The History of New York Pizza

Everybody who visits New York has heard of "New York-style pizza," and some may want to try a slice at one of the city's oldest and beloved pizzerias. The city's immigrant history and original coal ovens are what make New York-style pizza unique, and most of the storied pizzerias seem to have originated with one pizza maker early in the 20th century.

Origins

Pizza as we know it commonly today--a flat pie topped with tomato sauce, cheese and basil--was a favorite of Italy's Queen Margherita di Savoia. She discovered a love for it while traveling in Naples, and the Margherita pizza was named after her. As the majority of early Italian immigrants were from the southern Italy, they imported this style of pizza with them when they immigrated to the United States.

First Pizzerias

The first person to obtain a pizza-selling license in New York was Gennaro Lombardi in 1905. He opened the first pizzeria, Lombardi's, at 53½ Spring Street in Manhattan and built a coal oven directly into the store. The first people to train under him were Antonio (Totonno) Pero and John Sasso, both of whom went on to found two other famous New York pizzerias: Totonno's in Coney Island, Brooklyn, which opened in 1924, and John's on Bleecker Street in Manhattan, which opened in 1929. Pasquale "Patsy" Lancieri, who opened Patsy's in East Harlem in 1933, also claims to have studied under Lombardi, but the only evidence we have one way or the other is the menu at Patsy's, which says he did, and the menu at Lombardi's, which does not mention him at all.

Later Pizzerias

Patsy Lancieri's nephew, Patsy Grimaldi, learned to make pizza with Lancieri and eventually opened a pizzeria under Brooklyn Bridge called Patsy's. A few years later, another Patsy's opened in Murray Hill and challenged Grimaldi's claim that he was related to Lancieri. Whether he was or wasn't, the Patsy's under Brooklyn Bridge later changed its name to the well known Grimaldi's. Di Fara, which has consistently been named the best pizza in New York, opened a few decades later in 1964. The pizzeria at that time was owned by Domenico De Marco and his partner, whose last name was Farina. The lawyer executing the documents for their ownership put their names together on the papers---"Di" for De Marco and "Fara" for Farina. The two men retained it as the name of their business: Di Fara.

Current Pizzeria Locations

Lombardi's was forced to move to 32 Spring Street in the 1970s because the oven collapsed, but the second location is still open today. Totonno's original location on Neptune Avenue in Brooklyn suffered a major fire in March 2009 and promises to rebuild (though it remains closed as of September 2009). Other Totonno's locations around the tri-state area remain open. John's original pizzeria at 278 Bleecker Street is still open, as is Grimaldi's under Brooklyn Bridge, and Di Fara on Avenue J, in Midwood, Brooklyn. Patsy's (both the name and the original pizzeria) has changed hands since 1991, when Lancieri's wife sold the business to longtime employees. Today, multiple versions of Patsy's can be found around the city.

What Makes New York Pizza Unique?

The original New York-style pizzas were cooked in coal-fired brick ovens that give them a crispy, smoked flavor. New York-style pizzas are thin like their Neapolitan forefathers, and made with hand-tossed crusts and fresh, often homemade ingredients. Many people claim that the minerals in New York City water are another part of what makes the pizza unique.

References

• Eric Asimov on New York Pizza Bloodlines
• New York Pizza: Where it All Begins
• Charred Bubbles and Other Secrets of the Slice

Resources

• History and Legends of Pizza