Pizza as we know it was invented in Little Italy at Lombardi’s in the earliest years of the 20th century, big communal pies lush with toppings that formed quite a contrast with the scrawny, sparsely dressed pies of Naples that inspired them. In the ensuing years, pizzas proliferated across New York City and around the country, some with quirky regional styles. And eventually the American idea of pizza traveled all over the world, so that now pizzas are sold on every continent not covered by glaciers.
Inevitably, Italy sought its revenge, and 22 years ago, La Pizza Fresca opened in the Flatiron claiming to reproduce the original pies of Naples, as certified by an Italian trade organization. Since then, dozens of places claiming to make the true pie of Naples have appeared, and eventually, pizzaioli began arriving from Italy itself to cash in.
