Columbus-style pizza is an American regional pizza style associated with Columbus, Ohio. It has a circular shape, pieces cut into short or long rectangles, thin crust, dense toppings that cover the surface, and, usually, provolone cheese and a slightly sweet sauce. [1] It was developed in the early 1950s. [2]
Pizza was first sold in Columbus at TAT Ristorante de Famiglia in 1934, [3] with thick crust in the Neapolitan style, but the first pizzeria in Columbus was Romeo's, which was opened by Jimmy Massucci (who changed his name to Massey) and Romeo Sirij on Fifth Avenue near Grandview Heights in 1949 [4] or 1950. [5] Massey had worked in Chicago briefly before moving to Columbus, [5] and he may have been influenced by the thin crust style of pizza that had recently been introduced in bars and taverns there. Massey also started using pepperoni as a pizza topping at Romeo's in the early 1950s, [6] giving Columbus, along with New Haven, Connecticut, [7] a claim to be the birthplace of pepperoni pizza. [5] Within five years, at least 50 pizzerias were opened across Columbus and the surrounding area, and the pizza they served had coalesced into a distinct style. [5] Extant examples from the 1950s and early 1960s include:
The development and consistency of this style is due, in large part, to the work of local distributor Richie DiPaolo, whose company DiPaolo Food Distributors (now known as RDP Foodservice) has delivered not only supplies to most of the local pizzerias but support, advice, and innovations such as improved forms of pepperoni, pre-sliced pickled banana peppers from Vlasic Pickles (developed at his request), and improved pizza boxes. [5] [8] The prominence of pepperoni in Columbus-style pizza, especially natural-cased, cupping pepperoni that crisps at the edges, can also be credited to the Ezzo Sausage Company, which produces pepperoni in Columbus. [5] This pepperoni is considered to have the highest quality among pizzeria owners in New York and elsewhere. [9] [10]
Columbus had the most pizzerias per capita for decades and was selected as "pizza capital USA" by Pizza Today in 1994. [5] As of 2022 [update] it has the third-most pizzerias per capita among American cities, behind Detroit and Cleveland. [11] To celebrate this unique style of pizza, local nonprofit Experience Columbus launched the Columbus Style Pizza Trail in 2022, which includes some of the above pizzerias, as well as many newer ones in Columbus and its suburbs. [12]
While there are differences among Columbus pizzerias, several shared characteristics distinguish a Columbus-style pizza from other styles, which are also popular in the area.
The crust of a Columbus-style pizza is thin, but it has yeast, [13] unlike some similar styles such as St. Louis–style pizza. Crust recipes and preparation methods vary among pizzerias, so the texture of a crust ranges from slightly bubbly to crispy to dense and crunchy. There is generally no raised ring of bare crust around the edge, as sauce and toppings are loaded as close to the edge as practical. Sauce is placed on the crust before toppings, and the sauce tends to be on the sweeter side compared to other pizza styles. Oregano and garlic feature prominently in pizza sauce, and different sauce flavors are a key differentiator from one Columbus pizzeria to another.
Cheese placed on the sauce tends to be provolone, [2] smoked provolone [14] [15] or a blend of mozzarella and provolone, and, if no additional toppings are used, it covers the pizza completely. If other toppings are used, they are used generously, with pepperoni completely covering the surface, for example. Several Columbus pizzerias grind their own sausage to old family recipes. [5]
Pizzas are usually prepared in shallow, circular pans. For this reason, some pizzerias, such as Massey's, use cornmeal under the crust to prevent sticking to the pan. Most traditional Columbus pizzerias use an electric or gas deck oven, [5] which requires skill, careful observation and a longer baking time than a conveyor oven [16] but allows for higher capacity and more control over the doneness of the bake. [5]
Pizzas are almost always sliced into rectangular pieces. These can be anything from small, bite-size squares to long, thin rectangles. The long rectangle cut style was more popular in the first few decades, but smaller squares later became more popular. Pizzas were originally placed in tented paper bags for takeout, which is still done at Rubino's, but as pizza boxes were introduced and improved, those supplanted the paper bags due to stackability and heat retention. [5]
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, which is then baked at a high temperature, traditionally in a wood-fired oven.
Pepperoni is a variety of spicy salami made from cured pork and beef seasoned with paprika and chili peppers.
