Pizza didn't take off in the US until after World War II, likely because of technological advancements and soldiers' exposure to it abroad.

One baker is likely responsible for several of New York's earliest pizzerias

Filippo Milone established at least six pizzerias in New York, including one that would later be called Lombardi's, widely considered to be the city's (and the country's) first pizza establishment. Milone died in 1924, leaving no children to tell his story. Researcher Peter Regas unearthed a 1903 advertisement, pictured below, from an Italian-language New York newspaper.

The story of pizza in the United States

Pizza is a big deal in the US, and it has many proud regional iterations. From Chicago deep dish to New York thin crust, this video takes a slice out of US history to focus on this beloved entree. Begin with the documented first incidence of pizza in the US—believed to be by Gennaro Lombardi—and end with how old Pizza Huts are being converted around the country.

The frozen pizza was invented in 1950

In 1950, some pizzerias were premaking pies, allowing customers to take them home and cook them at their convenience. That same year, Philadelphia's Joseph Bucci filed a patent for a "Method of Making Frozen Pizza." Soon, frozen pizzas were appearing in grocery store aisles.

Lombardi's was the first documented pizza restaurant in the US

The New York establishment opened in the early 1900s and was a cornerstone of Manhattan's SoHo. At one point, it was open 23 hours a day, allowing laborers of the predominantly Italian-American community to stop by for pies before or after work.

Pizza is believed to have been invented in Naples

Flatbreads were eaten by ancient Egyptians, Romans, and Greeks, but historians trace pizza—flatbread with toppings, including present-day staples like tomatoes, cheese, garlic, oregano, and oil—back to 18th-century Naples, where the food was loved by its working poor, who appreciated a cheap, tasty meal. Naples formally became a part of Italy in 1861.

Pizza became more popular in Italy after it took off in the US

Pizza was invented in Naples, though it wasn't particularly popular outside the region. As it grew more popular elsewhere—and as more American and European tourists visiting Italy began asking for it—restaurants across Italy adopted the cuisine. It's something anthropologist Agehananda Bharati calls "the pizza effect."

Pizza Hut helped pioneer online food delivery in 1994 with PizzaNet, a website that allowed users in select areas of California to order pizzas online.

One food history professor says pizza is more American than Italian

Alberto Grandi, a professor at the University of Parma, argues that Italians who left the country developed the food now considered "traditional Italian cuisine," thanks to abundant ingredients and opportunities that were not available in the impoverished country they left behind.

A fresco from ancient Pompeii featured an 'ancestor of modern pizza'

A team of archaeologists discovered a fresco from 79 CE featuring what appears to be a proto-pizza: a pita topped with fruit, spices, and other toppings. One archaeologist in the PBS documentary below calls it an "ancestor of modern pizza in the sense that it's a very simple, poor kind of food."

Detroit-style pizza's recipe nods to the Motor City

Legend has it that the rectangular pies were originally baked in blue steel pans intended to hold nuts and bolts in auto factories. The sauce poured across the top of the pies, meanwhile, is done so in straight lines called "tire tracks."

Italian immigrants brought pizza to Argentina in the late 19th century

Two million Italians emigrated to Argentina between 1880 and 1920, many of them the poor who regularly ate pizza. In Argentina, they were pleased to find that mozzarella was plentiful, allowing them to make cheesier pies. By 1882, Italians owned 126 of the 198 bakeries in Buenos Aires, as well as the majority of shops selling butter, cheese, and pasta.

New Haven 'apizza' nods to Naples and New England

The thin pizza, called "apizza," is crispier than the typical slice from New York or a national chain, and much more like the thin-crust pizzas associated with pizza's birthplace. It's also got some inspired toppings, with one popular pie that speaks to New England's love of seafood: the white clam pie.

The Hawaiian pizza was popularized by a Canadian chef

Hawaii's tiki culture was popular in North America through the mid-20th century, with canned pineapple a household staple. Sam Panopoulos, a Greek immigrant who operated a diner in Ontario, experimented with outlandish pizza recipes until he stumbled upon the idea for topping a pie with canned pineapple and ham.

A list of the world's best pizzerias

Italy may be pizza's ancestral home, but it's not the only place where you can get a top-notch slice. This guide, compiled by a team of anonymous judges, ranks the 50 best pizzerias in the world, Italy, the US, and more, offering a bucket list for pizza-loving completists.

Legend has it that the Margherita pizza was named after an encounter with Queen Margherita

The Queen of Italy, Margherita of Savoy, visited Naples in 1889. As the story goes, chef Raffaele Esposito of Pizzeria Brandi made her a pizza with basil, mozzarella, and tomato, to represent the colors of the Italian flag, and eventually named the pie in her honor. Historians, however, note that the facts don't line up: The proof of her visit to the pizzeria is suspected to be a forgery created when the business was in dire straits in the 1930s.

Delmonico's was the first American fine-dining restaurant

The steakhouse opened in 1837 in Manhattan, creating what is now considered the first fine-dining restaurant in the United States, introducing gloved waiters, white tablecloths, and an à la carte menu. The establishment also claims it invented a few American staples, including eggs Benedict, which was supposedly named after two loyal customers.

The steak sandwich had been around since at least the 1800s, but in the early 1900s, a Philadelphia hot dog vendor topped it with cheese and used different bread to create the cheesesteak.

In 2001, Pizza Hut became the first company to deliver pizza to space

The chain paid the Russian space agency nearly $1M for the promotional stunt, which saw a Russian cosmonaut eat the pizza on video. Other unusual objects to make it to the International Space Station include a gorilla suit, an espresso machine, and several musical instruments.

