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Pizza Inn, Inc. Business Information, Profile, and History

3551 Plano Parkway
The Colony, Texas 75056
U.S.A.

Company Perspectives:

Pizza Inn's driving force is its commitment to specialty pizzas, menu variety and value, and pizza dough quality.

History of Pizza Inn, Inc.

With its corporate headquarters located near Dallas, Pizza Inn, Inc. franchises and services some 450 Pizza Inn Restaurants, both in the United States and overseas. Domestically, Pizza Inns are found in 21 states, primarily in the south, with strong concentrations in Texas, Arkansas, and North Carolina. Only three of the restaurants are company owned, all located in Dallas, where they are used to train new employees and franchisees, as well as for research purposes. Pizza Inn has been especially aggressive in franchising outside of the United States, with restaurants located in 12 countries, from Iceland to the Philippines. Pizza Inn features four types of restaurants. Full service Pizza Inns seat 130 to 185 customers, and generally offer additional carry out and delivery services. In addition to pizza, these operations offer pasta, sandwiches, and desserts, as well as beer and wine in select locations. A second category of Pizza Inns are dedicated solely to pizza delivery and carry-out. Some Pizza Inns employ a self-serve buffet concept, offering essentially the same items as the full service restaurants, but seating between 60 to 70 customers. These units also offer pizza delivery and carry out. A final type of Pizza Inn operation is the Express Serve unit, which can be found in a convenience store, airport terminal, or within a college campus facility. Seating is limited if offered at all, and the menu is kept to a minimum. Eschewing delivery, the express operation focuses on quick carry-out service. In addition to franchise fees, Pizza Inn makes money through its Norco Distributing Co. unit, which sells food and paper products and restaurant equipment to its chain of restaurants.

Pizza Inn's 1960s Origins

Although pizza had been offered for a number of years, mostly in the major East Coast cities with large concentrations of Italian-Americans, a pizza craze swept the country after World War II, resulting in a large number of mom-and-pop operations and eventually entrepreneurs with bigger plans. In 1958, Frank and Dan Carney opened the first Pizza Hut in Wichita, Kansas, and a year later they incorporated and opened their first franchise unit in Topeka, Kansas. While Pizza Hut was devoted to a table and chairs concept for pizza, Detroit native Tom Monaghan founded Domino's Pizza in 1960 and pioneered the delivery chain. A short time later Michael Ilitch, also from Detroit, founded Little Caesars, which focused on the carry-out of inexpensive pizza. Each of the three future pizza magnates unknowingly carved out a unique share of the future market and for many years were dominant among pizza chains. Pizza Inn, another early entrant in the industry, competed with Pizza Hut in the restaurant category. The company originated in Dallas, Texas, in 1961, a year after one of its co-founders, Francis J. Spillman, had opened a storefront pizza business close to the campus of Southern Methodist University. Before entering the restaurant business, Spillman had worked for Boeing Aircraft and American National Insurance Company. The company began franchising in 1963, employing a territorial concept that permitted franchisees to operate a minimum number of Pizza Inns in a particular area.

Pizza Inn grew at a steady rate over the next several years, so that by 1970 the company owned approximately 100 restaurants while franchising another 125. In addition to Pizza Inns, the company operated and franchised a small number of Papa's Pizza Parlors, Pepe Taco Restaurants, and der Chees n' Wurst outlets. Pizza Inns' efforts to achieve rapid expansion, however, were derailed when the U.S. economy began to sputter in the early 1970s. Pizza Inn's poor financial health, in fact, precipitated a March 1971 merger agreement with Pizza Hut. Under terms of the proposed deal, eight Pizza Inn shares of common stock would be exchanged for one Pizza Hut share. Two months later, after Pizza Inn and its franchisees were unable to resolved some territorial conflicts with Pizza Hut, the deal was scuttled. To alleviate its poor financial condition, Pizza Inn management was forced to institute a cost reduction program. The company sold off the Kubler Sausage Company and 11 restaurant operations, and closed another ten, including all of its Pepe Taco restaurants. To pay off a loan that Pizza Hut had made in anticipation of the two companies merging, Pizza Inn transferred 21 restaurants it owned through subsidiaries. Moreover, the company cut staff and agreed to a repayment plan with creditors that would greatly restrict its ability to merge, borrow additional money, or increase compensation to officers. As a result of all these changes in 1971, Pizza Inn posted a net loss of nearly $500,000, despite generating record sales of nearly $12 million.

