Pie in the Sky

Pizza Paradise on the Isle of Style


BY KATHRYN JESSUP

PHOTOGRAPHY BY BOB KUZMESKI

A bubbling hot slice of pizza and a crisp green salad make the perfect meal on an autumn evening. Alameda’s pizzerias know how to dish up the best pies once you’ve picked up the kids from school or watched the football game. Whether you crave the thin crust pizza of Old New York, the flavor of wood-fired oven pizza with gourmet toppings, or a delectable, yeasty thick-crust pizza with plenty of cheese, you’ll find it on the Island this fall.
    Local adult softball teams have already made themselves regulars at the La Val’s at Harbor Bay Landing (891 Island Drive, 521-7711), where co-owner David Mann gives them the royal treatment. LaVal’s also sponsors Alameda Little League and soccer teams and you’ll find a case full of local trophies in the shop.
    “I’ve had to tell them to stop bringing in trophies because we’ve got so many,” says Mann with a laugh. His delectable toppings and tangy house-made crust, which he carefully cultivates over three days, is sure to boost team spirit.
    “All our stores are independently owned and operated,” says Mann. “I order all my own toppings and ingredients. I like to use local suppliers, like the sausage I get from Nick here in Alameda.”
    Nick Nicosia, the sausage guy, delivers a juicy, anise seed-flecked Italian sausage that makes an addictive combination with red onions, Greek peppers and feta cheese on the Greek pizza. The ultimate garlic chicken pie with chunks of chicken, creamy garlic sauce and vegetables is a popular choice and so is the sweet-and-salty barbecue beef or chicken pie topped with bacon bits and barbecue sauce.
    On Park Street, you’ll find a parade of pizza options including the new Tomatina (1338 Park St., 521-1000), the tried-and-true Linguini’s (1506 Park St., 521-2141), the quick slice and delivery joint NY Pizza (1528 Park St., 522-6040), the music venue and bar with pizza at A-Town Pizza (1231 Park St., 522-7575), and the pizza and Italian food spot Village Pizza (1337 Park St., 521-2751).
    “Our piadines are really popular,” says Justin Murphy, manager of the 8-month-old Tomatina, a large polished space with tiled floors and delicately muraled walls. “It’s a flatbread from our pizza oven topped with cool salad. People really love them.”
    The piadines (pronounced pee-a-dee-nayz) aren’t the only thing coming out of the restaurant’s Wood Stone ovens: the pizzas, topped with house-made marinara and organic vegetables, are also drawing plenty of attention. The pizzas come to your table on an elevated pizza tray and, with choices like the pesto chicken pie—topped with basil pesto, roasted chicken, peppers and sun-dried tomatoes—they won’t stay on the table long.
    When you go to Linguini’s, one of Alameda’s favorite spots, you can choose your atmosphere. There are two sides, one with pasta and a bistro feel, the other with pizza and a sports-bar attitude. Here’s a little secret, though: You can order from both menus on both sides. The sports-bar side, which has a pool table, large-screen TV and beers on tap, is always hopping on “Wild Wednesdays” when from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. you can have as many slices of cheese, vegetable or pepperoni pizza as you can eat and as much soda as you can drink for $6. It’s a college student’s dream come true and, according to Linguini’s waiters, Wild Wednesday draws plenty of families, too. “I’m always dodging the kids,” says one waitress with a laugh. “We get lots of families.”
    Linguini’s makes a kid-friendly pizza: fluffy, thick crust, light on the marinara. The veggie slice has loads of toppings, including slivers of sun-dried tomatoes.
    NY Pizza lives up to its name; the crust is super-thin and the toppings are spread thin, too. For lovers of a Brooklyn-style slice, this is the place. The pizza has a nice balance to it, and a kick if you sprinkle some chili flakes on top. Other toppings include linguiça, a Portuguese sausage. Delivery, takeout and slices are the name of the game here.
    Village Pizza will adjust the thickness of the crust to your liking and you can sit in the tranquil dining room, where classical music plays, or have your pie (and any menu item, including salads, pastas and hot sub sandwiches) delivered to your door.
    “We’re pretty well known for pizza,” says manager Lai Lee. “Our Mediterranean and Greek Fantasy pizzas are the most popular.” Village Pizza’s Greek Fantasy pie has pesto sauce, feta cheese, spinach and artichoke hearts.
    For late-night pies and slices, head to A-Town pizza where you can enjoy your food till 11 p.m. on weekends with live music and drinks from a full bar. A-Town also delivers its thin-crust pies.
    One of Alameda’s beautiful historic buildings is inhabited in part by a pizzeria. Croll’s Pizza (705 Central Ave., 865-6662) operates next door to the New Zealander restaurant in the stately Victorian building with cut-glass windows, tiled floors and dark wood doors on the corner of Central and Webster Street. Slices are just $2.25, and on a warm summer day you can enjoy them at stone tables in the back garden where roses bloom. Croll’s also delivers full pies and plans to add a soda fountain and an expanded menu of salads and sandwiches soon.
    Two other great options when you want to have a pizza party at your house are Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake (1929 Broadway, 865-4777) and Alameda Pizza (1538 Webster St., 523-7149). Papa Murphy’s specializes in freshly made uncooked pies, which you bake to perfection in your own oven. “Our family-size pepperoni pies really do have 80 slices of pepperoni,” says Papa Murphy’s owner, Ken Dorrance, in defense of the store’s claim in advertisements. “It’s definitely true. We count them out one slice at a time. You can’t even see the cheese once we’re done—it’s covered.”
    At Alameda Pizza, Sair Ahmad, the restaurant’s owner, has been delivering pies to Alameda for 11 years. “We offer delivery, dine-in or pick-up,” he explained, with emphasis on delivery. “And we deliver till 11 p.m. on weeknights and midnight Friday and Saturday.” Sundays he delivers until 10 p.m., and when you order three or more toppings, Ahmad will give you a discount on your pie. The slices have a thick, soft crust and loads of vegetables, pepperoni and sausage.
    If you feel you need to diet after all the pizza you’ve enjoyed, you can order Alameda Pizza’s “Weight Watcher” pie: thin crust, spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, olives, light feta and mozzarella cheese. Bellisima!