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| The history of pizza can be traced back to Southern Italy. In the 3rd century B.C. the first history of Rome, written by Marcus Porcius Cato, mentions a "flat round of dough dressed with olive oil, herbs, and honey baked on stones". Further evidence is found in the remains of Pompeii where archaeologists excavated shops that closely resembled a present day pizzeria in which the pizza is cooked directly on the cooking stone. | |  |
 | | Although there were several kinds of flat breads made with flour, often cooked with oil and spices, commonly familiar to ancient Romans and popular in all the Mediterranean areas, this style should be considered to be the ancestors of pizza rather than a pizza - as it is known today. The tomato was still unknown in Europe and the Indian water buffalo, who's milk was used to make the first real mozzarella cheese, had not yet been imported to Naples or the southern parts of Italy. The tomato was believed to be poisonous when it first came to Europe in the 16th century. |
However, by the late 18th century even the poor of the area added tomatoes as an ingredient to their yeast-based flat bread and the dish gained in popularity. Pizza became a tourist attraction and visitors to Naples ventured in-to the poorer areas of the city to try the local specialty. |
| The first dynasty of modern pizza makers ("pizzaioli") originoates in Naples, Italy and is attributed to baker Raffaele Esposito. In 1889, Esposito who worked for "Pizzeria Brindi" established in 1780 and still in activity, was asked to bake a special pizza for the visit of King Umberto I and Queen Margherita of Savoy. The pizza was very patriotic and resembled the Italian flag with colors of green (basil leaves), white (mozzarella), and red (tomatoes). It was named Pizza Margherita in honor of the Queen and set the standard by which today's pizza evolved and spread worldwide. | |
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Until about 1830 pizza was sold from open-air stands by street vendors outside of pizza bakeries, which includes Pizza Brandi, but then the world's first true pizzeria "Antica Pizzeria Port' Alba" opened in Naples and is still in business today. You can find Pizza Margherita on the Brooklyn Boyz menu in the gourmet pizza section. |
 | | In 1897 an Italian immigrant named Gennaro Lombardi opened a small grocery store in New York City's Little Italy. An employee of his, Antonio Totonno Pero, began making pizza for the store to sell. Their pizza became so popular Lombardi opened the first US pizzeria in 1905 on Spring Street in New York City. That same year another Italian immigrant, Rocco Novellino, arrived in NYC. He later married and raised six children in Brooklyn, New York. In 1933 his only boy of six children was born carrying his namesake. He served for his country during the Korean War, completed college, and married in 1961. |
Rocco and his late wife Barbara had their first of four boys. Their son, Kevin, began working in New York pizzerias at the age of 14 and made your pizza tonight. Now that's Italian! |
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