Berkeley: Pollara Pizzeria; restaurant review

80 North

Pollara Pizzeria  

1788 Fourth St., (510) 529-4548.  Daily 11:30am-7pm. 

counter at Pollara Pizzeria in Berkeley, California

This spacious shop makes rectangular pizza slices just like those found on the streets of Rome.  The cold-fermented dough rises in a refrigerator, making for a less dense, airy dough.  In Rome, customers use their hands to indicate the portion size desired, and there they are charged by the weight.  Here, the server selects a pre-sliced rectangle for you (cut traditionally with scissors), and the price is by the piece.  Toppings include salumi--smoked pancetta, prosciutto, and spicy salami--and cheeses--buffalo mozzarella, mascarpone, and stracciatella--and seasonal vegetables.  Ten different pizza varieties are available every day, including several vegan and a kids cheese version--think Mozzarella and tomato sauce.  Choose a basic Margherita with mozzarella and basil, or an earthy mushroom, or maybe a Diavola, with slices of hot salami atop creamy melted mozzarella. 

counter at Pollara Pizzeria in Berkeley, California

counter at Pollara Pizzeria in Berkeley, California

Service is deli-style--you check out the offerings set behind glass at the counter and then order.  Slices are.  After you select, the pizza is cooked quickly in a special oven, or can be taken home to heat and eat later.  Perhaps the best option is to select a few slices to eat heated on the spot--either inside or outside on the inviting front patio--and to also order a complete pie to take home and heat up later for dinner.  A quarter pie (one slice) will satisfy one person, a half (or two slices) will take care of two people, and a whole pie (four slices) is good for four people.  Antipasti include fried snacks such as supplì classico (Roman-style arancini made with rice, tomato, and mozzarella) and crocchetta balls (made with mashed potatoes, mozzarella, salami, pecorino, and grana).  Salads and sandwiches are also available.

counter at Pollara Pizzeria in Berkeley, California

More things to do in Berkeley.

Way more things to do in Berkeley.

More ideas for exploring Northern California.

images ©2023 Carole Terwilliger Meyers

San Francisco: Salesforce Park; things to do

San Francisco

Salesforce Park  

Stretches along Mission Street from Beal Street to Second Street, crossing Frist and Fremont Streets. 
gondola entrance:  425 Mission St./Fremont St.
elevator entrances:  several are found along Mission St. 
Free.  No pets. 

Salesforce Park in San Francisco, California

          Salesforce Park is adjacent to Salesforce Tower--the tallest building in the U.S. west of the Mississippi River.  Financially sponsored and operated by Salesforce, it is the city’s only public park with a commercial sponsor.  The park is situated 4 stories above the sidewalk of the Salesforce Transbay Transit Center, where buses bring passengers into San Francisco from the East Bay.  The center is easily recognized by its undulating exterior cover of perforated white metal that allows in sunlight.

Visitors can reach the elevated park via a free gondola that provides transportation up only, or via elevators and escalators spaced along Mission Street. 

gondola lifts visitors to Salesforce Park
in San Francisco, California

Salesforce Park is 4 blocks long and covers 5.4 acres.  Basically a botanical garden, this urban oasis holds 16,000 plants and 600 trees, and it has plenty of inviting expansive green lawns.  Plants are blooming year round and include water-tolerant California natives as well as many exotics and some mature trees.  This oval park is set amid towering downtown buildings, some of which are close enough that it seems like you could reach out and touch them.  And whimsy is alive here, too.  Waterjets in a 1,000-foot-long serpentine “Bus Fountain” at the park’s northern edge dance to the movement and speed of buses arriving in the transit center below. 

lovely plants in Salesforce Park in San Francisco, California

                

The best way to see the park is to stroll the loop around the perimeter, stopping here and there to admire flowers or perhaps enjoy a refreshment break.  Plenty of benches and chairs are provided, and a kids’ play area holds a Recess Cart equipped with enticing books, games, and crayons available to borrow.  A nearby Library Cart provides books for anyone to enjoy while visiting.  Events in the park’s amphitheater include Zumba on Wednesdays, live music on Thursdays, and yoga on Fridays. 

Recess Cart at Salesforce Park in San Francisco, California

Food and drink are available at several cafes: 

●Barebottle Salesforce Park  
Crafted from two converted shipping containers, this outdoor cafe offers a menu featuring housemade Argentinian empanadas served with a tasty chimichurri sauce composed of finely chopped parsley, oregano, minced garlic, vegetable oil, and red wine vinegar.  Craft beer, tasting flights, and a non-alcoholic kola made in-house are among the drinks available to imbibe in the surrounding outdoor beer garden. 

Barebottle cafe at Salesforce Park
in San Francisco, California 

●Andytown Coffee Roasters    
181 Fremont, 7th fl.  This coffeehouse operates in an adjacent building reached via a short skybridge.  Stop in for coffees, teas, and snacks. 

More things to do in San Francisco.

Way more things to do in San Francisco.

More ideas for exploring Northern California.

video and images ©2023 Carole Terwilliger Meyers