Pizza Inn Rebounds in the 1970s

Pizza Inn recovered quickly and renewed its pattern of growth through the rest of the 1970s. Annual revenues topped $50 million in 1976 and $100 million by 1978, while net profits ranged from $1.7 million to $2.3 million. The number of new restaurant openings also kept pace, so that by the end of the decade Pizza Inn, which totaled 745 units, was second only to Pizza Hut among U.S. pizza restaurant chains. Pizza Inns could be found in 33 states, mostly in the South, with a third of the units located in Texas. Nearly 350 of the restaurants were company owned, including two in Monterrey, Mexico. Furthermore, Pizza Inn now had other franchised restaurants located in Mexico, as well as Puerto Rico, Japan, the Philippines, and South Africa. Pizza Inn first became involved with franchising outside of North America when it opened units in U.S. military bases in Japan.

The fortunes of Pizza Inn began to decline in the 1980s as the company faced increased competition from other pizza chains. After many years of turning a profit, Pizza Inn lost $590,000 in 1985. Its stock, which two years earlier had traded at $17.50 now fell to around $6 at the start of 1986. Spillman announced that Pizza Inn needed to open new units that focused on home delivery, as well as to remodel existing stores, but the company was already $57 million in long-term debt and simply lack the wherewithal to finance Spillman's reported goal of opening as many as 150 restaurants in 1986. Following further losses in the first quarter of 1986, Pizza Inn sold off its meat manufacturing subsidiary, Quality Sausage Company, for $23.7 million in cash and the assumption of $5.4 million in debt. Rumors began to circulate that the company was a ripe takeover target.

Spillman's critics accused him of mismanaging Pizza Inn, maintaining that he ran the public corporation as if it were a private firm. In the summer of 1986, Spillman assembled an investor group to, indeed, take the company private, fending off a possible takeover bid and presumably shielding it from Wall Street pressure to produce short-term results. Spillman offered to buy all Pizza Inn shares for $10.50 each. A revised price of $11 per share was subsequently approved by a special committee of two independent directors. A bid of $12 per share was also made by a pair of investors, but the offer was quickly rejected after Spillman indicated that his group would not sell their 39 percent stake in Pizza Inn, thereby preventing rival bidders from gaining the two-thirds shareholder vote required in Texas mergers. A great deal of controversy ensued, with critics charging that Spillman was underestimating the value of Pizza Inn, in particular the worth of a cheese subsidiary and the real estate on which a large number of company-own restaurants were located.

Spillman's group increased its bid to $12.50 per share, but ultimately failed to arrange the necessary financing to close the deal. After securing an option to buy over one million Pizza Inn shares from Spillman, Pantera's Corp., a St. Louis-based pizza restaurant operation, offered $48 million in cash and stock for the company in March 1987. Pizza Inn shareholders were set to receive approximately $14.50 in cash and Pantera's stock. Although Spillman engineered a last-second bid, Pantera's finally gained shareholder approval in July 1987, took over control of Pizza Inn, and assumed its corporate name. With the addition of 120 Pantera's restaurants, the new Pizza Inn became the fourth largest overall pizza chain in the country.

It was announced that Spillman would be kept on as president of Pizza Hut under the terms of a five-year contract. In fact, he only stayed as a consultant for just three months then left to create companies to franchise Pizza Inn restaurants. When he failed to pay royalty fees for food bills, however, his relationship with Pizza Inn was severed. He changed the names of his restaurants to Oregano's Pizza, but made only a gesture of disassociating himself from Pizza Inn, resorting to taping over Pizza Inn signs and blotting out logos on menus. Pizza Inn took Spillman to court, resulting in a two-year ban on Spillman operating a restaurant anywhere within five miles of a Pizza Inn. The presiding federal judge called Spillman's acts "the most egregious case of deliberate trademark infringement ever heard by this court."

