Frankie and I visited La Bicyclette just a year ago and while the food is still good it is a much smaller place as all the seating has moved to the outside (due to Covid 19 regulations of CA.)   They have built a small deck so that seating is at sidewalk level but there are not many tables (I counted seven 2-tops and two 4-tops) and they do not take reservations.  We lined up before they opened and snagged one of the first round of seatings.  The small wood tables were set with a hand towel for a cloth with some umbrellas  and heaters dividing the tables.  The heaters would be good in the evening but during the daytime they could use more umbrellas as it gets quite sunny on this less busy street.  The menu offered a couple specials as well as a daily soup.  Service was friendly and helpful with all servers wearing masks and trying to afford distance  between them and patrons when possible.

 

We tried 2 of their salads which were both easy to share.  The Citrus Avocado Salad was made with orange, avocado, burrata, marcona almonds, cherries, wild baby arugula, frisée and endives then tossed with a champagne vinaigrette.  The avocado was pitted and grilled then stuffed with cheese.  The almonds were candied and the cherries delicious.  The citrus pieces were also flavorful with a good mix of greens.  All blended well and was nicely dressed.  It was a wonderful mix of things.

The Heirloom Tomato Panzanella Salad was made with a mix of baby greens, heirloom tomato medley, cucumbers, country bread, fresh mozzarella and red onion then dressed with a citrus vinaigrette.  The country bread was toasted and seemed more like croutons than the bread pieces that usually soak of the dressing in this kind of salad.  They were still tasty but there weren’t many of them.  The assortment of tomatoes was good and they were all nicely flavorful, as was the cucumber.  It was well dressed with a tasty dressing and tasted like a fresh bit of summer.   Both of the salads were really good and I’d be hard pressed to chose one over the other.

 

For a main course we had two of their wood-oven fired pizzas.  Both had lovely crusts with a nice swell on the edge giving  a chewiness to the dough.  The middles held up well to the ingredients and didn’t get soggy or limp.  They were both cooked nicely and the crust was definitely the star of both pies.   They were served with little containers of dried cheese, hot pepper flakes and spicy oil.  The Champignons was topped with portobello and oyster mushrooms, mozzarella, thyme, caramelized onion purée and truffle oil.  A few truffle pieces also adorned the pie.  The mushrooms were tasty but some were a little on the tough side.  It had a good amount of cheese and was a very satisfying pizza to consume.   The Classic Pepperoni was topped with mozzarella, pepperoni and a San Marzano tomato sauce.  It was a generous serving of thin pepperoni slices but it seemed to be doused with some of the spicy oil which while quite good also made this pie drippy greasy.  No doubt tasty but have the napkin ready to blot your orange hand.

 

For dessert we split the Tarte au Citron which was lemon curd in a house-made pastry crust topped with meringue.  The buttery, thick crust was delicious and then filled with a couple layers of lemony goodness.  The meringue were in small flowerettes on top and around the plate and added another texture dimension and some sweetness.  It was a good size for splitting and just the right amount of sweetness to end another fine meal here.