Stamford Connecticut is home to some excellent pizzerias and Italian restaurants. Many will argue that this is because of our proximity to the epicenter of Pizza, New York City. When America was earning her reputation as a melting pot during the 19th and early 20th century, New York City saw a tremendous influx of Italian immigrants and this was were the pizza was introduced to this continent. Most people know that the history of pizza is rooted in Italy, but not too many people are aware that a dish that contains dough, tomatoes and cheese goes all the way back to the early recorded years of the Middle East (or in other words, the beginning of time).

But the term pizza has its roots firmly fixed in Italy. The Latin version of pizza is traced all the way back to a small southern town of Gaeta during the year 997. Today, we view pizza much differently than earlier generations did. Centuries ago pizza was a very common meal in places like Naples, but it was considered peasant food, only served on the streets and not something the average family would enjoy. I am sure that if a native of Naples during that time somehow came back to life and visited a city like Stamford, CT or New York City they would be amazed to see extremely wealthy people like Donald Trump eat pizza. Imagine their surprise if they saw politicians like Governor Malloy or Governor Cuomo not only eat pizza, but see how passionate they are about the pizzerias they frequent. But this is not something uncommon here in America. Pizza, just like many other popular foods started in another country as the food of the poor, but after it is brought here to America it becomes the food of the masses.

National pride is at the root of pizza and most of the foods that have become popular here in America. To understand how pizza first began to take a place in American culture you only have to look at the Italian flag. You see, as places like New York and Stamford, CT began to see an influx of Italian immigrants these immigrants wanted to remember the country they left behind. So the obvious thing was to create foods they enjoyed, but they didn’t just make pizzas, they made their pizzas look like the flag of their homeland and this is how the Margherita pizza developed. A combination of cheese (white), basil (green) and tomato sauce (red). Names the Margherita pizza after Queen Margherita of Savoy.

Yes, pizza was brought here to America by Italians who came to this country looking for a better life. And many of them fulfilled their dreams here in America. And one of the great benefits of being a country with so many people for so many different places is that when those people leave their homeland to come to America they bring their country’s foods with them. So pizza is a wonderful added benefit to America’s influx of Italian immigrants. So New York is the heart of American pizza and because Stamford, CT is so close to New York City, a great benefit for Stamford natives is the outstanding pizza, and many different types of pizza available.

I hope this doesn’t upset any of our readers who are of Italian descent, but the Italians did not invent pizza, although they did improve upon it and make it famous. It is written that the Italian interpretation of pizza most likely evolved from cooking concepts started by the Etruscans who occupied Italian areas in the north and the Greeks in the south. From about 730 B.C. until about 130 B.C., Greeks, who were considered to be some of greatest bakers in ancient times, occupied the southernmost regions of Italy. The Greeks baked round, flat breads and garnished them with oils, garlic, vegetables and other foods, leaving a rim of crust to serve as a “handle.”