Pizza Inn's new management had more serious issues to address that its conflict with the chain's founder. It sold off the J.T. McCord's hamburger and chili restaurants that Spillman had created under Pizza Inn and slashed a third of the company's administrative work force. The company also introduced a new Italian-style buffet format to a large number of units in order to distinguish Pizza Inn from the competition in the highly competitive pizza industry, which was now being rocked by price wars between Pizza Hut, Domino's, and Little Caesars. Aside from conversion costs to a buffet operation, the debt Pantera's incurred in acquiring Pizza Inn proved overly burdensome, so that by the summer of 1989 the company was in difficult straits. After failing to meet several deadlines to make interest payments, Pizza Inn was unable to arrange a refinancing plan and faced the prospect of selling off units in order to pay its bills. By September 1989, the bottom fell out, and Pantera's stock fell to just 37.5 cents. With assets of $76.7 million and liabilities of $81.7 million, the company had no choice but to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The court was instrumental in the hiring of long-time fast food executive Jeff Rogers to serve as a consultant in the liquidation of the company. After becoming familiar with Pizza Inn, he became convinced that the company's problems were far from insurmountable, and rather than selling the operation the better course would be to attempt a turnaround. In January 1990 he was hired as Pizza Inn's chief executive officer in order to do just that.

Rogers was well suited to rescuing an ailing fast food chain, having recently turned around the Bonanza steak restaurant business. While earning a undergraduate degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management at the University of Denver, he began his business career in the marketing department of International Industries, which was the parent company of International House of Pancakes, Orange Julius, and other franchise chains. After serving five years as International Industries' marketing director, Rogers became president of Communications-200, a Los Angeles advertising agency that did work for A&W Restaurants and other restaurant clients. In 1979, he moved to Dallas to take over marketing for Bonanza, which had been losing money and market share. By 1983, he became president of Bonanza's parent company, USACafes, and was instrumental in the chain tripling in value and gaining a slot on the New York Stock Exchange during the six years he was in charge. In 1989, however, Metromedia Restaurant Group acquired the Bonanza chain and Rogers was let go.

Revitalization in the 1990s

Out of work in Dallas, Rogers accepted the top position at Pizza Inn, a company that was over $32 million in debt. Even before he began the task of selling off Pizza Inn's 190 company-owned restaurants, he arranged to have the corporate headquarters spruced up. Hallways dark from burned-out light bulbs and hallways cluttered with stacks of file boxes, dirty bathrooms, and dingy drapes were indicative of a company that had lacked leadership for a long period of time. By simply cleaning up and painting the walls, Rogers instantly boosted employee morale. "People thought I was the turnaround king strictly because I cleaned the place," he told the Dallas Business Journal. Rogers also began to repair relations with franchisees, whom he learned had not been in contact with the home office for an entire year. With Pizza Inn selling off units, franchising would now be the life blood of the company. In effect, the franchisees would finance the future growth of the company, since they would be the ones making the major capital investments. Rogers also came to rely on the franchises to conduct the chain's research and development, believing that because they were on the front lines they would be better able to recognize what worked and what failed. One area that he felt strongly about was delivery, which was the fastest-growing segment of the pizza market. Little more than a third of all Pizza Inns offered delivery, a situation that Rogers began aggressively to address.

Pizza Inn lost money in 1991 and 1992. It was in 1992 that he hired one of his key executives at USACafes, Ronald Parker, to become Pizza Inn's chief operating officer. Improved customer service, cleaner restaurants, and a better menu resulted in Pizza Inn turning a profit of $2.2 million in 1993, which increased to $2.6 million the following year, and $3.2 million in 1995, as systemwide sales improved to $218 million. Pizza Inn turned to the convenience store market, opening Pizza Inn Express units inside Coastal Marts. Its full service restaurants moved into North Carolina, gaining a toe hold for Pizza Inn in the east. Moreover, Pizza Inn renewed its overseas efforts, franchising restaurants in Brazil, the Philippines, and the Middle East. At the same time, the company did not sacrifice control of the chain for sheer size. When its South Korean franchisee, who operated 40 stores, failed to use proper ingredients and offered poor service, the company did not hesitate to terminate the licensing agreement and seek new partners.

For his efforts in revitalizing Pizza Inn, Rogers was named Inc. magazine's Entrepreneur of the Year in the "turnaround category" in September 1994. To maintain momentum in the mid-1990s, Rogers greatly increased Pizza Inn's marketing budget, more than doubling the money spent on television advertising. The size of the Pizza Inn chain continued to grow each year, with new units more than offsetting under-performing ones that were shut down. In 1998, for instance, Pizza Inn opened 66 domestic units and 16 international units, while at the same time closing 54 units domestically and five overseas.

