Antica Pizzeria PortAlba is a
pizzeria
A pizzeria is a restaurant focusing on pizza.
A pizzeria may offer take-away, where the customer orders their food either in advance or at the restaurant and then takes the prepared food with them in a pizza box. A pizzeria may deliver food to ...
in
Naples
Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
, Italy, which is widely believed to be the world's first pizzeria.
History
First established in 1738 as a stand for peddlers, Antica Pizzeria Port'Alba was opened in 1830 in the town center at Via Port'Alba 18.
The restaurant replaced street vendors who would make pizza in wood-fired ovens and bring it onto the street, keeping it warm in small tin stoves they balanced on their head.
It soon became a prominent meeting place for men in the street.
Most patrons were artists, students, or others with very little money, so the pizzas made were generally simple, with toppings such as oil and garlic.
A payment system, called ''pizza a otto'', was developed that allowed customers to pay up to eight days after their meal. A resulting local joke was that a meal from Port'Alba might be someone's last free meal, if they died before they paid.
Additionally, patrons created poetry to honor the pizzas. Antica Pizzeria Port'Alba is still in business today, located between a number of bookstores.
It is widely believed to be the world's first pizzeria.
Food
Since its creation in 1830, the eatery's ovens have been lined with lava rocks from nearby Mount Vesuvius
Mount Vesuvius ( ) is a Somma volcano, somma–stratovolcano located on the Gulf of Naples in Campania, Italy, about east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is one of several volcanoes forming the Campanian volcanic arc. Vesuv ...
.lard
Lard is a Quasi-solid, semi-solid white fat product obtained by rendering (animal products), rendering the adipose tissue, fatty tissue of a domestic pig, pig. , sheep milk
Sheep milk is the milk of domestic sheep. It is commonly used to make cultured dairy products, such as cheese. Some of the most popular sheep cheeses include feta (Greece), pecorino romano (Italy), Roquefort (France) and Manchego (Spain).
...
cheese, and basil
Basil (, ; , ; ''Ocimum basilicum'' (, )), also called great basil, is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae (mints). It is a hardiness (plants), tender plant, and is used in cuisines worldwide. In Western cuisine, the generic term "basil" r ...
. Basil and oregano
Oregano (, ; ''Origanum vulgare'') is a species of flowering plant in the mint family, Lamiaceae. It was native to the Mediterranean region, but widely naturalised elsewhere in the temperate climate, temperate Northern Hemisphere.
Oregano is a ...
were the most common herbs, while other toppings included seafood, buffalo mozzarella
Buffalo mozzarella (; ) is a mozzarella made from the milk of the Italian Mediterranean buffalo. It is a dairy product traditionally manufactured in Campania, especially in the provinces of Caserta and Salerno.
Since 1996, is also registered a ...
, cured meats, and '' cecinielli'', small white fish still in development.
See also
* List of oldest companies
The oldest companies in the world are the brands and companies which remain operating (either in whole or in part) since inception, excluding associations and List of oldest universities in continuous operation, educational, government, or relig ...
* List of pizza varieties by country
References
{{Restaurants in Italy
1830 establishments in Italy
Culture in Naples
Pizzerias
Restaurants in Italy