Pizza Nostra

Had lunch here. Food was a tad above average. Ambiance was a bit cold but perhaps it was due to the fact that their were only 4 diners in the establishment.
Interesting if you are in the area but not a destination location.

Oh to have a craving… and all you want is a plate of tasty warm pasta. At lunch, in the city, a last minute craving can prove a distressing in the city. But my friend Jen and I were on a mission for lunchtime pasta. We found this place, using Unilocal (thanks), and decided to take a drive to Potrero, a bad move always as the goat hill can be nearly impossible to find parking in or nearby.
We sat, we ordered, it was quiet, not packed (a plus for me at lunchtime as I’m tired of wasting my time off with gads of loud people and not eating, I want to go home early dangit). We got complimentary bread and olive oil. The food came out super quick, seemed al dente as possible, so fresh, creamy but not too heavy, flavorful with thick chunks of meat, and a good portion for the price.
A good rounded-​out selection for a nice lunch or dinner. Stylish inside, plenty of places to sit for it’s size, and a small bar.
I’d recommend giving it a try if you’d like a nice lunch, more than fast, with semi-​swanky feel, minus the swanky price.

For my visit on 1-​16-​2013
Huge huge huge disappointment!
I was so looking forward to having lunch here. I did all my homework, checked Unilocal for some good recommendations, got directions from the Internet, brought extra quarters for the parking meter just in case, checked their Internet homepage for the menu. Check, check, check, check.
So from my East Bay home I made the trip to Pizza Nostra in Potrero Hill. Parking is sparse even with the small parking lot they offer. I had to circle around the block a few times before finding street parking (no meter). By now I was eager to settle down for some lunch. The drive from the East Bay and crisscrossing through SF traffic had left me with an appetite. Pizza Nostra is surrounded by other commercial buildings and there must be a police station nearby because ALL the street parking is taken up by cop cars. The restaurant is easily visible from the street. I walk into the location and the lady working there tells me with a huge smile that they are closed and changed the hours two weeks ago. Apparently, they made a recent change in their hours and were now closed everyday from 2:30−5p. i check my watch and it reads 2:20p. Wow, really?
I explained that I had a Groupon ($ 10 for $ 20 in food fare) set to expire that same day and if they could accomodate me. She politely said there was nothing she could do.
So here’s my letter of lament:
To Pizza Nostra– This one star review is for the time I lost and the inconvenience you caused me, and my promise to never come back. One question I do ponder is why the time change with a Groupon offer set to expire just weeks away? You should’ve known this would result in trouble to customers who bought the Groupon assuming your business hours would remain the same. And really you guys could’ve waited until after the promotion to change your hours.
Sincerely,
Disgruntled East Bay foodie willin’ to drive for good food!
P. S. oh, yeah– update your website with the new hours.
****
One last point: After leaving the restaurant, I noticed I wasn’t the only one with a Groupon who wasn’t aware of their new hours; customers walked out of the restaurant with the same disappointed look I had — like wtf?
On the bright side of things:
After leaving here, we went over to El Tonayense (Best Buy location; 1717 Harrison St.) taco truck for food, and it was awesome.
Also Groupon made good on their promise and issued me a refund right away.
(-) parking
( — ) If your restaurant closes from 2:30−5pm, do your customers a favor and update the hours on your website.

My experience was not very good at this restaurant. I ordered a «sushi burrito» with crab, shrimp, avocado and some other items. When the waitress arrived, she apologized and told me they were out of what I ordered and brought me a sushi burrito with salmon and cream cheese instead. Rather than telling me earlier and allowing me to pick something else off the menu, the kitchen just made some other dish and delivered it to me. The waitress then kind of hovered over me and asked me to «Try it… try it… taste it… see if you like it…». It was so awkward. I didn’t want to wait another 10 minutes for a new dish because my husband had already been served his meal, so I just took the dish they made for me.
It was all so strange.
A few minutes later, the waitress delivered to us a comped appetizer and we assumed this was to sweeten our experience. That was nice. But then a few minutes after that, she delivered the same appetizer to everyone else in the restaurant, too! We no longer felt like that was a gesture directed just to us.
It was really really strange.

