Golden Boy Pizza

After a couple pints at the local North Beach dive, Northstar Cafe, a friend points out a little pizza shop and says, "They have awesome pizza there, especially after a night of drinking." Outside on a early weekday evening, the queue extended about five deep all waiting for a large square slice (or entire pie). With local beer pumping in our blood, the smell was divine, but not for that night.

San Francisco is full of steep hills and all the going up and down makes thighs burn and stomachs rumble although benefitting your gluts. It's time for a mid-day snack and break before climbing Telegraph Hill to end a day of roaming that started at 08:00. The large sign pointing to Golden Boy Pizza is like a push from divinity telling you this is where you need to go. Taking a peek in the window, there are a few large, rectangular pies to entice the passerby. The crust looks thick and apparently is made of focaccia bread. The pizzas are loaded with toppings to match the girth of the crust.

From the till, the pesto vegetarian looks the best so I get a slice of that (US$3.50). Dinner is too close to get a more filling slice with meat. The server puts the slice in the oven to heat. It seems like most of the service is geared toward take away orders as there is not much space to dine in. My pesto vegetarian comes out hot and I am allowed to sprinkle as much oregano on it as I want (also parmesan cheese and pepper flakes are available) before the server wraps it up in paper. Consuming the slice will distract from the strenous uphill walk I am about to face. On closer inspection, there is a lovely layer of pesto with tomatoes, red onion, zucchini, mushrooms, and olives on top with the right amount of mozzarella. The vegetables are nicely roasted from the oven and not soggy. The paper was getting a little greasy, but at least not dripping in oil. It is decidedly a very California-influenced pizza, more Californian than classic Italian, but still looking really delicious and colorful. The first bite is vegetarian pizza joy. The crust was still crispy though thick, the pesto still present and not competing with either the crust and the toppings, and the vegetables tasted ripe and fresh. The slice is a bit on the heavy side and it was difficult to keep from flopping one way or another walking uphill. At least the paper managed to catch the toppings that fell off so not one shred of this pizza was left behind. The slice from Golden Boy is a great quick bite to walk away with.

Golden Boy Pizza. 542 Green Street, North Beach, San Francisco, CA 94133, United States. Telephone: +1.415.982.9738. Hours: Sunday-Thursday 11:30-23:30, Friday-Saturday 11:30-02:30. www.goldenboypizza.com

The Northstar Cafe. 1560 Powell Street (corner of Powell & Green), San Francisco, CA 94109, United States. Telephone: +1.415.397.0577. Hours: 13:00-02:00. Happy Hour: Monday-Friday 13:00-20:00. www.thenorthstarsf.com