A16 (2008)



A16

 At the time I ate here (2008) it was a difficult reservation to score.  A16 is known for its Italian-American style dishes as well as its thin crust pizzas. 



Salsiccia - fennel sausage, gypsy peppers, mozzarella, ricotta, grana, garlic, chilies, olive oil PLUS an egg. 



This pizza seemed a little tastier than the Margherita pizza (maybe because the sausage gave the pizza more flavor).  The pizza was still soggy and hard to pick up.  Disappointing.

Margherita - tomato, mozzarella, grana padano, basil, olive oil

Of course, I have to order the basic pizza.  The pizza was soggy and limp.  The pizza was too chewy for my taste.  The flavors were bland and I couldn't taste any of the simplistic ingrediants of this basic pizza.  It always raises a red flag for me when an Italian spot like this doesn't offer mozzerella di bufala.

Verdict:             Overall, after waiting this long to get into A16, I wasn't impressed.  The pizza are better at Delfina and the flavors are lacking.  I'm not sure why this place is so busy considering there are a lot of similar options in the city.  Maybe the dishes are better?

Address:          A 16

                         2355 Chestnut St.

                         San Francisco, CA 94101

Type:               Italian, Pizza
                          casual

Chomp worthy:  nothing on this visit

Pass:                pizza

Random facts:

• Nate Appleman who appeared on Top Chef is an ex-chef of A16
• SPQR is their sister restaurant
• Named after a highway in Italy