Live Fire Pizza: wine-country inspired bites, wood-fired pizza, and wine
Chances are, if you’re been to Napa, you’ve probably heard of if not visited Oxbow Market, a culinary destination. The market opened in 2007, but I hadn’t stepped inside until a wine trip with some girlfriends in February this year. I vaguely recall seeing the bare bones of what is now Live Fire Pizza, serving up wine-country inspired bites, Italian sandwiches, and wood-fired pizza along with a great wine list curated by Peter Granioff, Master Sommelier.
Live Fire Pizza had its beginning as one of the stations inside Napa Farms Market, situated in Terminal 2 at SFO. I was surprised to hear this as I have flown out of the terminal on Virgin America on a few occasions for work from SFO to Washington DC. Since my flights were in the morning, my stops were usually for coffee at the market, but now I wish I had tried the pizza. Regardless, I’m glad Live Fire Pizza evolved into a standalone restaurant inside Oxbow Market.
As you walk towards the restaurant at Oxbow Market, you can watch Chef Gamaliel and his team toss pizza dough and add toppings before placing them in the wood-fired oven, making it a fun experience if you have little ones. Our group dined on the cozy outdoor patio, perfect for a lovely Napa lunch on a beautiful day.
We started with some delectable appetizers — marinated olives, fried brussels sprouts & cauliflower, and burrata. The fried brussels sprouts and cauliflower were carmelized and seasoned so well.
I think I could have downed a couple plates of the fried brussels sprouts along with the burrata, which was so creamy. Can’t say no to good cheese! It took some restraint not to get thirds so I could have space for the pizza and sandwiches that came later.
We were lucky to have Peter Granoff grace us with his presence as well. He’s a Master Sommelier (for those of you who aren’t familiar with what this means, watch the documentary Somm), passed all three parts of the exam on his first attempt, and received a James Beard Foundation Sommelier of the year Award. OK enough gushing — but really, I’m waiting for the day that my palate can discern all the different flavor notes in wines! Peter and his business partners are proprietors of Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant & Wine Bar in SF and Oxbow Cheese & Wine Merchant; he also curates the wine list at Live Fire Pizza. Tip: grab some cheese from the shop while you’re at Oxbow to snack on during your wine tour or grab some cheese with a bottle of wine to take home!
Our next course: pizza and Italian sandwiches! I didn’t have enough space to try every item, but I definitely wanted to. I love my plain Margherita pizzas, but the one that really surprised me was the Calamari pizza: squid, tomato, garlic, chiles, capers, aioli, topped with arugula. The balance of flavors was delicious and it’s an item that I’ll definitely miss here in the Bay Area.I f you visit on a weekend, they’re open starting at 9am and there’s a Morning pizza topped with scrambled egg!
When the sandwiches came out, I only had space to try one (unfortunately), but I fell in love with the Meatball sandwich — pork meatballs, tomato ragu, mozzarella, and basil. The meatballs were so tender; I could have probably eaten a whole bowlful of them.
Thank you again to Emily for curating such a great event with amazing food and thank you Pierce from New Rev Media for capturing some behind the scenes photos of me, below.
