kitchen and then overnight in the fridge. The next morning, I divided it into small balls, covered with a damp towel and let it slowly rise again until i was ready to cook the pizzas. In the heat of a wood-fired oven they don't take more than a minute.

Osteria Coppa bar interior

Perfectly acceptable pasta and mediocre slices of pizza are easy to find. If you haven't had a decent interpretation of either in a while, you can easily forget what a great version tastes like.

Let's just say I've now been reminded.

Osteria Coppa in San Mateo is owned by the folks who run Sam's Chowder House in Half Moon Bay; a Peninsula institution. Executive Chef Chanan Kamen takes pride in his handmade pastas and hand-stretched pizzas, and it shows. His resume includes Michelin-starred Quince and Jardinere in San Francisco, and Picholine and Tabla in New York City.

Osteria Coppa is a farm-to-table restaurant, meaning they use organic, locally sourced, artisanal ingredients. They cure their salumi in-house, fire up hand-made pizzas in their stone ovens, and artfully make their own pastas.

I paid two visits to the restaurant and each time focused solely on the pizzas and pastas. The pastas in particular have gotten rave reviews in the San Francisco Chronicle, the San Jose Mercury News and The San Francisco Examiner.

Braised Radicchio, Panchetta and Aged Balsamico Pizza

I tried both the house-made sausage, speck and crimini mushroom pizza, as well as the pancetta, braised radicchio and aged balsamico. Both thin-crust, Neapolitan-style pies were fantastic for this simple reason: the fresh, creative topping combinations worked perfectly on an exceptional crust.

The flavors on both pizzas were well conceived, but I was particularly impressed with the pancetta, braised radicchio and aged balsamico pie. It was one of the best pizzas I have had in a while. I fell in love with the wonderfully tangy sweetness of the balsamico. It made me wonder why I hadn't tasted balsamic vinegar on a pizza before! It was the perfect match for the meaty, fatty goodness of the pancetta bits. And the radicchio was an edgier stand-in for the typical red onions.

My dining companion at one point declared, "Even the crust is great on this pizza!" The crust was perfectly crisp and charred on the bottom, pillowy soft and sweet on the inside. If you order just one pie while you're there, this is the one.

As far as Osteria Coppa's pastas go, the San Jose Mercury News has called them "exquisite," and even named the Tagliatelle Bolognese one of the Top Ten Dishes of 2010.

Tagliatelle Bolognese

There are plenty of places that make their own pastas, but they either make the mistake of overcooking it so that it becomes mushy (fresh pasta should take no longer than a few minutes to cook), or the flavor is way too doughy and floury, without enough focus on fresh, quality ingredients.

There's no risk of either here. Preparation, ingredients and technique all have equal importance. The Fettuccine Marinara with cauliflower and broccoli rabe was perfectly al dente, and the noodles were delicious with a wonderful eggy, almost buttery flavor. The freshness of the vegetables was obvious and actually made the dish seem light.

But I can confirm that the recent attention on the Tagliatelle Bolognese is well warranted. The dish was nothing short of fabulous with its smooth, rich pork and deliciously creamy sauce. And once again, the noodles themselves were the star in both texture and taste. But for all the richness of this dish, it never seemed overly heavy.

Blood Orange Lemonade

Aside from the pizzas and pastas, the house-made blood orange lemonade is more proof of the inventive items on the menu. It's a fun twist on the typical lemonade and it shows how the restaurant takes advantage of having access to a wealth of fruits and vegetables. They use unconventional ingredients and combine them in a way that makes you feel like every item is fully realized.

Service is casual but professional. There's no pretentiousness from the staff, and families are welcome. In the Bay Area, that's a welcome change for a restaurant of this caliber. They've done a successful job creating a warm, sophisticated yet relaxed atmosphere. Chef Kaman was an expert pasta maker while at Quince, and the peninsula is lucky he's decided to bring his four-star talents to suburbia.

Osteria Coppa
Address: Map
139 South B Street
San Mateo, CA 94401
Phone: 650-579-6021
Hours: Lunch 11:30-2:30, Mon-Fri (closed for lunch on weekends)
Dinner 5:30-9:30pm Mon-Thurs, 5-10pm Fri-Sat, and 5-9 Sun

Facebook: Osteria Coppa
Twitter: @osteriacoppa