Nicky’s Pizzeria Rustica

Nick’s pizza is as delicious as the Nick himself.

This place really makes you wish Nick’s Crispy Tacos was open later than 9pm. Not that staying open until 11 is any great feat, but at least there is something open past 9 thats relatively cheap. However, this place isn’t even cheap. Their mediocre slices are $ 4+ and really leave a lot to be desired. It seems as though they are trying to recreate Golden Boy, but don’t even come close. The slices are similar in thickness and their square shape, but thats where the similarities end. The pepperoni was weak and the slice wasn’t even that warm after it was re-​heated in the oven. Golden Boy manages to get away with the re-​heating, but it just doesn’t work here…

In the Italian style of Pizza a Taglio aka Pizza Rustica, Nicky’s Pizza is cooked in long, rectangular baking pans with relatively thick (~2 cm) crust similar to that of an English muffin. The guys at Nicky’s put in an amazing amount of care to get the toppings distributed and looking just right on these pizzas. I watched a few being made, and they look marvelous when finished in the display case as well. I really like food that’s made with such care so that impresses me.
The crust is nice and crispy, never soggy, yet not too greasy, which is a feat considering it may rest on display for 30 mins or so (they reheat it when you order). Perhaps it’s just me, but the only problem with this medium thick crispy crust is that it’s abrasive enough that it mangled my gums and mouth a bit, reminding me of eating too much of that extra crispy captain crunch type cereal as a child. Maybe I should have eaten only one piece instead of 2!
There’s not much seating here, but enough if you’re dining alone that you might find a quick seat to inhale your slice. While I like what they do with this medium crust; I think they could double sales if they also offered a thin wood-​fired style crust here for us light eaters.

This pizza looks better than it tastes. It’s pretty, but it ain’t got much punch, i’m sure i’ll like it when I have it at 2am in the morning, but at 6pm it was eh

I like their gourmet pizza toppings and their salads… but their pizza is just «okay». I have to agree with the Golden Boy comment someone else posted… Golden Boy pizza is way out of my way but super good, whilst Nicky’s is just… conveniently located and so-​so.

K says: Went here after watching Rent (which was good, by the way — how do you review a musical??). Anyway, great late night spot, great pizza. I’d heard it was overpriced, but I didn’t feel that way ($ 5 mini pizza, $ 8 glass o’ wine). Nick was at the helm that night, and we must commend him for his genius in conceiving this place and nextdoor Nick’s Crispy Tacos. That being said, I’d go to his Taco joint for dinner, but probably not the pizza place — it is relegated to my late-​night list.
J says: Mmmm, definitely a great late-​night joint. We had the pancetta caramelized onion pizza and it hit the spot just right. I usually prefer a thinner crust, Nick’s was a bit on the medium side but super crunchy and airy. I’d definitely go back and try the other toppings.

Nicky’s serves up a good slice. Medium thick slices, not quite as thick as Patxi’s but thick and crispy. For a quick bite this place delivers the goods. I had the Margherita which was prepared with fresh ingredients and was very satisfying. Yeah they don’t have much seating but that didn’t bother me as I found a seat and otherwise would have walked around and eaten.

I finally got around to trying Nicky’s yesterday, for a midday snack. While at first glance, the pizza by the slice seem expensive (about $ 4 – 5 per), you actually get about 2 slices when cut in half, and because what Nicky’s constitutes as a slice is pretty signifcant.
Fresh ingredients, and a perfectly flaky crust make this worth a visit. Not the best in the city, but it’s up there.
There is not much room to eat in, but if you do, try and get a seat outside to watch pretty Russian Hill peoples walk on by.

