New York–style Pizza
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

New York–style pizza is a
pizza Pizza is an Italian cuisine, Italian, specifically Neapolitan cuisine, Neapolitan, dish typically consisting of a flat base of Leavening agent, leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomato, cheese, and other ingredients, baked at a high t ...
made with a characteristically large hand-tossed thin crust, often sold in wide slices to go. The crust is thick and crisp only along its edge, yet soft, thin, and pliable enough beneath its toppings to be folded to eat. Traditional toppings are simply tomato sauce and shredded mozzarella cheese. This was a popular meal among poor Italian Americans due to the ratio of product from the limited produce. This style evolved in the U.S. from the pizza that originated in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
in the early 1900s, itself derived from the Neapolitan-style pizza made in Italy. Today, it is the dominant style eaten in the
New York metropolitan area The New York metropolitan area, also called the Tri-State area and sometimes referred to as Greater New York, is the List of cities by GDP, largest metropolitan economy in the world, with a List of U.S. metropolitan areas by GDP, gross metropo ...
states of
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
and
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
and is popular throughout the United States. Regional variations exist throughout the
Northeast The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A '' compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—eac ...
and elsewhere in the U.S.


History

The first pizzeria in the United States,
Lombardi's Lombardi's is a pizzeria at 32 Spring Street (Manhattan), Spring Street on the corner of Mott Street (Manhattan), Mott Street in the Nolita neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1905, it has been recognized by the Pizza Hall of Fa ...
, is said to have been founded by
Gennaro Lombardi Gennaro Lombardi (August 6, 1887–November 24, 1958) was an Italian immigrant who moved to the United States in 1904. He has sometimes been credited for opening the first pizzeria in the United States, Lombardi's, at 53½ Spring Street. However, ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
's
Little Italy Little Italy is the catch-all name for an ethnic enclave populated primarily by Italians or people of Italian ancestry, usually in an Urban area, urban neighborhood. The concept of "Little Italy" holds many different aspects of the Italian cul ...
in 1905, although this has been challenged by author Peter Regas. An immigrant '' pizzaiolo'' () from
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 ...
, he opened a grocery store in 1897; eight years later, it was licensed to sell pizza by New York State. An employee, Antonio Totonno Pero, began making pizza, which sold for five cents per pie. Many people, however, could not afford a whole pizza and instead would offer what they could in return for a corresponding sized slice, which was wrapped in paper tied with string. In 1924, Totonno left Lombardi's to open his own pizzeria on
Coney Island Coney Island is a neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach to its east, Lower New York Bay to the south and west, and Gravesend to ...
, called Totonno's. Totonno's, Patsy's Pizzeria and John's Pizzeria served as an inspiration for a renaissance in the growth of pizzerias such as Grimaldi's. By 2010, over 400 pizza restaurants existed in New York City, with hundreds more of varied cuisine also offering the dish.


