Sourdough Spawn: Your SFoodie Lunch Planner

C. Alburger

Arizmendi's vegetarian toppings change daily.

In October, it'll be 10 years since workers from Berkeley's Cheeseboard Pizza Collective opened Arizmendi in the Inner Sunset. Like any younger spawn, it got some hand-me-downs: namely, the Cheeseboard's famous crust recipe and bottom-up business model. Since then, Arizmendi has been rolling out the same sourdough crust with daily changing meatless toppings -- a single pie per day -- so reliably that the sidewalk smells distinctively yeasty at 11:30 a.m., when the first batch of pies emerges from the ovens. Billed as thin, the crust has an even thickness and more substantial chew than the Neapolitan style we've grown accustomed to at spots like Flour + Water. Expect ingredients like fennel and arugula or spinach and fontina, with grated mozzarella and garlic-infused olive oil the quotidian common denominators. A final dusting with Parmesan and parsley ("p&p") is typical -- it makes an appearance on today's pizza, for instance, over a mix of mushrooms and artichoke hearts. Arizmendi's pies might have arrived later to the sourdough pizza game than the Cheeseboard's, but they're certainly not second best.

Arizmendi Bakery 1331 Ninth Ave. (at Irving), 566-3117