This pizza is very good for the style that it is after. Seems that people don’t seem to agree with the thick-​crust, square style that Nicky’s is after, so they are panning the restaurant.
I remember the *exact* same thing happening with A16 at the outset. People who didn’t know Sicilian-​style pizza panned it for being burnt and thin and soggy in the middle, while that is exactly the way that pizza is supposed to be.
His ingredients are fantastic, the taste is great. I would have it again in a heartbeat, and will the next time I’m in the area. Also, I talked Nicky into selling me a divine meatball fresh from the oven that I brought home and devoured for dinner.

The fact that I went on a beautiful afternoon helped to enhance the eating experience. Any place that offers outdoor seating on «the sunny side» gets bonus points from me. Well, down to the pizza. I liked that it was hot from the oven. Uncomplicated menu, being that the selections are in view. On the other hand, that’s all you have to choose from (about 4). I had the veggie slice, rather veggie square/​rectangle. Topping made this slice very tasty, well distributed and not skimpy. The bread was kinda cardboardy and not as flavorful as presumed with the pieces of herbs throughout. I liked the chunks of tomatoes in the sauce, which overall was pretty good.
Really nice server, and well any eatery on Polk has some flair so it was fun to eat outside, and enjoy the people watching.

Overall between 2 and 3 stars. For now I’m giving it three, but I may change my mind later.
I previously pointed out how Nick’s friends were ratings Nicky’s 5 stars, so I rated it one. Nick’s friends agreed to take theirs down if I did.
So, I finally tried it.
The good is that the staff is quite friendly.
The bad is that it is just ok. Basically, it is just your normal tasting pizza. Maybe it is different than some pizza, but in this city, there’s plenty of similar pizza. The big difference? Nick charges something like $ 4 per slice while you can get two slices from others for the same price.
If you want a good piece of pizza get in your car or cab and go over to Patxis or Little Star

I really liked the pizza here (way better than Golden Boy — ick). The crust was crispy. The housemade fennel sausage on top was tasty, and had just the right spicy kick. I liked how they had a few elegant selections, with carmelized onions and the like. The woman at the register was very pleasant. Nick was even there! I am a true San Franciscan now b/​c my standards for pizza have declined, but I guess ignorance is bliss.
Notes: Soda refills were .50, and they need more seating.

Oops… he did it again. First tacos, now pizza. Nick puts a twist on another of my favorite foods.
As a fan of Nick’s Crispy (sidebar: don’t know why all the hating on Nick’s and Nick. Met him yesterday and seemed pleasant enough and, remember, Nick’s shares the space with Rouge… anywho, back to Nicky’s…) As a fan of Nick’s and having read some good things about Nicky’s, I was excited to check it out.
I was surprised to see not round pies but square ones, not quite as thick as Sicilian. Nick informed me it was an «old-​world style that’s common in Italy.» Got me but it looked good. I decided on the Tre Funghi with portabello, shitake and porcini mushrooms. The crust reminded me of foccacia — light and airy with a crispy bottom, the sauce was zesty with a little kick and the mushrooms were delish.
I’d give it the extra star if they had round pies. Hey, what can I say, I’m an old school guy. But I’ll be back to try a slice with the homemade Italian sausage.

Nicky’s Pizzeria = Good service with mediocre thick-​crust pizza
Golden Boy = Mediocre service with good thick-​crust pizza
I like the selection of toppings at Nicky’s including three mushroom, but I disliked the crust. The sauce was lifeless. We ordered a caesar salad and it was just fine. For the record, I am a big fan of the taco place next door. In this neighborhood, Za on Hyde and Green gets my vote for pizza.

Like watching an evil mother in law go over a cliff in your brand new Boxer convertible, Nicky’s leads to very mixed emotions.
Pizza available on Polk north of California: GOOD!
Open to 11:00PM Thurs, Friday, Saturday: GOOD!
No place to sit: BAD
Pizza that is way stronger on texture (crunchy foccacia) than flavor (there isn’t much): BAD!!!
Value: $ 3.00−4.75 for a small square: BAD!!!
End of the day, its fu-​fu fast food. That’s a hard trick to pull off and while Nick’s comes close he doens’t quite make it.

