Campo Pizzeria, Palo Alto + mini donuts!

Posted by Lauren

Drafted this last night, hopefully it posts as scheduled since my Friday is busy!

Jordan’s last post about Chicago got me thinking about pizza. Once pizza is on the brain, it doesn’t really go away until you have a slice or two three.

I have a special spot in my heart for pizza places, having worked at two earlier in life. My first job out of high school was at a local Bay Area pizza chain, Pizza My Heart.

Gabs and I loved working there and it definitely made me appreciate some fine New York style pizza, with a California spin of course. My absolute favorite was a chicken, bacon, mushroom, green onion pizza with a white sauce – we called it the D’Lex. In 2005, the mushrooms were a stretch for me. Now, my palate is a little more sophisticated, and I can’t seem to get enough mushrooms on my pizza (ex. Pizzeria Delfina in December).

Last night Kyle and I went on an impromptu dinner date. What I thought would be finding some fast-casual burrito spot turned into a full on 3-course meal at a new place on University Avenue in Palo Alto. This place used to be called Laundry or Lavande or something like that, but the doors shuttered, and a pizza spot was born weeks later. They are literally a stone’s throw away from Palo Alto’s Pizza My Heart location, but their clientele is more VC than Stanford undergrad if you catch my drift…

Campo Pizzeria

185 University Ave, Palo Alto
Website - Yelp

Swordfish salad with capers, arugula, artichoke hearts, and bacon. The swordfish was very meaty, and the bacon was the perfect amount of crispy. This did a good job of satisfying my 7:30 PM hunger pains while we waited for pizza!

Field mushrooms pizza with spinach, tomato, mozzarella, garlic, and red onion. Something about their pizza sauce I really love – maybe that it is sweeter than usual? I was pleased with the ample toppings and crispy crust, but the middle was just a bit soggy. I like to pick up my pizza, but this required fork and knife.

They run yet another field-to-fork business, which seems to be standard of new, hip restaurants in the Bay Area. Their specialty is thin-crust artisan pizza, with a few handmade pasta dishes (handmade makes all the difference IMO), and a fresh mozzarella bar. Their ever-changing, organic/natural/sustainable/veg-friendly menu might bring me back in the summer…

Cheesy!

We sat at a reclaimed wood communal table, but there were plenty of individual tables and seats at the curved marble bar. They even had a few bar seats directly in front of the pizza ovens! I read online that Food & Wine Magazine’s “Best New Chef” runs the kitchen here (Sean O’ Brien) and their sister restaurant is Sam’s Chowder House in Half Moon Bay (one of my mom’s favorites).

When dessert time rolled around, I had already made up my mind on Yogurtland three blocks away. Our zany (but loveable) waitress plopped dessert menus off at our table and after looking at it for 2 seconds we decided to stay and try what Campo had to offer. Kyle surprised me by ordering a second dessert after I made my choice. (!!!)

Apple crostata, with brown sugar crumble and Straus vanilla ice cream

Bomboloni, cinnamon-sugar donuts with Italian hot chocolate

Both desserts were absolutely delicious, but if I really had to choose one I’d go with the apple crostata. This is going to sound a little backwards, but if the bomboloni dessert was just mini donuts, that would be my first place pick. The chocolate sauce was a bit much and stole the donut thunder. (Shameful, I know.)

After our delightful dinner, we walked back to Kyle’s apartment. I was still wearing my brand new wool socks with my quilted TB flats (as seen on Instagram). It was shockingly cold out, so I didn’t mind this footie faux pas…

Question: What’s your favorite type of pizza? Have you ever worked at a food service place?

-Lauren