Peppes Pizza is a
Norwegian pizza
Pizza (, ) is a dish of Italian origin consisting of a usually round, flat base of leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomatoes, cheese, and often various other ingredients (such as various types of sausage, anchovies, mushrooms, on ...
chain that serves American style. Peppes Pizza is the largest pizza restaurant chain in Scandinavia with close to 90 departments.
The restaurant chain was founded in 1970 by the american, Louis Jordan and his norwegian wife Anne from
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...
.
The restaurant chain is currently owned by Dely AS, who also holds the rights in Norway to other cafe/restaurants such as
TGI Fridays,
Starbucks
Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is the world's largest coffeehouse chain.
As of November 2021, the company had 33,833 stores in 80 cou ...
,
La Baguette and
Cafe Opus.
Peppes Pizza was the first restaurant that brought pizza to Norway.
Peppes Pizza is currently present in more than 85 locations all over Norway, and more than 9 million pizzas are served by Peppes Pizza each year. Peppes Pizza also delivers pizza all over in Norway. Their menu was first put online in March 1995 as the first foodcompany to do online ordering. The servings have been described as enough for two people and that the pizza chain is "a cut above the rest".
The bestselling fiction book ''The Seducer'' by Norwegian author Jan Kjærstad documents an actual history of the pizza chain.
History
Peppes Pizza is associated with the Norwegian-American married couple Louis Jordan (born 1931) and Anne Jordan (born 1944). He was an insurance agent, but had a desire to find a new livelihood when his family moved to Norway. Anne Jordan suggested pizza because she thought the ingredients would suit the Norwegian taste.
Louis Jordan took a job at the pizza restaurant "Pepe Pizzeria" in
Hartford
Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...
,
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...
. There he used his time well and brought with him important knowledge of American pizza. The knowledge and notes from the pizza restaurant were to form the basis for the pizzas he would later launch in Norway.
With $10,000 and American pizza recipes, after six months in Norway, he started to realize his goal. His wife Anne followed up on the financial and legal obstacles they encountered along the way.
They took over a room at
Solli Plass
Solli plass, pronounced /su:li/ or /suli/, /plas/ or /pɽas/, also called Lapsetorvet, is a square in Oslo, Norway, located southwest of Slottsparken and the Royal Palace.
The square is elliptical in shape. In the southwest lies the National ...
in
Oslo
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
where
Ben Youcéf had started one of the first international restaurants in Oslo.
"Peppes Pizza Pub", as the restaurant was first called, opened its doors for the first time in May 1970.
Foreign locations
The pizza chain franchised restaurants in
Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Ku ...
and
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
a few years ago, but these have since closed.
The Chinese restaurants had some different items on the menu that Chinese people are more used to, such as soups and pastas. The first restaurant opened in
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...
, China because of
Pizza Hut
Pizza Hut is an American multinational restaurant chain and international franchise founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas by Dan and Frank Carney. They serve their signature pan pizza and other dishes including pasta, breadsticks and desse ...
's success in the country. The restaurant ran a "Pizza & Film" promotion which included a large pizza, a large
cola
Cola is a carbonated soft drink flavored with vanilla, cinnamon, citrus oils and other flavorings. Cola became popular worldwide after the American pharmacist John Stith Pemberton invented Coca-Cola, a trademarked brand, in 1886, which was imi ...
, and an animation DVD.
A restaurant in
Sanlitun
Sanlitun () is an area of the Chaoyang District, Beijing containing many bars, restaurants, and stores. It is a popular destination for shopping, dining, and entertainment.
The area has been under almost constant regeneration since the la ...
located in Bejiing had a children's play area. Despite being known in Norway as having good food, eChinacities said "Although not renowned for its excellent food Peppes is fairly reasonably priced".
National Arabic Company operated six locations in Kuwait.
There was also a restaurant in Leytonstone High Road, London E11 during the 1980s and perhaps the 1990s, owned and run by a brother and sister.
References
External links
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{{Authority control
Pizza chains
Restaurant chains in Norway