Went here with my boyfriend on a weekday before going out. To be honest, it was quite a mediocre experience.
It was completely empty when I arrived which I thought was odd, but it was cute, cozy, and had fairly nice décor so I gave the place a chance. The waitstaff was friendly, but not overly-​so and provided us with bread somewhat quickly. The bread, being my first experience with the food there, was quite disappointing. Chewy and cold.
We ordered two pizzas, thinking we would go for the namesake and mine, the margherita pizza, was fine, to be honest it tasted like a regular cheese pizza, but I was quite impressed with the crust. My boyfriend ordered some concoction with a lot of meat and his was a lot better. But for the price though… I would go somewhere else. It really wasn’t a memorable experience for me, which was quite sad because I had high hopes.
Overall, average food for a slightly above average price.

I don’t know how this place only has 3.5 stars. We just moved into our office nearby and their food is delicious. We order dinner everyday and when our regular orderer isn’t around, this is our goto.
Their pizza is never burned like a lot of other places I have been to like Amiciis and their pasta isn’t too greasy. It is a little expensive, however most dinner spots in Potrero Hill are fairly expensive, so it isn’t anything out of the ordinary.
My favorite pizza is the Regina, it is always good and can definitely feed two people. Normally we split some pizza and pastas. I don’t particularly think their salads are anything special. Their Caesar was just romain lettuce and croutons, but I definitely enjoyed their other dishes.
Overall, I think this place is delicious and we are definitely ordering from here at least once a week.

I don’t think I would ever have even stopped by this place if it weren’t for their recent Groupon deal. It is a very interesting mix. Picture classy Italian food served by a French maitre d’, with chefs who know their stuff and cook with flourish and style, in a setting that is rather like a diner. I mean that only in a good way. It was relaxed, kid friendly and clean.
When we arrived there were no tables available, so while waiting we sat at the counter, where we were served water by a very friendly waitress, and were treated to a wonderful scene of watching the main chef making salads and sauces. He made the salads with the speed and ease of an experienced hand but placed the food on the plate with gentle precision for perfect visual display. We could also see the pizza chef making the pizzas and putting them in the flaming brick oven. It was really fun to watch. We ended up choosing to sit at the counter instead of a table.
FOOD: We ordered an arugula beet salad and a 4 cheese pizza with pear, and a side of french fries.
The salad was exquisite — and not just because we got to see how it was made. The flavors worked so well together. It was better than any of the salads I ordered at several higher-​end restaurants I’ve been to recently (Cliff House, Wood Tavern, Greens, Presidio Social Club, etc). The pizza was truly a work of art — flavors I never thought of on a pizza. Rich cheeses highlighted with occasional Gorgonzola, golden raisins and pear slices. Wow. It worked and was hauntingly good. The fries came elegantly served. They were tasty fries, but didn’t knock my socks off like the salad and pizza.
SERVICE: I really enjoyed the service. The French Maitre’d bantered with us and would check on us frequently. The waitress was regularly refilling our water — no sooner had I taken a drink then she was back to refill it. It was rather funny actually.
OVERALL: The groupon got us there but we will be going back on our own. It was a VERY fun experience and the bill was ONLY $ 35! Truly Exquisite food, a fun date for 2, and only $ 35+tip. I loved it. I hope our next experience there is as awesome.

Oddly found myself in this part of town one afternoon. I was hungry and found this little place in a row of shops made from corrugated metal.
The waitress was super friendly and to my delight, they had a korean bulgogi pizza! This was something of a surprise and was incredibly delicious! Korean Bulgogi & red onions on a thin crispy pizza! Fantastic.

The first time I heard about this place, I thought pizza and sushi? My classmates and I went for lunch here because they have half off sushi! We are broke students so anything cheap, we will give it a go.
I ordered the We heart our customer. It had salmon, tuna, and avocado with shrimp tempura. It was actually pretty good! And I only paid $ 7.
The service was nice and it wasn’t crowded at all around 1pm.
They have 2 big screen TV. One had the Giants game on and the other was a slide show of their dishes. I couldn’t pick which one to stare at, haha. But their pastas look really good so I’ll most likely be back to try them.

