The Pizza Sola Blog

Pizza. We accept it as a staple of our culture, but did you ever wonder where it all began?

The history of pizza is an interesting one.

Pizza. You’d think it’s been around forever….and you’d be correct. Historically speaking, pizza is a type dish that has existed since time immemorial in both Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisines. By the year 997, the term had appeared in Medieval Latin, and in 16th century Naples, flatbread was referred to as a pizza.

Back then, it was a dish of poor people, sold in the streets and not really considered a standard recipe for a long time thereafter. Before the 17th century pizza was covered with red sauce and then eventually replaced by oil, tomatoes or fish.

In June 1889, to honor the Queen consort ofItaly, Margherita of Savoy, the Neapolitan chef RaffaeleEsposito created the now-popular ”Pizza Margherita,” a pizzamade with tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, and basil, to represent the colors of the Italian flag. A fun fact? He was the first guy to add cheese. (THANK YOU for that!)

However, the sequence of events through which the earlyflavored flatbreads of ancient and medieval Mediterranean became the typical pizza dish popularized in the 20th century is not really fully understood.

One thing’s for sure – everyone from college students to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, from suburbanites to cultured foodies, can appreciate a good slice of pizza. Whether traditional or gourmet, pizza is here to stay. So stop by Pizza Sola for the best slice in the ‘Burgh!

~~ Ashley Boynes-Shuck

“Aww yeah, pizza yeah!”

“It’s pizza tiiiiiime….”

The cast of MTV’s wildly popular TV show, Jersey Shore, is in Italy this season … and working in none other than an Italian pizza shop!

We’re not sure that we would necessarily trust Snooki to make us our pizza, but,  Pauly D claims he’d be good at spinning pizza – after all, he IS a DJ. (And, he was in Pittsburgh this past weekend – Pauly D, next time you’re in town, we invite you to Pizza Sola for pizza that is BPE…..Best Pizza Ever!)

So, the “Situation” is this – we are thinking that our New York pizza would be best for the Jersey Shore cast (after all, some of them are actually from NY and not NJ!) however, many of them have Sicilian roots, so, Pauly D, are you listening? Try our Sicilian pizza. Or, how about a pizza topped with “meatballs” since that’s what Snooki and Deena call themselves?

As for all of you Jersey Shore fans from the ‘Burgh, we want to know what kind of Pizza Sola you enjoy for your Jersey Shore viewing parties. Why not munch on some pizza as you watch the cast make pizza….and many, many gloriously bad choices?

It’s a good time – Pizza Sola!

Pssst…. PS: If you were to make an ultimate “Jersey Shore” kind of pizza, what would YOU put on it? Leave a Comment and let us know!

Check out this pic of Jenni “J Woww” making pizza in Italy.

~~ Ashley Boynes-Shuck