The invention of pizza cannot date back to a specific time and place, the main reason being that pizza was part of an evolution and evolved into that which we eat today.
The controversy surrounding the invention of pizza, and what the first pizza was made of, may possibly never be solved, but if we look more closely at the invention of the ‘modern-world’ pizza we all know, then it is easier to provide facts.
Dating back many centuries, pizza was a popular peasant meal in Italy. Years ago, as early as 1000 AD, the word pizza was used by the Romans, which actually meant pie. Ancient Romans would typically have meals consisting of flat bread with other food items on top of it. This form of pizza is what we today call ‘focaccia’.
The invention of pizza started in Naples in 1830 through a shop called the Port Alba. This shop still sells pizza to date. The pizza that was sold was the basic pizza we know as the Margarita. It consisted of flat bread, pasted with tomato and topped with cheese. Of course, its taste does differ today.
Raffaele Esposito of Naples created the modern day pizza in Campania, Italy in 1889. This new type of pizza was specially prepared during the visits of Italian King Umberto I and Queen Margherita. It was no longer a meal for peasants.
America , a popular country known for its love of pizza only opened their first ‘Pizza Hut’ during the late 1930’s, run by Italian immigrants. The first American states to have pizza were New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Philadelphia.
The pizza was sold the same way as it was in Naples, using metal washtubs. A peddler would walk the streets selling pieces of pizza for 2c. Soon after, grocery shops and cafés were also selling pizza. The invention of pizza had taken the world by storm.
The invention of pizza truly changed the face of the world, and unfortunately, not all in a great way. Pizza is known to contain fat and cholesterol, a large health problem for many Americans. Pizza is a fast food, it is affordable, and tastes great.
Many Americans have contributed their weight gain to pizza. It is also a food that is available anywhere. We live our lives to make it as convenient and easy as possible; after all, why do extra work when there is a simpler solution? Well, pizza is definitely a simpler solution for many, so even though it was created many centuries ago, it actually helped define modernism in today’s world.