I love this place!!! Everything I’ve had has been tasty so far! The thin crusted pizza is fabulous and tasty. The MOZZARELLA cheese is absolutely delicious, I don’t care what pizza you get, it’s heaven! I ordered the:
Uuattro Fromaggi Dolce: It had Gorgonzola, Mozzarella and Ricotta, Parmesan Cheese, Pears and white raisins! Yes, raisins. It went so well together! Sweet, cheesy… must try. My favorite so far.
Grilled Hanger Steak: The meat was a little tough and didn’t seem fresh. Bad batch of meat? Maybe…(still loving the pizza) The potatoes were very good and had the right amount of herb’s and roasted nicely.
Penne House Pesto: This was actually very good. It has the right amount of pesto, basil and peas… and don’t forget the asparagus it was cooked to perfection the asparagus that is. :D Along with the warm house bread and Parmesan cheese… Yummo!
This is my go to place after getting pampered next door. It’s the Pizza! Pizza!

Came here for dinner with a coworker and had the bolognese pasta… nothing special or unique about it at all… pretty standard.
Service here was ok and we were the only ones in here during the dinner hour, guess this place gets more crowded usually for the lunch hour.
Maybe I ordered the wrong dish on the menu? but didn’t remember much about what I ate.

I HATE writing 3 Star reviews.
Writing 3 Star reviews are BORING. You can’t boast about how f*ckin’ fantastic a place was or ramble about how whacked it was because of some douchebag waiter who spent more time brushing his eyebrows in the mirror than attending to you.
I’ve been putting off writing my review for Pizza Nostra for this reason. I’m not a fan of carb-​laden meals because just looking at carbs adds another inch to my ever growing badonkadonk that I don’t need. However, if I’m going to have pasta and pizza (because my friends want to), I want it to be worth the calories. In this case, Pizza Nostra was not. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t memorable either. It was mediocre. Gawd, I hate that word. It’s like saying someone is «nice» because you have nothing better to say about them. Anyhow…
Pizza Nostra is a quaint neighborhood restaurant (outdoor patio seating available) tucked within a tiny shopping strip in Potrero Hill. There’s a private lot and plenty of street parking so parking is a breeze. It was quiet on Friday night so reservations were not necessary though I had made them. Service was very warm and charming but I got to say, a sexy French accent always helps.
We started our dinner with the Fresh Burrata w/​EVOO, Arugula & Garlic Toasts ($ 13)
. Though the burrata had a soft texture, it didn’t have that luxurious milky creaminess that solid fresh mozzarella has.
For one of our carbo-​laden dishes, we choose the Bolognese w/​Ground Beef, Veal & Lamb in a Housemade Tomato Sauce ($ 16)
. What makes a solid pasta dish is the texture and bite of the pasta so I wasn’t keen on the borderline flaccid noodles. The menage a trios of meats in the Bolognese gave a nice meaty flavor with a touch of gaminess but the tomato sauce needed some oomph to brighten up the dish. Next, came the Special Pizza of the Day: Roasted Chicken Pizza w/​Caramelized Onions & Fingerling Tomatoes ($ 16)
. When I think of Neapolitan pizza, I think of an airy blistered crust with a thin almost cracker-​like bottom; like Delfina, Tony’s or Beretta. Pizza Nostra’s crust was too doughy for my Neapolitan pizza liking and the bottoms were hearty as opposed to crisp. I liked the flavorful shreds of chicken against the sweet caramelized onions but the potatoes were cut too thickly making the pizza too carby.
A carniwhore can never have a meal without her meat, so we ordered the Grilled Hanger Steak w/​Herb Roasted Potatoes, Tomato Provencal & Chanti Demi Glaze ($ 18)
. Cooked as requested to a medium rare with a lovely pink center, the steak was tender but had a chewy bite to it. It was under seasoned but so was the demi glaze which made for an overall bland dish. We topped off dinner with the Montarosa: Mascarpone and Ricotta Cheese w/​Sponge Cake & Fresh Strawberries ($ 7)
. Like a cheesecake but with less zip, the montarosa was lackluster so one bite was all I wanted.
There you have it… a BORING 3 Star review.
I think my spanx expanding from all sides was the most exciting thing that happened that night. =X

A down to earth italian restaurant to go to for a weekday night.
Rundown:
— service is attentive
— pizza tastes pretty good and the crust is thin. Too bad I don’t care about thin crust.
— pasta is cooked nicely, although a tad bit salty and oily.
Overall it’s not a bad meal, but it’s not too special either. However, it’s the perfect place to go to on a week day when we crave pizza/​pasta with some ambiance.

