Well, last month we told you about three places that we had discovered. Small niche businesses that made the best of the best when it came to their specialties. In December we went to the Bi-Right Creamery in the Mission district of San Francisco, and this month we are going to North Beach, home of Italian culture and super food. Of course, plans never really go as you want them to and we ended up with two places that we want to share with you. What to do? Lighten up we said, go for two. You really don’t mind do you?

Liguria Bakery

First stop is the Liguria Bakery in the heart of North Beach. About four doors up from the SS Peter and Paul and across the street from the Washington Square park, the only thing that is really new about the this place are its bright blue awnings Started in 1911 by three brothers who came from, where else, Liguria Italy, the bakery makes one thing and one thing only, foccacia. They brought the recipe from home where this bread is famous and from the beginning they were a success. Today, their descendents make foccacia daily in the same ovens that were built in 1911. If your looking for décor, forget it, there is none. On the windows you can still see the original telephone exchange, and in one window there is an old fashioned cash register from the original store and in the other a scale from the early years. Inside is much the same. The two woman who wait on you are talking to neighborhood friends who have stopped in, there is a sign behind them listing the different kinds of foccacia , a huge roll of white butcher paper and a spool of white twine complete the scene. Oh yes, there is a calendar on the wall that is secured with a thumb tack. We got there late in the morning and the glass cases were really empty, and there were lots of boxes stacked near the window waiting to be picked up. Each one had a different restaurant’s name.

The store makes plain, green onion, mushroom, rosemary, rosemary with garlic and raisin. You can also buy frozen dough to bake at home. That way you can say, yes I baked it myself. I mean who is going to ask if you made it? Right? Anyway, they were out of the raisin and green onion so we picked rosemary and garlic and mushroom.. Both pieces were wrapped and tied with string faster than we could get our money out. I think they have been doing this for a long time. Each 12” square is $3.50 and worth every penny.

We walked across the street to the living room of North Beach, Washington Square, and unwrapped our treasure. The aroma alone makes you mouth water and the taste, how do you describe heaven in a bite. The foccacia is unbelievable. Thick and chewy with the taste of olive oil. The toppings were fantastic too, the mushrooms were fresh, juicy and had been lightly sauted, the rosemary was freshly chopped as was the garlic. So we sat in the sun and ate and ate while we watched tai chi going on around us. What a morning!

One word of warning when they sell out, they close up and that is that until the next morning, so don’t get there late.

We award the Liguria Bakery 5 napkins

Liguria Bakery

1700 Stockton at Filbert

San Francisco Calif 94933

Hours Mon-Fri. - 8-1

Sat. 7-1

Sun. 7-12 but remember they could be closed earlier if they sell out!

Golden Boy Pizza

If you walk a couple of blocks further on you’ll find Golden boy Pizza on Green Street. While the Liguria Bakery has bright blue awnings the whole front of this pizza place is bright red, awning and all. Impossible to miss. This is a tiny place. Inside there are only a few tables but the whole front window is full of pizza.. Huge square pans of pizza. The motto around here is. “where it’s hip to be square,“ It was started in 1978, by Peter Sodini, and is now run by his sons. As you pass the front door, which of course is open to let the smells of freshly baked pizza sail out to the sidewalk, there is no way you can just pass by. You just have to try it.

Golden Boy fills its window with at two or three pans of pizza at all times. Just stick your head inside the door and order what you want. They slide the big square piece on a sheet of wax paper, and there you go. People are standing around outside talking and eating or you can walk back down to the square and sit and enjoy the park and the pizza. If you insist you can eat inside also. They make cheese, pepperoni or sausage, clam and garlic, pesto vegetarian and combination. Big cheesy slices sell for 2.79 for the cheese to 3.75 for the combination. They also sell an entire pan for between 35 and 48 dollars depending on the topping you order.

Trust us this is great pizza. The crust is dense and chewy like a foccacia, the tomato sauce can stand alone, deeply seasoned it is not just another splash of red that you find on a lot of pizza. Then over each topping they spread a thick layer of cheese that melts over the whole…... Well we could go on forever here, but don’t take our word for it go and try it out and let us know what you think.

We award Golden Boy Pizza 5 napkins

Golden boy Pizza

542 Green Street

San Francisco, Calif.

94133