Jeremy Fish models Up in Smoke pizza box in its application as a bib. Photo by Jeremy Fish.
On arrival for a few days in San Francisco, we discovered an interesting project. Tony’s Pizzeria Napoletana, perennially ranked as of the world’s best pizzerias, has teamed up with Jeremy Fish for a collaboration called “Up in Smoke”.
Up in Smoke Pizza
Order Tony’s $30 “Up in Smoke” pizza with smoked mozzarella, millionaire’s bacon, pizzuti tomato, basil, volcano salt and Chris Cosentino umami spice, all on a wood-fired multigrain crust; get a Fish-designed carry out box that features stoner art with a top that can be used as a bib. Stop by North Beach Pipeline down the street and you can get “Tony’s Pizza Joint”, a one-gram pre-roll ($15) filled with Mother’s Milk cannabis and dipped in kief, a form of cannabis hash, in a container also designed by Fish. Do both and get a $5 discount when you present your box at Pipeline or show your doobie at Tony’s, which is what we did.
Up in Smoke Preroll
We added a wrinkle which made us glad we ordered in person, vs on the phone: we wanted the pizza in a plain box, with the art box on the side as it were. The cooks at Tony’s put up a bit of resistance because after all, why would you give somebody an empty pizza box? But a conversation with the counter guy, pointing out that Jeremy Fish hails from our hometown in Saratoga Springs NY and we wanted to preserve his artwork, turned the tide. (We also agreed to pay 55 cents for an extra pizza box.)
Top cover of pizza box.
Fish, who now lives around the corner from Tony’s in North Beach, described the collaboration as a way to support small businesses in a tough economic environment and a changing neighborhood. He said he hopes it will bring more people into the neighborhood, which has struggled with a lack of tourism during the pandemic. “Do me a big favor and come out and smoke a doobie, enjoy a pizza and celebrate my neighborhood,” Fish said. “Help support this side of the city while tourism is a little bit fractured.”
Jeremy Fish suggests you enjoy your pizza and doobie in Washington Park, across the street from Tony’s.
We did. The pizza was enjoyable and harmonious with a definite smokiness plus a sweet element, maybe the oil from the candied bacon. The crust had wonderful chew and an interesting oven treatment, with char on top and bottom but no browning at all. This is Tony’s “California” style, baked in a 900-degree wood fired oven which is one of 7 in the place, each designed for a specific pizza category (and in some cases for a specific form factor).
While waiting for our order, we watched the action in the kitchen, including a guy who was twirling a towel on his fingertip, practice for tossing a pizza, and perused the blackboard menu above us.
Bottom of Up in Smoke pizza box has a handy walking map of the neighborhood.
$30 is a bit steep for an individual pizza in our opinion, but the New Yorker at $34 for a 16 inch cheese and sausage combo is a much better value—and a Gold Medal winner too. We also had our eye on the Traditional Italian Beef Sandwich, Chicago-Style. Then we saw a guy in the kitchen making exactly that sandwich. He pulled two very generous puffy sub rolls out of the oven, each of them sliced in half and butterflied before firing. He layered on beef and jus then spooned on some chopped spicy veggies followed by an extra spoonful of jus. He closed the sandwich, pressed it for a neat fit and then brushed on something (a bit of melted butter or warmed olive oil?), a sprinkling of salt and some garnish, maybe chopped parsley. We will be going back for that sandwich.
IF YOU GO: they ordered a print run of 5000 for the project, and thus far they have gone through maybe 750 pizza boxes according to the counter guy at Tony’s.. So this will be around for a while, if you want to check it out.
Tony’s Coal Fired Pizza and Slice House
📍1556 Stockton St.
☎️ (415) 835-9888
🔗 tonyscoalfired.com
North Beach Pipeline
📍1335 Grant Ave.
🔗 northbeachpipeline.com