The fortunes of Pizza Inn peaked in 1997 when the company generated revenues of $69 million and posted a net profit of $4.5 million. Over the next few years, sales would stagnant, although the company would remain consistently profitable in the highly competitive pizza industry. In July 2000, Parker took over as president of the company to focus on operational issues and franchise service, allowing Rogers, who remained CEO, to concentrate on unit growth and profitability. The company continued its international growth, signing franchise deals in new territories such as Romania, Honduras, and Iceland. In 2001 Pizza Inn launched new initiatives to improve sagging sales trends, including store remodelings and the rolling out of the buffet format to new units. Although now fiscally healthy, Pizza Inn was not large enough to challenge its main rival, Pizza Hut, on a head-to-head basis. Rather, the chain had to continue to carefully target its markets in the southern portion of the United States while adding to its very successful overseas franchising program.

Principal Subsidiaries: PIBCO, ltd.; Barko Realty, Inc.; Pizza Inn of Delaware, Inc.; Pizza Inn, Servicos de Gestao de Franchising, Lda.; R-Check, Inc.

Principal Competitors: Domino's Pizza Inc.; Godfather's Pizza Inc.; Little Caesar International Inc.; Papa John's International Inc.; Pizza Hut Inc.; Sbarro Inc.; Uno Restaurant Corporation.

Related information about Pizza

otheruses
Pizza (IPA pronunciation: ) or Pizza Pie is the name of an oven-baked, flat, usually round bread covered with tomato sauce and cheese with optional toppings, or a savory pie with similar ingredients.

The cheese is usually mozzarella (the traditional Neapolitan pizza uses buffalo mozzarella or fior di latte) or sometimes a mixture of several cheeses such as parmesan, Romano, ricotta or, particularly in the USA, Monterey Jack. Various other toppings may be added, most typically:

  • herbs and seasonings such as basil, oregano, and garlic
  • vegetables such as bell peppers, asparagus, eggplant, broccoli, spinach, olives, onions, and artichoke hearts
  • meat or fish products such as sausage, (especially pepperoni or salami), ham, bacon, ground beef, anchovies, chicken, tuna, and shrimp
  • Other common toppings include mushroom and tomato

The crust is traditionally plain, but may also be seasoned with butter, garlic, or herbs, or stuffed with cheese. Pizza is normally eaten hot (typically at lunch or dinner), but leftovers are often eaten cold for breakfast or as a snack.

Piza or pissa is late Vulgar Latin (9th century) flat bread, and apparently came to mean a flat bread with a cheese topping by the 14th century in some Italian dialects.Oxford English Dictionary Online Pizzo, which means point in Italian, may have been an influence.Dizionario Etimologico, RusconiLibri, Prima Edizione, 2003, Italian language. Many languages around the Mediterranean have similar words meaning flat bread or unleavened bread, see pita.
The Italian word for a person with talent for making pizza is pizzaiolo.
A restaurant that serves pizza is called a pizzeria (from Italian); in many countries, pizza can also be ordered by telephone (or, increasingly, via the Web) to be delivered, hot and ready to eat, to almost any address within range of the restaurant. The first pizzeria established in the United States was Lombardi's in New York.

Pizza, a local food item originated from a small region of Italy, has become popular throughout the world, and is now a symbol of cultural globalization.

History

Crusts and baking methods

Pizza may be baked with a thin bread bottom (Italian or "hand-tossed" style) or with thicker bread (pan pizza, or American pizza). Some pizzas are now made with a cheese-filled crust.

In restaurants, pizza can be baked in a gas canister (stone bricks above the heat source) oven, an electric deck oven, a conveyor belt oven or, in the case of more expensive restaurants, a wood- or coal-fired brick oven. Another option is grilled pizza, in which the crust is baked directly on a barbecue grill. Greek pizza, like Chicago-style pizza, is baked in a pan rather than directly on the bricks of the pizza oven.

In home-made pizza, there are many variations on the bread used for crust. In some countries, creations such as pita pizza, bagel pizza, and tortilla pizza are popular, especially with children. In Australia, Domino's Pizza has introduced the "Puffection" pizza, featuring puff pastry as base. With some forms of pizza, particularly deep-dish, this is inverted, with the cheese and toppings placed directly on the dough and the sauce ladled over the top.
Original neapolitan pizzas use only raw, sliced tomatoes.

It is not uncommon to use a raw tomato sauce or tomato puree (usually made from canned tomatoes) and fresh herbs such as basil. Similarly, diced or ground tomatoes are often used more or less straight on deep-dish pizza.

