Pizza has come a long way from its Italian roots, to the various pizza varieties in pizzerias all over the world. The earliest forms of pizza are believed to have dated back to 6th Century B.C. But it was not until the 19th when pizza became legendary after Italy's then-famous pizzaoili Raffaele Esposito named one of his specialties, Pizza Margherita, after Italy's Queen Margherita di Savoia. Pizza Mergherita has since then became the standard as the pizza evolved through the years and across the world.



While it was in the streets of Chicago when the first pieces of pizza were sold in America, the first pizzeria in the country was the Lombardi's, established by Italian Immigrant Gennaro Lombardi in 1895 in New York City.

Since then, pizza has been widely consumed in largely Neapolitan areas around America such as New York, and it didn't take long before the city contributes its share to the evolution of pizza, the New York-style pizza.

Characteristics Of A New York Style Pizza

The New York Style pizza is famous all over the world in the sense that so many pizzerias have their own version of the famous pizza. But what makes a genuine New York Style pizza different from all other types of pizza is its yellow oily trails, which is said to be attributed to the fresh Grande mozzarella cheese used by New York pizzerias. What also makes it distinct from other types of pizza is its puffy outer crust that tapers down to a chewy thin crust made of highly protein dough, hand-tossed, and oven baked. Traditionally, it is whipped with light tomato, heavy on fresh mozzarella cheese, and topped with smatterings of basil and choice toppings.

Usually baked in 18? pan size, it is typically cut into 8 portions and often sold by slice. Due to the crust's elasticity and large size, individual pizza slices are usually stacked or folded in half and eaten by hand by New York-style pizza aficionados.

While New York-style pizza generally refers to the traditional Neapolitan pizza, many pizzerias in New York actually offer two types of pizza: the Neapolitan or round thin crust pizza apportioned into slices, and the square pizza baked in rectangular crust and served in large-sized, rectangular slices. The pizza is said to be best cooked the Neapolitan way, which is in a wood-fired brick oven, but pizzerias in New York use either wood or coal-fired ovens, deck and even electric ovens.

Best Places To Go

Here are some of the more famous pizzerias in New York City, listed in no particular order:

1.Lombardi's in Manhattan (The first pizzeria in the U.S.A)

2.Luzzo's Coal Oven Pizza in Manhattan

3.Una Pizza Napoletana in Manhattan

4.Pepe's in New Haven, CT

5.Joe's in Manhattan

6.Sally's in New Haven

7.Patsy's in Manhattan

8.Sac's in Queens, Astoria

9.Johnny's in Mt. Vernon

10.Ben's in Manhattan

11.Arturo's Coal Oven in Manhattan

12.Di Fara Pizzeria in Brooklyn