We had dinner here a few weeks ago, and were pretty happy with the experience.
I had a Scoutmob coupon, which is what brought us there, but even without it, the prices were very reasonable.
The place was pretty busy, and I have no doubt that had we been there earlier, we would have had to wait. Although, we were seated right away, it took a bit longer than it should have for anyone to come to our table.
Since we had already had a few drinks earlier (happy hour with co-​workers.) we opted to forgo any more alcohol.
We shared two pizzas, one was margherita, (which is always our baseline at any pizza place) the other had: ground pork, egg, oregano,& mozzarella. They were a little heavier than the usual pizza we go out for, so we ended up with leftovers.
I actually liked the pizza more than my husband did, but he did did enjoy it.
This restaurant has their own parking lot! Crazy, i know:)
While i liked my meal, if I’m going into the city for pizza, there are other places I’d prefer to go.
If you live nearby, I do think it’s a great neighborhood place.

We discovered Pizza Nostra not too long ago. We used to drive past it all the time and one day decided to give it a shot when we wanted to grab a pizza for a quick bite. With its close proximity to our home and the EASY parking (parking lot!) we were looking to add it to our ever growing list of regular nearby go-to’s for a quick meal.
The lemon cream sauce over spaghetti is probably one of our favorite dishes here. We were told its one of their newest addition to their menu. The pasta is cooked al dente and the flavor of the lemon + cream can satiate away anyone’s carblicious pasta cravings. The mix of the lemon and cream with a touch of basil and roasted pine nuts is brilliant together. Along with this we’ve ordered a salsiccia e funghi pizza or a margherita. It’s thin, chewy crust isn’t too soggy or floppy and has just enough cheese for each bite you take from the slice. It annoys me like no other when you take a slice off and a blanket of cheese slides right off leaving just a bit of sauce and crust.
This neighborhood gem is absolutely worthy of 5 stars in my book. (I’m surprised by all the different range of ratings they are receiving!) Our first experience was nothing short of spectacular and so we’ve been regular customers ever since. The menu is moderately priced and they’re efficient, extremely friendly and so far we haven’t been disappointed with any of their dishes.

I’ll try to keep this one short and sweet. We were at the Dogpatch location of Triple Aught Design a few weeks ago and after visiting with a couple of the guys, we went with them to lunch at this place. Right off the bat they said «it’s ok». Quizzically I asked «why?!» and they said «the food’s great!»
Little did I know the asshatdom that would plague our table during the meal. The male owner of this place is great. He seated us, is friendly, and helped us promptly. But then he relegated our table to a woman (also an owner, probably his wife?). She came off as curt, annoying, and generally pretentious. Sad because the food was great. I had the Coppa Nostra sandwich. It was A-​M-​A-​Z-​I-​N-​G and will definitely keep me coming back here whenever I come back to SF.
⁵⁄₅ for the food… ¹⁄₅ for the service. She was SOMETHING ELSE. :(

Wandered in after attending the Masters art reception at California College of the Arts. It was cold and windy outside and we were hungry. Inside we found a small, bustling restaurant. We were seated quickly but we also beat the crowd. Those who arrived later did have to wait a few minutes.
The staff were very cordial and prompt. I felt like they were excited and proud of their restaurant. Plus the head waiter actually speaks Italian and has an accent.
I’m from the east coast and I really miss good pizza. California pizza is just sad, with that cracker crisp crust.
Unfortunately the vegetarian options at this restaurant are few and so I ordered the margherita pizza. I also had the garlic tomato soup. The soup was appropriately hot and had just the right amount of garlic – I could taste it but it didn’t over power the soup.
Then I bit into my first slice of pizza. Oh. My. God. I closed my eyes savoring that soft, thin crust. When I opened my eyes, I realized that there were tears in my eyes. I bit again and hoped that my husband would not notice the moisture in my eyes. Well, he did. He said he didn’t realize how much I missed good pizza and teased me for getting soft and crying over pizza. Eh, I can bike up Diablo, I can do squats until the end of the day, I can do guy push ups and I can cry over a good pizza.
After dinner we wanted a cab because we had to get back to BART and the ‘burbs. We asked the waitress how hard it was to flag a cab in the neighborhood and she said, «I can call one for you.» Unfortunately phone service was pulling the «all circuits are busy» nonsense. The maitre d’ went out to hail a cab for us in the wind and chill. That’s service and it’s above and beyond for a casual eatery. I’d expect that from a high-​end restaurant with a celebrity chef but at a casual restaurant, it says that the proprietors care about their customers. Bravissimo!
The cheese is a bit heavy on the pizzas and, like I said, more vegetarian dishes would be helpful. The pizza is great by Cali standards. The four stars reflects the pizza quality combined with the enthusiasm and genuine warmth of the staff.