Frozen pizza

Pizza is also found in supermarkets as a frozen food.

Italian and European law

Despite the simplicity of the ingredients used in a Neapolitan pizza, the most authentic versions are made with local ingredients:

  • San Marzano tomatoes, which grow on the volcanic plains in the south of Vesuvio,
  • Mozzarella di Bufala Campana, made with the milk from water buffalo raised in the marshlands of Campania and Latium in a semi-wild state; Only pizzas which followed these guidelines could be called "traditional Italian pizzas", at least in Italy.

    Italy has also requested that the European Union safeguard some traditional Italian pizzas, such as "margherita" and "marinara".Pi湛 vicina la tutela europea per la pizza, from an Italian government website This is part of an ongoing trend within Europe, preventing the names of regional foods being commercially exploited. These pizzas consist of the same basic design but include an exceptionally diverse choice of ingredients, such as anchovies, egg, pineapple, coconut, sauerkraut, eggplant, kim-chi, lamb, couscous, chicken, fish, and shellfish, meats done in ethnic styles such as Moroccan lamb, shawarma or even chicken tikka masala (India) , and non-traditional spices such as curry and Thai sweet chili. Pizzas can also be made without meat for vegetarians, and without cheese for vegans. Breakfast pizzas are topped with ingredients such as scrambled eggs. According to the rules proposed by the Associazione vera pizza napoletana and other sources quoted by the BBC,Italy mulls pizza protection law, a May 24, 2004 BBC News article and the legal EU document with the Vera Pizza Napoletana Specification in translation, the genuine Neapolitan pizza dough consists of Italian wheat flour (type 0 and/or 00), natural Neapolitan yeast or brewer's yeast, and water. After the rising process, the dough must be formed by hand without the help of a rolling pin or other mechanical device, and may be no more than 3 mm (1/8 in) thick. This admits only three official variants:

      • Pizza marinara: with tomato, garlic, oregano and oil;
      • Pizza Margherita: tomato, mozzarella in fillets, basil and oil;
      • Pizza Margherita Extra: tomato, buffalo mozzarella from Campania in fillets, basil and oil.
    • Lazio style: Pizza in Lazio (Rome), as well as in many other parts of Italy is available in 2 different "flavours": 1) In take-away shops so-called "Pizza Rustica" or "Pizza a Taglio". In Rome a "Pizza Napoletana" is topped with tomato, mozzarella, anchovies and oil (thus, what in Naples is called "Pizza Romana", in Rome is called "Pizza Napoletana"). Strangely enough, there is no "Pizza Napoletana" in Naples and no "Pizza Romana" in Rome.
    • Pizza Romana (in Naples): tomato, mozzarella, anchovies, oregano, oil;
    • Pizza Viennese: tomato, mozzarella, German sausage, oregano, oil;
    • Pizza with Ham and Mushrooms: tomato, mozzarella, ham, mushrooms;
    • Pizza Capricciosa ("Capricious Pizza"): mozzarella, tomato, mushrooms, artichokes, cooked ham, olives, oil (in Rome raw ham is used and half a hard-boiled egg is added;
    • Pizza Quattro Stagioni ("Four Seasons Pizza"): same ingredients for the Capricciosa, but ingredients not mixed;
    • Four Cheeses Pizza "Pizza quattro formaggi"): tomato, mozzarella, other cheeses;
    • Sicilian-style pizza has its toppings baked directly into the crust. Pizza Hut's Sicilian Pizza, introduced in 1994, is not an authentic example of the style as only garlic, basil, and oregano are mixed into the crust.
    • White pizza (pizza bianca) uses no tomato sauce, often substituting pesto or dairy products such as sour cream. Most commonly, the toppings consist only of mozzarella and ricotta cheese. Often baked in a brick oven, and typically weighed and sold by the slice.
    • The Alsacian tarte flamb辿e (German: Flammekueche) is a thin disc of dough covered in cr竪me fra樽che, onions, and bacon.
    • The Anatolian Lahmacun (Arabic: lahma bi ajeen; the layer of meat often includes chopped vegetables.
    • The Proven巽al pissaladiere is similar to an Italian pizza, with a slightly thicker crust and generally a topping of cooked onions, anchovies, and olives.
    • Calzone and stromboli are very similar dishes (calzone is traditionally half-moon-shaped, while a stromboli is tube-shaped) that are often made of pizza dough rolled or folded around a filling.
    • Pizza is sometimes used as a general word for a savory pie;

