Pizza Day!

Mmmm, pizza.  Definitely one of my favorite things.

A second favorite to all of the United States.

The top three chains are Pizza Hut, Papa John's, and Domino's.

We prefer local - below is from Pizano's but JJ's is my number one.

Flatbreads with toppings have been consumed by ancient Egyptians, Romans, and Greeks.  But Naples, Italy is considered the birthplace of pizza as we know it today.  It was a bustling town with a large working poor population, and they needed inexpensive food to eat, so the street vendors provided.

When Italy unified in 1861, King Umberto I and Queen Margherita visited the city and requested an assortment of pizzas.  The Queen's favorite was the pizza mozzarella - flatbread topped with the cheese, red tomatoes, and green basil - and so it's been called Margherita ever since.

With immigration, Neapolitans brought pizza to the United States.

While their location has moved, Lombardi's is still in business and using the same oven as they did on day one.

After World War II, as Italian-Americans migrated around the country, pizza's popularity boomed.

And today, there are so many options, not just in vendor, but in style and toppings - although some people refuse to accept pineapple on pizza.  I personally think it's pretty tasty.

History