Gialina - Pizza, San Francisco

2842 Diamond Street, San Francisco CA 94131

(415) 239-8500

Parking: street parking

Hours: Sun - Thurs 5pm - 10pm, Fri - Sat 5pm - 10:30pm

http://www.gialina.com/

Last Visited: May 29, 2011

Food: 3 stars

Atmosphere: 3 to 4 stars

Service: 3 stars
Price: $$ to $$$

Located between Chenery and Bosworth, and very close to the Glen Park BART station, Gialina turned out to be more accessible than I thought.  After seeing them reviewed on Check Please and seeing photos of their hazelnut chocolate pizza show up on more than one occasion on Wilma's wall, I decided to finally go check out Gialina. 

The restaurant, located at the corner, is long narrow with an open kitchen in the rear.  The bench seating that lines one side of the restaurant serves a row of tables while the other side of the room has tables and chairs.  While walking by, it's easy to miss the restaurant since there is little to no signage except for the menu at the door, but the line that forms outside tells you that there is something worth waiting for within.

The light colored wood and the walls that are painted red contrast the enlarged black and white photos of grandma and family.  The atmosphere is a little trendy, a little eclectic, and a little old world Italian all at the same time.

We arrived a little past 5pm, just after they had opened, and soon after, the place was completely packed.  They don't take parties of 8 or more because of their small size, but can easily hold parties of 5. Service is prompt and efficient, but a little cold.  Although they're not robotic, you do miss some of the warm smiles that you find at places with excellent service.  Water came in a large bottle to fill our short glasses.  While there are a few salads on the appetizer menu, you'll also find choices such as an antipasto platter with flatbread and meatballs. 

- Arugula w/ beets, goat cheese, and pistachios - Tender young arugula is dressed in a vinaigrette along with cubes of orange beets, pieces of moist goat cheese, and roasted pistachio nuts.  The small salad had very good flavor and easily serves two people.  The large salad comes in a wood salad bowl and is easily shared.  I would give the salad four stars - the sweetness of the beets contrast the dressing and peppery arugula beautifully.  Excellent.  $9/$18

All pies come 12 inches with 6 slices.

- Margherita - tomato, fresh mozzarella & fresh basil - The photo on the website shows small cubes of cheese on top of what looks like a margherita, but mine didn't have that as you can see in the photo.  While bread lovers and crust lovers will really enjoy this pizza, I found it to be a little blah.  The pizza sauce has a nice flavor and the crust is terrific on its own (crispy on the edge and soft on the inside of the crust), but maybe it was a lack of cheese - it seemed dry as I ate it and despite adding the parmesan at the table, it was a bit boring.  $13

- Amatriciana- tomato, pancetta, spicy chillies, oregano, pecorino & farm egg  - One egg tops a well-seasoned pizza.  Using the same base as the margherita, the added spices and pancetta which is cut into long slices like bacon add a lot of punch to the amatriciana.  This was still a little on the dry side compared to other thin crust pizzas that I have had, but much better than the margherita. $16

This pizza dough is very good, but the toppings together with the crust don't come together as nicely as what I've found at other pizzerias.  The crust is crispy and holds up well to the toppings, but bite after bite, you'll start noticing that without a few bites of salad in between or without some wine, it's dry.  So would I go again?  I would say it would be worth going and saving room to try their hazelnut chocolate dessert pizza - the topping looked so light and fluffy at a table nearby.   The salad was one of the best I've had recently, so I would certainly order that again.  Skip the margherita and opt for one of the other pizzas (although I did hear from a neighboring table that you really have to love aspragus if you order the asparagus pizza). Try to arrive early to avoid the wait time.