Variations worldwide

  • In Argentina: Pizzas have no more than two toppings, and lots of mozzarella cheese, usually 250 g per pizza (32 cm diameter)
  • In Scotland, a "pizza supper" commonly sold in fish and chip shops consists of a portion of chips (french fries) and a frozen pizza which has been deep fried rather than baked.
  • In Canada, the topping combination of back bacon, pepperoni and mushrooms is called 'Canadian Pizza' . In Quebec, the same topping combination is called a 'Qu辿b辿cois Pizza'. salad dressings like Ranch Dressing.
  • In Australia, a commonly sold style is the Aussie pizza, which is topped with ham, bacon, cheese and egg. In "barbecue pizza," barbecue sauce is poured on top of the cheese, with usually a meat such as chicken or beef. Most Australian pizzerias use gas or electric ovens although wood fired ovens have become a major feature of the more expensive 'gourmet' pizza restaurants mentioned above.
  • In Japan, pizza toppings may include corn, diced potatoes, scrambled eggs, mayonnaise, Camembert cheese, curry sauce, and various kinds of seafood. Salad pizza, a pizza topped with tossed salad, is occasionally seen.cookpad.com (in Japanese), retrieved April 6, 2006 Another variation is rice pizza, substituting baked rice for the crust.e-recipe.org (in Japanese), retrieved April 6, 2006 Squid ink is also occastionally used in lieu of traditional tomato sauce.www.chachich.com/mdchachi/jpizza.html The Japanese dish okonomiyaki is occasionally referred to in English as "Japanese pizza", although its ingredients, preparation method, and taste are substantially different from traditional pizza.
  • In South Korea, kimchi and bulgogi are used as toppings, as well as many of the toppings used in Japan.
  • In Hong Kong, Pizza Hut customers may choose to have their pizzas dressed with Thousand Island dressing instead of tomato sauce.
  • In Mexico, pizza is often enjoyed dipped in ketchup and/or hot sauce. Some pizzas include ingredients such as beans, beef, poblano pepper, jalape単o pepper, corn nibblets, chorizo, onion, etc.
  • In Pakistan, Pizza toppings can have chunks of 'Chicken Tikka' and a super spicy variation with lots of 'Tandoori Masala'. Many pizzarias also make their pizzas in brick ovens for the crispier crust.
  • In India, pizza toppings include vegetables and other traditional sauces or chunks of tandoori chicken or paneer (cottage cheese). Also Indians like to have a large quantity of toppings on their pizza.
  • In Iran, pizza is sometimes eaten with ketchup.
  • In Brazil, especially S達o Paulo city, pizzas are one of the most profitable items of Brazilian food industry. Among them are traditional Neapolitan style pizzas (brought by Italian immigrants) and sort of "new style" pizzas with chocolate and fruits (banana possibly being the most common), among other toppings. While outside the city of S達o Paulo it is common to use condiments such as ketchup on a pizza, it is almost considered rude in S達o Paulo, where the most traditional Italian pizza is made.
  • In Sweden the Kebab pizza is a popular choice. Another popular pick is the beef tenderloin with bearnaise sauce topping and it is often one of the most luxurious pizzas on the menu.
  • In China, pizza is relatively rare. However, with the expansion of Pizza Hut into China's larger cities, pizza is rapidly gaining approval and popularity.
  • In Taiwan, pizza is typically made with ingredients as varied as peach slices and corn, beans, pears, and beef.
  • In the United Kingdom, pizza is most readily available in supermarkets as fresh pizza. There are too many popular toppings to actually document.
  • In Ghana, pizza is widely available and is served at many restaurants.
  • In Kenya, the recently introduced 'cheese-free' variety has been a fantastic success with its inhabitants, especially amongst the Kikuyu fact.
  • In Sudan, national efforts in funding and diplomacy have been made in order to make pizza (pronounced locally) available at public restaurants. Currently, pizza can be obtained from certain cafes in private clubs, or via the black market fact.
  • In the Netherlands, pizza is often hot and spicy.

U.S. styles and specialties


Due to the wide influence of Italian and Greek immigrants in American culture, the United States has developed quite a large number of regional forms of pizza, many bearing only a casual resemblance to the Italian original. Many pizza establishments in the New York metropolitan area offer two varieties of pizza: "Neapolitan", or "round", made with a relatively thin, circular crust and served in wedge-shaped slices, and "Sicilian", or "square", made with a thicker, rectangular crust and served in large, rectangular slices. Deep-dish pizza was purportedly invented and first served in 1943 at Pizzeria Uno, which is still operating along with its twin restaurant, Pizzeria Due, in the River North neighborhood.