I decided to try this place after driving by and seeing all the guests at the outdoor tables (
). Pizza Nostra is located on a small strip of businesses with their own parking lot, although parking is fairly easy in the surrounding area. My mom, sister and I tried to sit outside, but it was a bit too cold so our server gladly transferred us to one of the booths inside.
The place has an industrial feel — high ceilings (
), exposed pipes, stainless steel kitchen, partial brick walls — yet its skylights and large windows brightened up the place, making it warm and welcoming.
Based on the Unilocal reviews, we decided to try…
— Calabrese pizza ($ 14): tomato, mozarella, salame pepperoncino and cipolla (grilled onions) (
)
This thin crust pizza was bursting with flavor. The sauce is savory and had a bit of spice to it. The onions were caramelized which added a slight sweetness to the spicy sauce. So good, I bought a second pizza to take home with me!
— Cesar salad ($ 10) with parmesan cheese and grilled chicken (+$ 4) (
)
The lettuce was served cold which contrasted nicely with the warm and moist grilled chicken breast. The chicken has enough flavor to be eaten on its own, not like the usual dry chicken breast strips you’ll find on most cesar salads.
— Fritto Misto ($ 8) with lemon aioli sauce (
)
(aka calamari) My only criticism is that it was a bit too greasy. But the calamari was still crisp and delicious. I especially liked the lemon aioli sauce.
Service was attentive and our server was knowledgeable about the menu. He gladly explained what some of the ingredients were since they were in Italian. I also like that the dishes are served on an elevated serving tray, making it easier for us to share (
). Next time, I’ll try their pastas :)
Overall, I loved my experience here. I don’t frequent Potrero Hill much, but after visiting Pizza Nostra I’ll definitely be back — it’s a nice departure from the typical crowds of the city.

I’ve been missing out on some excellent pizza. Pizza Nostra is just a short ten minute walk from my workplace yet it’s taken me until now to finally try. The pizza I selected was one of the best I’ve had, and needless to say I’ll be back more often.
The restaurant was fairly quiet when I dropped in. After being greeted at the door I was given the motion to take a seat anywhere as a menu was brought over to me. A couple at another table seemed to be enjoying their pizza, and the ingredients on their pizza looked quite fresh. I’ve been planning to try seafood on a pizza for a very long time so I ordered the Pizza Pescatora and a Coke.
The food is prepared in a big open kitchen, and I was amazed that the wait for my pizza was very minimal. I think you’ll agree the pizza (
) looked fabulous. The Pizza Pescatora combines mozzarella, calamari, clams and prawns on a crispy cracker-​like crust with chopped parsley and other herbs.
The crust was thin and crispy around the edges and crispy along the bottom of most of the pizza. The dough had a good chewiness to it so it’s not exactly like a cracker. If I were to seek out one thing to be improved upon though I’d have to say the sauce was a bit runny; although the taste was nice and tomatoey. The thick portion of chewy, stretchy mozzarella was nice and milky.
There were a lot more clams in the topping than was visible to the eye as most were hidden within the cheese. Four clams were served in its shell and each was fresh and flavorful. I loved sucking up the hot clam juices from its shells. The calamari rings and whiskers were cooked perfectly, and my concern of the big, plump prawns being rubbery were unfounded as the prawns were cooked perfectly as well. Additionally, the flavor from the chopped parsley and the mixture of herbs and seasonings made for an outstanding pizza.
The pizza is about 10 to 11 inches in diameter, and despite filling up I didn’t want to leave the pizza unfinished because it was so good. I surprised myself by eating the entire pizza.
The service was impeccable too. I’m not used to such great service during a lunch meal, but I experienced it here.

No.