San Francisco Chronicle restaurant critic Michael Bauer’s reviews previously led me to great pizza at Oakland’s Pizzaiolo and San Francisco’s A16, so my antennae started twitching when he proclaimed Pizzeria Picco’s thin-crust pizza the best in the Bay Area. Sadly, it took a year-and-a-half before I made it to the Marin County hamlet of Larkspur to taste chef Bruce Hill’s Neopolitan-style pizza, but now that I have, I can say it was worth the wait.

In 2005, Chef Hill, previously of Aqua and Fog City Diner, crossed the Golden Gate Bridge to open twin restaurants in the former home of Roxanne’s, Roxanne Klein’s pioneering raw food restaurant. Unlike the prior tenant, Chef Hill heats his food above 118 degrees and uses several varieties of meat.

Picco, Hill’s more upscale establishment, was last Roxanne’s restaurant, and the pizzeria occupies Roxanne’s old deli. We wanted a sidewalk table, since it was such a pristine day, but so did everybody else, so we settled for four seats at the counter. The pizzeria also serves as a wine shop, and an entire wall is lined with bottles to drink in-house or to buy to go.

According to the menu, Chef Hill favors local farmers and ranchers who grow organic, and the results were evident on the plates.

The centerpiece of the open kitchen: a wood-burning oven stocked with cords of almond wood, which impart subtle flavor to the pizzas.

Chef Hill wasn’t in the kitchen during our lunch, but this fill-in pizzaiolo still had plenty of skill.

The blackboard menu is written in colored chalk and fills most of the wall behind the counter.

This funny sign is affixed to the kitchen door, which is also the gateway to the restrooms.

Picco Caesar ($8.25) combined crisp romaine hearts and fresh Caesar dressing, made from farm egg, anchovy, lemon juice and shredded Parmesan.

Marin County is a cyclist’s paradise, so there are several pizzas named for cycles, including Cannondale, Trek and Specialized. We ordered the Cannondale ($12.95), a sauce-less pie made with crumbled house-made sausage, diced roasted peppers, thin-sliced spring onion, mozzarella and basil. Pizzeria Picco is so committed to freshness, they even make their own mozzarella, from Formaggi Di Ferrante curds. The crust on all the pies was nice and blistered, thin but not dry.

Margherita ($10.50) was simple but effective, hosting a brushing of tomato sauce, basil, mozzarella, Parmesan and De Padova extra virgin olive oil. There was an option to add La Quercia prosciutto Americano ($7) or fresh Italian Buffalo mozzarella ($3) to any pizza. It’s never been my style pass on ham, so we added the former to the margherita, and the silky cuts of Iowa-bred hog meat proved to be worth the added expense.

Even though it didn’t hold any meat, the Seven ($13.95), named for another bicycle, was probably the best of the lot. It melded a mountain of oyster mushrooms, garlic, oregano and three cheeses: mozzarella, Parmesan and Pecorino. The mushrooms were especially incredible.

For dessert, Pizzeria Picco offers Straus Dairy soft serve - vanilla bean, Scharffen Berger chocolate, or swirl ($3.25). Since I like variety, I ordered swirl. I thought about ordering mine topped with fresh blackberry compote. Instead, I opted for an unusual but satisfying topping: Da Vero extra virgin olive oil and sea salt ($4.25). The ice cream on its own was great, especially the chocolate, flecked with ground-up Scharffen Berger chocolate bars. With the luxurious olive oil and crystals of sea salt, the ice cream achieved near-legendary status.

My father and Jane ordered theirs with dark caramel sauce ($3.95), and Jane added a pinch of sea salt.

Allison ordered her soft-serve coated with an El Rey chocolate shell ($4.25).

Despite Michael Bauer’s rave review, I’m not sure that Pizzeria Picco had better pizza than A16 or Pizzaiolo, but it was certainly very good, and that killer soft-serve finish elevated the pizzeria to destination status.

Other Northern California restaurants on Food GPS:
Squeeze Inn - Sacramento (July 31, 2007)
Giusti’s - Walnut Grove (May 27, 2007)
Olive Pit – Corning (May 27, 2007)
Putah Creek Cafe - Winters (May 26, 2007)
Pizzaiolo – Oakland (February 19, 2007)
Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen – St. Helena (February 19, 2007)
Mustards Grill – Yountville (February 18, 2007)
Bouchon Bakery – Yountville (February 18 & 19, 2007)
Redd – Yountville (February 17, 2007)
Ad Hoc – Yountville (February 17, 2007)
Oliveto - Oakland (February 20, 2006)
Scharffen Berger Factory Tour - Berkeley (February 20, 2006)
Cowgirl Creamery - Point Reyes Station (November 26, 2005)
Chez Panisse - Berkeley (July 30, 2005)

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