What's in Store: Little Star Pizza Has Our Mouths Watering

With Little Star Pizza set to open Thursday on Solano Avenue, good things truly do come in threes. The pizza shop already has two successful San Francisco locations, and Albany Patch set out to explore one of them to get a feel for Solano's newest neighbor. 

If its Valencia Street outpost is any indication, Little Star takes great pride in its service. The easygoing yet professional and helpful staff are warm and friendly. This will be a boon for Albany, where good service often is a high point of the dining experience.

As for the pizza, Little Star makes a statement in the crust alone. Where deep dish crust meets filling, there is no mushiness at all. It's a pleasant surprise. Crisp does not mean dry—it means crunchy, with a cornmeal finish. Whether you opt for a deep dish shell filled with cheese, fillings and chunky tomato sauce, or the thin crust version, which is a delicate frame for a fine layer of toppings, the crust remains crisp, the yeast barely discernible, and the texture thin and tasty, almost sweet.

The deep dish pizza has the requisite cheese and toppings under the tomato lover's sauce, none too heavy or overbearing, so you can taste what's underneath; the sauce enhances, rather than masks. Another pleasant surprise is the thin crust pizza's delicate layer of sauce underneath an equally fine layer of cheese. This lets the toppings show off their stuff, a boon for those of us who don't want the tomato to take over. The edge of the crust is a tiny lip, scattered with cornmeal. The pies are easy to eat, as they do not sag.

The ingredients on the vegetarian deep dish—mushrooms, onions, black olives, red bells, garlic and roasted zucchini—melded together nicely beneath the sauce. The Italian Combo thin crust boasted pepperoni, salami, onions, green bell peppers and black olives. The toppings were strewn over the pie like lace. The final ingredient, pepperoncini, turned the flavors up a notch. The small pies serve two and run from $12 to $18; the large ones serve three to four and run from $16 to $24.

Don't bypass the garlic bread, a garlic lover's dream. The plate appears with sliced warm bread on one side of the plate, while soft butter waits in a generous ramekin. An entire bulb of roasted garlic rests alongside, each clove in its pocket, waiting to be scooped out with a knife and spread on the bread with butter. The moment the butter hits the warm bread, it melts.

Little Star has a few select salads on its menu, such as the Caprese, the Goddess and the mixed salad. Don't let the innocuous name of the latter deter you. This salad is lively and fresh—a delight. The sweet, fresh cherry tomato halves are mixed with finely chopped red onion, red bells, walnuts and finely crumbled gorgonzola. The bed of mixed greens was in bite-sized pieces and tossed with just the right amount of vinaigrette. It served two, but could easily serve more.

Little Star in Albany will begin by offering the same menu as other locations, though owners are contemplating adding a few more salads as well.

Know Before You Go

Service is on a first-come, first-served basis. A deep dish pie takes 25 minutes to bake and a thin crust takes 12. If there is a wait, someone will ask for your order. Little Star books private events. You can eat in or take out.

Little Star will initially be open for dinner from 5 to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Lunch hours will be added later. Parking is available after hours in the post office parking lot. Visa and Mastercard are accepted. The business is wheelchair accessible.