Fluther: Italy, of course, is where pizza began. Was assembly-line pizza (i.e. ...

Italy, of course, is where pizza began. Was assembly-line pizza (i.e. mass produced by franchises all around) an American invention or European?

Asked by elbanditoroso (33563

) 2 months ago
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[Note: I have had pizza in Italy which tastes nothing like American pizza.]

I classify assembly-line pizza as that made and delivered by chains – Dominos, Papa Johns, Pizza Hut, Chuck E Cheese, Little Caesars, Sbarro, Round Table, etc. – NOT mom-and-pop shops or local groups of stores.

Was assembly-line (or industrial) pizza a European or American invention? Where was it decided that mass-produced pizza was a good idea?

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Answers

They took note of how successful McDs became.

Dutchess_III (47085

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Pre McD.

Frank A. Fiorello produced the first commercial pizza-pie mix, “Roman Pizza Mix”, in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1948. This was made possible by the appreciation for pizza that American soldiers brought back from Italy after World War II.
Hungry families could now then buy frozen pizzas in many grocery stores across the U.S., and frozen pizza quickly became one of the most popular frozen foods.

Forever_Free (8971

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Both the frozen pizza and pizza chains are the colonies’ fault.

ragingloli (52257

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After WW2 (1954) it became more popular as soldiers came home and wanted their pizzas. Wiki

KNOWITALL (29890

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Pizza Hut. Blame the US.

Tropical_Willie (31454

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Pizza Hut and frozen Mama Celeste and Celentano.

I would bet it was the US that made pizza in a mass production way first, but I don’t know it for a fact.

Growing up in NY most every pizza place I went to they were still spinning the dough by hand. My local pizza place was a father and son pizzeria and they made the pizzas right in front of you. Sometimes they would get in a fight and swear at each other with Italian hand gestures. Lol.

My mom bought frozen pizzas, but I didn’t have an assembly line type pizza in a restaurant until I moved to Maryland in the late 70’s. Not that I know of anyway.

Domino’s perfected pizza delivery in a mass way. It was brilliance to focus on the delivery. This was way before the internet, way before uber eats or doordash.

He franchised like other fast food companies and grew across the country and world.

JLeslie (65767

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Keep in mind that tomatoes are native to the Americas. Italian pizza before the discovery of America could not have had any tomato sauce

LostInParadise (32198

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@LostInParadise Yeah, but the Spanish (or maybe the Italians I don’t know the specific history, but the Spanish primarily explored the Americas originally) brought the tomato to Europe once they encountered the fruit in the Americas. Probably the early 1500’s.

JLeslie (65767

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So the Tomato invented the pizza?

Forever_Free (8971

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I lived in a city in NY right north of the Bronx when I was a teenager and in my 20’s. We had the best pizza from mom and pop shops, where dads would teach their sons how to make pizza and that was the son’s after school job, working in the pizza parlor. When I was about 20, Dominos came to town. The regular pizza parlors would close around 8 and Dominos would be open later, and the regular pizza parlors wouldn’t always have delivery, and Dominos did. That’s why Dominos survived. Otherwise, we considered their pizza to be crap. Still to this day, I wouldn’t go to a Dominos, I’d go to a local place.

jca2 (16862

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I remember going to Frank Pepe Pizzeria sixty years ago, while in New Haven for a show at Yale.

Tropical_Willie (31454

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@jca2 The pizza in the cafeteria at NYU Langone hospital is better than Domino’s. I remember getting a slice when my aunt was hospitalized and taking the first bite and thinking I had forgotten how much better pizza is in NY, even in a cafeteria.

The founder of Domino’s is that extremist guy who is building a Catholic community in southwest FL.

Funny you mentioned the father son thing just like me. I’m in the Hastings group on facebook and Larry’s pizza parlor comes up now and then. It was the pizza place in the village (downtown Hastings) with a juke box and such a part of my childhood memories.

JLeslie (65767

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Pizza was more a focaccia with olive oil, herbs and proscuitto, or margherita. Rome is thought to be the actual pizza OG’s.

KNOWITALL (29890

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@KNOWITALL you have not had a NYC or New Haven pizza – - – - – - just Pizza Hiut ! !

Tropical_Willie (31454

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@Tropical_Willie No I don’t eat pizza anymore but they look delicious. Have one for me!