Daily Slice gives a quick snapshot each weekday of a different slice or pie that the folks at the Serious Eats empire have enjoyed lately.
[Photographs: David Kover]
"Oh, it's Spring!"
An odd reaction, given that the seasons changed over a month ago, but it somehow didn't become official for me until I had my first bite of Locanda's pizza bianca with stracciatella and fava beans ($9). The stracciatella has a clean, almost palate-cleansing quality with a slight hint of sour at the end. Besides the fava beans, they have added lemon oil and a scatter of mint leaves, all accentuated with some coarse salt. It's light and refreshing in a way that wakes you up before the rest of the meal.
Locanda leaves a plate of plain pizza bianca at every table when diners are seated. In its basic form, the stuff is olive oil-y, salty, and chewy, with some crunch around the edges. For the topped version, they split the bread open and reheat it so that it becomes crunchy through and through. It makes a little noise as you chew through it, but it doesn't get loud enough to obscure the sounds of the chirping birds evoked by the toppings.
Locanda
557 Valencia Street, San Francisco, CA 94110 (map)
415-863-6800; locandasf.com
Note: Locanda comes to us from the same folks behind Delfina Pizzeria
About the author: David Kover is a San Francisco-based freelance writer and food enthusiast. When he is not reviewing pizza and burgers, he gets his tweet on as @pizzakover or he makes bagels.