I know this pizza joint just opened up — and is already a huge improvement over the previous pizza place that it replaced — but Nickie has a lot of tweaking to do to put this place in the same caliber as his taco stand next door.
The good — as mentioned by others, the focaccia style crust is very tasty. The organic ingredients and the cheeses are great.
The bad — only a handful of bar style seats along the wall means you’ll probably have to stand or eat while walking, but this isn’t a New York style pizza that you can fold up. Also, when I stopped by, they were having trouble keeping the slices flowing — which lead to a long line and few choices.
I think this place has a lot of potential, and I’m looking forward to updating my review once they get into their groove.
You know what would be cool? Nick should buy out the Rouge (which I consider a crap hole for a bar/​club) and take over the whole place. It could be like one of those joint Taco Bell /​Pizza Huts in some weird parallel organic dimension.

I’ve been twice already… two reasons: for the eats and the convenience.
It’s all about the foccacia style bread… and the homemade sausages are real good too.

edit: Nicky’s is now closed and Escape from New York Pizza is coming. I say, thank god!
Went there last night, been waiting for this place to open for awhile now. First impression, small slices for $ 4.50. Simplier slices 3.75ish. Although they heated the slices up, by the time I got home (1 block away), I had to pop them into the microwave. The ceasar salad tasted great, but pretty small for 4.25. Crust, yes, very nice and something new and cool.
The pizza is better than That’s Amore’s (I do miss their burgers). As another Unilocaler wrote, walking up the hill to Za will yield a better pizza, but if you’re on polk st, ate too many of Nick’s burritos, the pizzeria is an decent alternative.

Okay I haven’t actually eaten here yet, but I just tried to go on opening night. I was greeted by locked doors and the guy telling me that they ran out of dough! Err.
I’m giving a pre-​emptive 4 stars because I’m anticipating greatness.
Update on 4÷7÷2006: I’m downgrading to 2 stars. I was pretty disappointed with the quality of the pizza. There was too much bread/​dough, and the slices tasted like they had been out for quite awhile. The toppings do taste pretty fresh, but doesn’t make up for the overall quality. I’m definitely sticking with Za’s up the hill from now on!

I wanted to like Nicky’s as much as I like Nick’s. I do but I don’t. My biggest gripe: you can never get a hot just out of the oven, cheese oozing all over the place, sort of pizza.
The space is really small. There are two two seater tables outside, a bar stool eating area that seats maybe 5, and against the wall is a long bar where you can stand and eat. I like to sit down and eat so I am a bit turned off by the lack of seating.
They have 4 different types of pizza to choose from. Each piece is maybe the size of a quarter of a cereal box. Today they had pepperoni, sausage with red peppers, funghi and margarita pizzas. You buy a slice (about $ 4) and they reheat it. They had many sheets of pizzas made. Once the ones up front are eaten, then they put a new sheet thats been sitting on the cart up to the front. I dont like this. You never ever get a hot, just out of the oven pizza.
The crust tastes like a rosemary foccacia bread but harder. I never eat the crust but I ate all of this one. The sauce is good but there’s not enough of it. The toppings were fresh and abundant. All in all, it was good, but I wasn’t wow-​ed like I hoped I would be. (This is partially my fault because I love Nick’s Cripsy Tacos so much.)
They didnt have a cash register and only one person was working at the register. The line moved very slowly…
They only have one size (16oz) drinks and I find that highly annoying. What if I want a gigantic cup?
They also have a few sides like bean salad, ceasar salad, and beet salad. These also cost $ 4 but the serving is very small.
update:
I went back in May to see if he improved anything. Nick is working really hard becuase I see him there all the time. (I think its Nick…) Anyways, the sauce didn’t taste that good this time, and sauce is everything. They also had brocolli rabe on one of the pizza and that just doesn’t go togehter. The pieces looked bigger to me though. I will go back in June and check on his improvement.