Friday, July 20, 2007

Piccino: Food - 10, Service - 3

Anyone who catches the musical lyric reference in the title gets a virtual gold star (or diamond, or whatever it is we do around here).

Last night was my second visit to Piccino, a new tiny pizza bistro in my neighborhood of Potrero Hill/Dogpatch. Both times I've been the food has been really strong, but last night the service was....weird. It was weird. I will definitely want to update this review after going a third time and also trying a main course since I've only had the pizza, but I'll tell you my impressions thus far.

Piccino is tiny little place - 3 small tables inside, counter space, and then maybe 5 or 6 small tables outside. In creating the place, the owners got the look and feel right on. Little copper tables, clean easy ikea silverware and plates, nice colors - it feels right in there (unlike my impression of another neighborhood spot, Jay's Deli, but that review will have to wait for another day).

As Patch has mentioned before, a restaurant can have great ambiance and the food can still suck. Luckily that is not the case with Piccino - the ambiance is good and cozy, and the food is better than good. The menu is small, local, and seasonal. I have only been for dinner, when it features a few starters, 4 or 5 pizzas including one daily special, three or four main dishes, and a small section of desserts - along with a wine list, local beers, and coffee and espresso drinks.

The first time at Piccino my roommate and I tried two pizzas - she had the Margherita (tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella with basil), and I had the daily special, which was garlic sausage and meyer lemon and parmesan, and some other goodies that I can't quite recall. Last night she had the Margherita again (vegetarian) and I tried the pepperoni. All three of these pizzas were very, very good. The crust is thin and perfectly crispy - one problem I have with the crust at A-16 (to be reviewed one day) is that it tends to get soggy. Not so at Piccino. The pizzas are a little on the small side, but with a starter and dessert it is the perfect dinner portion for me (and I'm a good eater. I've been known to eat disgusting amounts of lesser-grade pizza in one sitting. I swear I have a separate stomach for the stuff, like a cow. Except I don't eat grass. Whatever.). The toppings are really delicious -the garlic sausage was spicy without being too greasy, and the garlic wasn't overpowering. On my pepperoni there was a perfect slice on each quarter of the pizza, along with deliciously fresh mozarella, which also graced the roommate's pizza. The tomato sauce is well-balanced, sweet but not too sweet, and nothing needs salt or is too salty. The pizzas here are really, really good. I honestly think they (the pizzas, not the mains or starters) rival A-16 and Delfina Pizzeria for best roman-style pizza in the city; just remember that the size of the pizza at Piccinos is smaller. While I would share a starter and a pizza at the other two places, at Piccino I definitely want a pizza to myself.

Speaking of starters, they were great last night as well. I had the gazpacho, which I was so excited to see on their menu, because I had been craving it all day and planning to make it this weekend if I can drag myself to the Ferry Bldg early enough tomorrow morning for tomatoes. The gazpacho was delicious - tasted of all the great summer tomatoes that are out right now, and had a drizzle of really fruity olive oil on top. My only complaint would be that I prefer gazpacho with some chunks of chopped veggies, and this one was processed smooth, but that's just me - the taste was spot on. Roommate had a salad of greens and strawberries with a balsamic dressing - simple but tasty. I also had a glass of chainti, which was perfect with the pizza and REALLY hit the spot.

Piccino has great, yet simple desserts. Last night we tried the Plout Tart and the cookie plate (roommate thinks heaven is a place filled with cookies, she loves them, and they are great here). The tart was REALLY good - the filling was fresh tasting but not too sweet, the crust was light and buttery, and it was served with just the right amount of fresh whipped cream. The cookies were also delicious, especially the jam-filled ones. All in all it was a really good food experience.

The service, however, was sort of lacking. I feel weird even writing about it, because the server was totally nice - but odd. First of all he didn't write down our order - fine, I know people are all into memorizing orders these days. But after bringing me my wine, he came back and said "yeah, dude, I totally want to make sure I got your order right because as you were telling it to me I was like, there is no WAY I'm gonna remember this." And he had gotten it wrong. Gazpacho, one of the two salads you have on your menu, and the two most basic pizzas on the menu every day - is that so hard? And if it is, just write it down! This kid continued his antics all night; roommate and I both felt like he was high on something. He would bring us our food or pepper or a napkin and then sort of hover there awkwardly. When I asked him which tart he prefered (there was also a lemon raspberry on the menu), he told me that he hadn't tried either of them, but that pluots were "totally in season," but also that pluots "might not be sweet," and he didn't know which one would be more sweet. I almost suggested that he go ask someone who did know since that seemed the obvious thing to do, and something he should have come up with on his own, but I just went with my gut and ordered the Plout. He also forgot to bring out our cookies. The pizzas were also brought out WAY too hot - they needed at least 60 seconds to cool before they got to us, and we were not warned, and my mouth IS burned. Lastly, when I ordered a latte, he informed me that they were out of espresso drinks. But the way he said it was just odd. He kept apologizing for it over and over (and for the fact that they didn't have decaf for the roommate), and wouldn't just drop it and bring me my regular drip already (by the way, they serve Blue Bottle Coffee, which is great). Either apologize and offer me my regular coffee for free, bring me a cookie, or just leave me alone if you don't have my latte. Its hard to explain, but it was odd. I felt uncomfortable the whole night and I'm really easy going.

So - in sum, I would definitely go back there again. I'm sure I will, and often. Its 2 blocks from my house and the food rocks. Simple, tasty, nicely presented. However I hope I don't get that server again.

Food - (3.25)Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

Experience -(2.75) Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

Total - (3) Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

For an explanation of our ratings system, CLICK HERE!!

SF Chronicle Review of Piccino
Yelp Reviews of Piccino

also mentioned in this month's Gourmet mag, but I couldn't find a link online....

Cheers!
Emilia

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I really enjoy Piccino and agree with you on the crust. Our service has been decent although the overall experience hasn't "wowed" but has been pleasant and nice. There seem to be a lot of these types of places opening these days: have you been to Gialina in Glen Park? Very tasty.

I think my favorites of this type of pizza are Pizzetta 211 (for the pizza, not service or limited seating) and Pauline's Pizza Pie - their daily specials delight me.

I need to return to A16 as I haven't been in a couple years. It's very authentic Naples-style pizza, tasting JUST like what I've had in Italy, but its not necessarily my favorite tasting pizza ever. I do need to revisit, however.

As I do with Pizzeria Delfina. I know it's supposed to be one of the best in SF but I had such a poor initial experience there not long after it opened: the pizza I ordered was not only bland but the crust took up so much of the pizza there was barely any topping or cheese at all! I was so disappointed (I expected great things) that I haven't been back since. Do you have a favorite pizza there you could recommend?

Virginia
www.theperfectspotsf.com