While there were precursors that date as far back as the 6th century BCE and references to flatbreads like the Romans panis focacius (focaccia), it is widely acknowledged that pizza – as we know it today – likely originated in Naples, Italy decades after the tomato was first introduced to Europe sometime between the 16th and mid-18th century.
If you’re wondering what was the first pizza restaurant, the Antica Pizzeria Port’Alba, began baking pizzas in 1738 as the dish grew in popularity, especially with tourists visiting Naples. Food historians point out that the modern day iteration of pizza (consisting of ONLY tomatoes, mozzarella and basil) came about in 1889 when pizzamaker Raffaele Esposito created the “Pizza Margherita” for the Queen consort of Italy, Margherita of Savoy.
Pizza here in the USA was likely a result of Italian immigrants arriving to New York City. In 1905 Gennaro Lombardi opened his pizzeria in New York’s “Little Italy” pioneering his use of thin crust baked in a coal oven. Eventually, “New York” style pizza-makers trained at Lombardi’s began to spread across the city and open up second generation facilities, which still flourish to this day like Totonno’s in Brooklyn in 1924, John’s of Bleecker Street in 1929 most notably amongst many others.
For Pizza loving Old Bridge Residents at Woodhaven Commons, Woodhaven Meadows and Woodhaven Terrace we’ve got a list of the top six peer-rated pizza restaurants that would make Raffaele & Genaro quite proud. By clicking on the names below you’ll be taken directly to that pizza havens page on Yelp where you can begin looking into your next pizza adventure!