Chicago-style pizza is pizza prepared according to several styles developed in Chicago. It can refer to both the well-known deep-dish or stuffed pizzas and the lesser-known thin-crust tavern-style pizzas more popular with locals. The pan in which deep-dish pizza is baked gives the pizza its characteristically high edge, which provides ample space for large amounts of cheese and a chunky tomato sauce. Chicago-style deep-dish pizza may be prepared in the deep-dish style and as a stuffed pizza. Chicago-style thin-crust pizza dough is rolled for a thinner crispier crust than other thin-crust styles. The thin-crust pizza is cut in squares instead of slices, and is also referred to as a "tavern-style" pizza.
St. Louis–style pizza is a type of pizza popular in St. Louis, Missouri, and surrounding areas. The style has a thin cracker-like crust made without yeast, generally uses Provel cheese, and is cut into squares or rectangles instead of wedges.
Donatos Pizza is a Columbus-style pizza restaurant chain headquartered in Gahanna, Ohio, United States. It is a pizza delivery franchisor with nearly 200 locations in twelve states, the majority being in Ohio. Donatos is also served at several venue outlets, including Ohio Stadium and formerly at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
New York–style pizza is a pizza 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 in half to eat. Traditional toppings are simply tomato sauce and shredded mozzarella cheese. This was a popular meal amongst poor Italians due to the ratio of product from the limited produce.
New Haven–style pizza is a style of thin-crust, coal-fired Neapolitan pizza common in and around New Haven, Connecticut. Locally known as apizza, it originated in 1925 at the Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana and is now served in many other pizza restaurants in the area, most notably Sally's Apizza and Modern Apizza. This geographically limited pizza style has been favorably regarded by national critics.
A pizza farm can be both a farm-based food-service establishment that sells pizza or a demonstration farm that educates visitors about agriculture by growing pizza ingredients, sometimes on a circular piece of land partitioned into plots shaped like pizza slices.
Detroit-style pizza is a rectangular pan pizza with a thick, crisp, chewy crust. It is traditionally topped to the edges with mozzarella or Wisconsin brick cheese, which caramelizes against the high-sided heavyweight rectangular pan. Detroit-style pizza was originally baked in rectangular steel trays designed for use as automotive drip pans or to hold small industrial parts in factories. It was developed during the mid-20th century in Detroit, Michigan, before spreading to other parts of the United States in the 2010s. It is one of Detroit's iconic local foods.
Pizza al taglio or pizza al trancio is a variety of pizza baked in large rectangular trays, and generally sold in rectangular or square slices by weight, with prices marked per kilogram or per 100 grams. This type of pizza was invented in Rome, Italy, and is common throughout Italy. Many variations and styles of pizza al taglio exist, and the dish is available in other areas of the world in addition to Italy.
Giordano's is an American pizzeria chain that specializes in Chicago-style stuffed pizza. Brothers Efren and Joseph Boglio founded Giordano's in 1974 in Chicago, Illinois. The pizzeria has since expanded to over 65 locations in Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, Nevada, and Wisconsin. The chain has also expanded to offer catering and ship frozen pizzas in the United States.
Pizza arrived in the United States in the early 20th century along with waves of Italian immigrants who settled primarily in the large cities of the Northeast. It got a boost both in popularity and regional spread after soldiers stationed in Italy returned from World War II.
Quad City–style pizza is a variety of pizza originating in the Quad Cities region of the states of Illinois and Iowa in the United States.
Pizza by the slice is pizza sold in slices as a fast food by a restaurant or street vendor. Some restaurants and pizza stands only sell pizza by the slice, while others sell both slices and whole pizzas. The jumbo slice is a large-sized slice of New York–style pizza made in areas of Washington, D.C. Pizza al taglio is a style of rectangular slice of pizza that originated in Rome and is typically sold by weight.
Baby Doll Pizza is a pizzeria in Portland, Oregon.
Escape from New York Pizza (EFNY) is a pizzeria in Portland, Oregon.
Canada has many of its own pizza chains, both national and regional, and many distinctive regional variations and types of pizza resulting from influences of local Canadian cuisine.
Ohio Valley–style pizza is a pizza made with cold toppings sprinkled over a square crust that has been covered with a sweet tomato sauce. It originated in Steubenville, Ohio, and is commonly served in Ohio and West Virginia.
Minneapolis-style pizza is a circular thin-crust pizza, cut into squares, with spicy sauce, and hearty toppings. The name of the pizza usually depends upon what part of the state it is purchased from. In Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and the surrounding suburbs it is typically called Minneapolis-style. Meanwhile, in other parts of the state it is known as Minnesota-style. Red Savoys, a local Minnesota pizza chain, which invented the pizza and is a Minnesota-style specialty pizzeria, calls Minnesota-style pizza "Sota-style".