Pizza, a dish synonymous with casual dining and comfort food, boasts a history as rich and layered as its toppings. While flatbreads adorned with various ingredients were enjoyed by ancient civilizations, the pizza we know and love today has a more specific birthplace. So, Where Is Pizza From? The answer lies in the vibrant streets of Naples, Italy.
However, to truly understand the origin of pizza, we need to journey back further than Naples, tracing the evolution of flatbreads across cultures. Ancient Egyptians, Romans, and Greeks all savored versions of flatbreads with toppings. The Greeks, in particular, consumed a flatbread seasoned with herbs and olive oil, strikingly similar to modern-day focaccia. These ancient flatbreads represent the distant ancestors of pizza, demonstrating a long-standing human appreciation for simple dough topped with flavorful ingredients.
Naples: The Birthplace of Modern Pizza
The southwestern Italian region of Campania, and more specifically its capital city Naples, is widely recognized as the modern birthplace of pizza. By the 1700s and early 1800s, Naples was a bustling waterfront city, part of an independent kingdom, teeming with a large population of working poor known as lazzaroni. These Neapolitans required affordable and quickly consumable food, perfectly aligning with the emergence of early pizza.
As Carol Helstosky, author of Pizza: A Global History, explains, the lazzaroni lived in densely populated areas near the bay, often in cramped living conditions, with much of their lives unfolding outdoors. Pizza, in its nascent form, emerged as the ideal street food for this demographic. Street vendors and informal eateries sold flatbreads with diverse toppings, catering to any meal of the day. These early pizzas, often viewed with disdain by judgmental Italian authors of the time, were the culinary solution for Naples’ working class. Yet, they already featured beloved ingredients like tomatoes, cheese, oil, anchovies, and garlic – the very foundations of pizza toppings we cherish today.
The Legend of Pizza Margherita and Royal Approval
While pizza was gaining popularity among Neapolitan commoners, it remained relatively unknown beyond the city’s borders. This changed, according to legend, with a royal visit in 1889. King Umberto I and Queen Margherita, during their visit to Naples, reportedly grew weary of rich French cuisine. Seeking a taste of local fare, they requested an assortment of pizzas from Pizzeria Brandi, a renowned establishment tracing its lineage back to the Da Pietro pizzeria founded in 1760.
Among the pizzas presented, Queen Margherita purportedly favored one in particular: pizza mozzarella. This pie, adorned with soft white cheese, red tomatoes, and green basil, strikingly mirrored the colors of the Italian flag. The story goes that this patriotic topping combination was subsequently christened “Pizza Margherita” in her honor. While the tale might be embellished, it highlights a pivotal moment in pizza’s history, potentially marking the beginning of its broader recognition, even if its widespread popularity across Italy was still decades away.
From Naples to New York: Pizza Crosses the Atlantic
Despite the royal anecdote, pizza’s immediate rise to national fame in Italy didn’t materialize. It remained largely a regional Neapolitan specialty until the 1940s. However, across the Atlantic, a different chapter in pizza’s history was unfolding. Italian immigrants, primarily from Naples, seeking new opportunities in the United States, carried their culinary traditions with them.
Cities like New York, Trenton, New Haven, Boston, Chicago, and St. Louis became early American hubs for pizza. These Neapolitan immigrants, arriving in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for factory jobs, inadvertently laid the groundwork for pizza’s American and subsequently global domination. They weren’t consciously aiming to revolutionize the food scene, but the enticing aromas and flavors of pizza soon captivated the palates of non-Italians.
Gennaro Lombardi’s pizzeria in Manhattan, licensed in 1905, stands as one of the earliest documented pizzerias in the United States, marking a shift from homemade pizza or unlicensed vendors to established businesses. While debates about the best pizza slice continue to rage, iconic pizzerias like Totonno’s in Coney Island (opened 1924), Mario’s in the Bronx (opened 1919), and Pepe’s in New Haven (opened 1925) cemented the century-old tradition of Neapolitan-style pizza in America.
Pizza Goes Global: An American Export with Italian Roots
The post-World War II era witnessed the widespread migration of Italian Americans and their culinary heritage from urban centers to suburbs and across the United States. Pizza transitioned from an “ethnic” food to a mainstream fast food, evolving into regional variations, including the Californian gourmet pizzas with unconventional toppings.
Paradoxically, it was this Americanized pizza that eventually circled back to Italy and spread globally. As food critic John Mariani notes, pizza, alongside cultural phenomena like blue jeans and rock and roll, gained international traction largely due to its American association. Today, American pizza chains like Domino’s and Pizza Hut flourish in approximately 60 countries, adapting to local tastes with toppings ranging from Gouda cheese to hard-boiled eggs.
In conclusion, while the concept of flatbreads with toppings dates back to antiquity, the pizza we recognize today originates from Naples, Italy. From its humble beginnings as affordable street food for the lazzaroni to its global proliferation as an Americanized favorite, pizza’s journey is a testament to its enduring appeal and adaptability. So, the next time you enjoy a slice, remember its Neapolitan roots and the fascinating story of how “pizza from” Naples conquered the world.