Pizza's popularity has waned in the 2020s

The food remains popular, but it has lagged behind the growth of other fast food spots like coffee shops and Mexican restaurants. It ranked sixth in US food sales from restaurant chains in 2024; it was in the second slot throughout the 1990s. (Some readers may experience a paywall.)

The world's largest pizza was 13,990 square feet

Pizza Hut teamed with YouTuber Eric Decker to create the massive, Guinness World Record-breaking pie. The 13,653-pound pizza was constructed at the Los Angeles Convention Center. It required 4,948 pounds of sauce, 8,800 pounds of cheese, and about 630,496 pepperoni slices.

View a map of America's regional pizza styles

It may all be pizza, but it's not all the same. From California to New York and from Quad City-style to Old Forge, this interactive map of the US lets you see the country's different takes on the classic dish.

'Neapolitan pizza' is a highly specific (and tightly regulated) distinction

The Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana claims to protect the tradition of Naples' pizzamaking and has codified precise requirements for what constitutes a "Neapolitan pizza," specifying ingredients, preparation, fermentation, condiments, and more.

In 2023, the world consumed over 5 billion pizzas

Americans ate 3 billion of those, leading to sales that reached $43.3B, according to industry analysts at Gitnux. They estimated that Americans eat an average of 46 slices per person that year.

Disco fries are New Jersey's answer to poutine

The dish—french fries topped with mozzarella cheese and brown gravy—is a staple for New Jersey diners, where the dish was served to inebriated patrons who'd just left the disco club. There's no clear inventor responsible for the delicacy, though most people assume it's a variation of poutine, the similar dish that's popular in Canada.

Domino's Pizza's 30-minute guarantee was discontinued after a string of delivery-driver accidents.

The chain's promotional gimmick offered customers free or reduced pizzas if their pizzas weren't delivered in 30 minutes or less. That policy led to the chain's popularity, but it also led to reckless driving: In the late '80s, the National Safe Workplace claimed its drivers had the same death rate as miners. After Domino's was found liable in 1993 for nearly $79M in damages, it discontinued the policy.

The card game Uno was invented by an Ohio barber

Merle Robbins created the game in 1971 after an argument with his son about the rules of the card game Crazy Eights. The discussion led to the creation of his own game, which he then went on to sell from his barbershop.

The American diner evolved from a 'lunch wagon' into a restaurant

Providence, Rhode Island's Walter Scott began serving homemade dishes from a freight wagon to late-night workers, who were looking for meals long after proper restaurants had closed for the night. Scott quickly inspired dozens of copycats, crowding the streets and leading to complaints. Soon, Scott and his imitators parked their carts, which became the earliest American diners.

Two Papa John's pizzas were the first real-world transaction involving cryptocurrency.

Ancient Rome had an early version of macaroni and cheese

Called placenta (with a hard "c"), the holiday dish consisted of sheets of rolled-out dough layered with cheese. It is the first recipe documenting the combination of the two elements. While there is debate about whether the dough can be called pasta because it's not boiled, many scholars view the dish as a proto-lasagna.

Frozen burritos made the dish widely available in the 1950s

California native Duane Roberts, who also pioneered the frozen hamburger patty, invented the frozen burrito in 1956 to be easily prepared at fast food restaurants. This innovation also allowed it to be sold in supermarkets.

Spikes in pizza orders near US government buildings are thought to be signs of international crises

Theorists have long believed that sudden increases in pizza deliveries near the Pentagon signal a major event is about to occur. Historical examples include the CIA ordering 21 pizzas the day before the beginning of the Gulf War, and another surge of deliveries before former President Bill Clinton's impeachment hearings. Citizens have since begun monitoring food orders in the area. See a tracker of Pentagon pizza orders here.

Pizzagate alleged a neighborhood pizza joint was hosting a sex trafficking scheme

During the 2016 presidential elections, Comet Ping Pong Pizza became the subject of a conspiracy theory that the Clinton family used the space as a front for kidnapping and trafficking children. The hoax began on the message board 4chan after the public became aware that the shop's owner was a Democratic donor.

NASA funded research into creating pizza with a 3D printer

The agency awarded a contract for the development of devices that can create edible structures from long-lasting dry powders when mixed with liquids or pastes. By delaying this integration until the time of consumption, food could last longer than the current six-month expiration of freeze-dried meals for Mars expeditions.

The ancient origins of focaccia

Focaccia, the Italian flat oven-baked bread that’s often a canvas for delightful culinary artwork, has been around for thousands of years. Archeologists have recently discovered evidence of flatbreads similar to today’s focaccia dating back to the Late Neolithic period in the Fertile Crescent. Researchers believe that communities from present-day Syria and Turkey made these distinctive loaves for large gatherings. Learn more about the bread’s history in this Archeology News article.

White Castle helped propel fast food as a restaurant model

Diners looking for quick meals had plenty of options with food stands and automats, but White Castle pioneered the concept of the fast food restaurant with its first location in 1921 in Wichita, Kansas. The owners emphasized White Castle as more than a fast and cheap way to eat; it was a place to sit and enjoy a meal, with stainless steel interiors and open kitchens.

LA's oldest Mexican restaurant pioneered the burrito in America

El Cholo Spanish Cafe opened in 1923. It was among the first to serve several now-common Mexican dishes, including burritos in the 1930s, guacamole in 1955, and nachos in 1959.