Characteristics

New York–style pizza is traditionally hand-tossed, consisting in its basic form of a light layer of
tomato sauce Tomato sauce (; ; ) can refer to many different sauces made primarily from tomatoes. In some countries the term refers to a sauce to be served as part of a dish, in others it is a condiment. Tomatoes have a rich flavor, high water content, s ...
sprinkled with dry, grated, full-fat
mozzarella Mozzarella is a Types of cheese#Semi-soft cheese, semi-soft non-aged cheese prepared using the ('stretched-curd') method with origins from southern Italy. It is prepared with cow's milk or buffalo milk, taking the following names: * or mozz ...
cheese; additional toppings, if desired, are placed over the cheese. Pizzas are typically around 18 to 24 inches (45 to 60 cm) in diameter, and commonly cut into eight slices. These large wide slices are often eaten as fast food while folded in half along the crust both for convenience—allowing the slice to be eaten one-handed—and to control the flow of oil running off the pizza. New York–style pizza gets its distinguishing crust from the high-gluten bread flour with which it is made. Minerals present in New York City's tap water supply are also credited with giving the dough in
metro area Metro Area is a Brooklyn-based house and nu-disco duo formed in 1998 by Morgan Geist and Darshan Jesrani. History Geist grew up in Wayne, New Jersey, Spring Arts Clubs: Electro-Shock by Tricia Romano">village voice > nyclife > Spring Arts ...
pizzas its characteristic texture and flavor. Some out-of-state pizza bakers even transport the water cross-country for the sake of authenticity.Wayne, Gary
"Mulberry Street Pizzeria"
. ''Seeing Stars in Hollywood''. 2008.
Typical condiments include dried
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 ...
, dried red chili pepper flakes,
garlic powder Garlic powder is a spice that is derived from dehydrated garlic and used in cooking for flavor enhancement. The process of making garlic powder includes drying and dehydrating the vegetable, then powdering it through machinery or home-based appli ...
, dried
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 ...
, and grated
Parmesan cheese Parmesan (, ) is an Italian hard, granular cheese produced from cow's milk and aged at least 12 months. It is a grana-type cheese, along with Grana Padano, the historic , and others. The term ''Parmesan'' may refer to either Parmigiano ...
.


Gallery

File:20140704-0570 Balboa Peninsula.JPG, Characteristically large New York–style pizza ready to go into the oven File:NewYorkSlices.jpg, New York–style plain cheese
pizza by the slice Pizza by the slice is pizza sold in individual portions as a fast food by a restaurant or Street food, street vendor. Some restaurants and pizza stands only sell pizza by the slice, while others sell both slices and whole pizzas. The jumbo slice ...
File:New York Pizza Slices.png, Slices of traditional New York–style pizza on right, with fresh instead of dried mozzarella cheese on left File:Slices NewPark.jpg, Three New York–style slices from
New Park Pizza New Park Pizza is a pizzeria in Queens, New York, United States. History New Park Pizza is located in the neighborhood of Howard Beach, Queens, Howard Beach. It is notable for being close to JFK airport. The pizzeria has existed since 1962. N ...
File:Joes Pizza 2021.jpg, A New York–style slice from Joe's Pizza


Regional variations

New York–style pizza is most prevalent in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
,
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
,
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
,
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
,
Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...
,
District of Columbia Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...
, and
Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
, but can be found throughout the Northeastern region and beyond. Outside this area, many pizzas described as "New York–style", including those of major pizza chains such as
Pizza Hut Pizza Hut, LLC is an American multinational pizza restaurant chain and international franchise founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas, by brothers Dan and Frank Carney. The chain, headquartered in Plano, Texas, operates 19,866 restaurants worldw ...
, generally do not fall within the variations commonly accepted as genuine in its native area.


See also

*
Pizza in the United States Pizza was introduced to the United States in the 1890s along with waves of Italian immigrants who settled primarily in the larger cities of the Northeast, such as New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and Baltimore. Pizza and pizzerias rapidly grew ...
*
Pan pizza Pan pizza is a pizza baked in a deep dish pan or sheet pan. Turin-style pizza, Italian tomato pie, Sicilian pizza, Greek pizza, Chicago-style pizza, and Detroit-style pizza may be considered forms of pan pizza. Pan pizza also refers to the t ...
* Jumbo slice – very large slice of pizza *
Pizza Principle The Pizza Principle, or the Pizza-Subway Connection, in New York City, is a humorous but generally historically accurate "economic law" proposed by native New Yorker Eric M. Bram. He noted, as reported by ''The New York Times'' in 1980, that from ...
– comparison between the cost of a slice of pizza and a subway ride in New York City


References


External links


A detailed recipe for the domestic production of authentic New York–style pizza by Jeff Varasano
{{Pizza in the United States
Pizza Pizza is an Italian cuisine, Italian, specifically Neapolitan cuisine, Neapolitan, dish typically consisting of a flat base of Leavening agent, leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomato, cheese, and other ingredients, baked at a high t ...
Italian-American cuisine Italian-American culture in New York City Pizza in New York City Pizza styles Sicilian-American cuisine