The History of Deep-Dish Pizza

The History Deep-Dish Pizza of 252 Did you know that Americans eat approximately 252 billion pounds of pizza a year?' And that number only seems to be growing. Pizza is now embedded in American culture. Billion pounds While there are dozens of pizza styles, Chicago's deep-dish continues to be a favorite. most popular food in Ame ca°, it's not surprising to learn deep-dish pizza has Italian roots. Here is a detailed history of when, how and where deep-dish pizza came to be. The Beginning 1850's Italians started migrating from Italy to Chicago during the 1850's. 1940's A significant Italian population of immigrants and their descendants were living in Chicago by the 1940's.* Ike Sewell and Rick Riccardo created the idea of an Italian-American version of pizza with a deeper dish, crunchier crust and more layers.5 The origin of deep-dish pizza began with cooking the tomato sauce on top and serving it hot and deep.2 1943 The two entrepreneurs opened Pizzeria Uno and Pizzeria Due just a block from each other on the north side of Chicago in 1943. Pizzeria Uno became the first major chain of pizza restaurants.6 Fun fact There is no evidence to support Sewell and Riccardo actually created the recipe for deep-dish pizza. There is no record of anyone claiming to have seen either of them cooking a pizza. Next Generation 1966 Gino's East, the second-oldest deep-dish pizzeria, opened in 1966 by Sam Levine and Fred Bartoli. Levine and Bartoli hired a former cook from Pizzeria Uno and found instant success in the Chicago area. Rudy Malnati, an original cook at Pizzeria Uno, had two sons that followed in his pizza footsteps, Lou Malnati and Rudy Jr. 1991 Lou opened Lou Malnati's Pizzeria and Rudy Jr. opened Pizano's Pizza and Pasta in 1991, both in Chicago. Fun fact Adolpho "Rudy" Malnati, Sr. and Alice May Redmond both worked at Pizzeria Uno and were known for actually cooking the deep-dish pizza. They still stand as the possible creators of the deep-dish pizza recipe. Today Over the next decades, deep-dish pizza grew in popularity across the country. Today, it's commonplace. Chicago is now full of deep-dish pizza restaurants in the city. Pizzeria Uno is now known as Uno Pizzeria & Grill, but it's still known as the original home of the deep-dish. Gino's East, Lou Malnati's and Pizano's Pizza & Pasta have all survived and expanded through Chicagoland. If you think that deep-dish pizza is like your average pan pizza delivered to your door, you're mistaken. Well-made deep-dish pizza is so thick, layered, and saucy that it can't be picked up with one hand; it has to be eaten with a fork. Hungry yet? Don't forget to recycle your pizza boxes! Produced by Groot Industries. Sources: 1. http://www.thepizzajoint.com/pizzafacts.html 2. http://www.conciergepreferred.com/chicago-restaurants/67-chicago-dining-history-of-chicago-pizza 3. http://thepastachannel.com/italian-food/ 4. http://www.foodreference.com/html/artdeepdishpizza.html 5. http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20131023-the-deep-rooted-history-of-chicagos-deep-dish-pizz 6. http://chicago.eater.com/2012/5/8/6589237/chicagos-deep-dish-history-it-all-started-with-unos