  • Chicago-style thin crust pizza has a thinner crust than Chicago-style deep dish, and is baked flat rather than in a deep dish pan. Barbecue sauce is sometimes a substitute for tomato sauce.
  • Greek pizza is a variation popular in New England.
  • Hawaiian pizza has Canadian bacon and pineapple toppings and is especially popular in the Western United States. the toppings are placed on the baked side after the pizza has cooked for a bit and flipped over.
  • English muffin or French bread pizza and pizza bagel is a common convenience pizza made at home in an oven or toaster, usually with a simple topping of spaghetti sauce, sliced or shredded cheese, and perhaps pepperoni. French bread pizza is sometimes available commercially as a frozen meal.



Regional variations include

  • In New Haven, Connecticut, the local specialty is known as apizza. This thin-crust pizza originated with the Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana in the Wooster Square neighborhood of New Haven. The canonical New Haven-style pizza is a white clam pie.
  • In Oneonta, New York, a specialty type of pizza served is known as "cold cheese pizza". This style, made popular by restaurants such as Nirchi's and Brozzetti's, is similar to the Sicilian style, but typically comes in a rectangular shape, has a sweeter crust, and sometimes uses non-traditional cheeses.
  • In Arkansas, Wafer thin pizza, with little or no sauce with lots of parmesan cheese, cheese, and pepperoni is preferred.
  • Long Island, New York, where the pizza is glorified by many residents, has its own regional variation, aptly titled the Long Island pizza, which typically has a somewhat thinner crust. There is also a growing choice of gourmet pizza including baked ziti pizza, buffalo chicken pizza, eggplant/chicken parmesan pizza, salad pizza, chicken marsala pizza and shrimp scampi pizza. The Long Island Pizza Festival & Bake-Off is annual competition where mom and pop pizzerias compete to be named best on Long Island.
  • In San Francisco, California, the Indian Pizza (see below) has become a source of pride. Sourdough crust pizza is the type most commonly associated with San Francisco, however.
  • In Baltimore, Maryland, pizza is traditionally served with a thick, doughy crust and a heavy amount of sauce. Made popular by the originating restaurant, BeauJo's, it is piled high with toppings and kept from spilling over by a large, hand-rolled crust that is often dipped in honey for dessert.
  • In New Mexico, green chile is often used as a pizza topping, especially in combination with pepperoni, local chorizo sausage, or on supreme pizza. This is uncommon elsewhere.
  • In Buffalo, New York, pizza is made with a thicker, doughier crust than traditional New York style pizza, with a slightly thicker and sweeter sauce, mozzarella cheese and (usually) pepperoni cooked until it is burned and crispy on the edges. Buffalo-style pizza can also be found in communities where there is a large population of expatriate Buffalonians, like Charlotte, North Carolina.
  • In Utica, New York and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a type of pizza called tomato pie is common. This type of pizza is usually served room temperature, always has a rectangular crust, and is by definition only topped with thick tomato sauce and a sprinkling of grated romano cheese.
  • In Dayton, Ohio, the local preference is for pizza with thin crust and a light sauce cut into small squares.
  • Youngstown, Ohio's "Brier Hill Pizza" features a thick sauce topped with a mixture of Parmesan and Romano cheese and green peppers. A similar style to Brier Hill Pizza is also a tradition in nearby communities with strong Italian roots, including Niles, Ohio and Warren, Ohio (the Sunrise Inn in Warren is particularly famous for its "old world-style pizza," also known by some simply as "bar pizza" due to it being served from behind the bar in the restaurant.
  • Old Forge, Pennsylvania near Scranton is the self-styled "Pizza Capital of the World" because of its abundance of Italian restaurants specializing in pizza. Finally, whereas most other localities refer to it as "a pie" or simply "a pizza", it is ordered throughout northeastern Pennsylvania by the "tray" because of the simple plastic, school cafeteria-style trays on which restaurants serve it.
  • In Southern California, ranch dressing is a very popular condiment on pizza. Many pizzarias carry ranch dressing as a standard condiment for all customers readily available upon request.
  • In Memphis, Tennessee, barbeque pizza is quite popular due to the city's love of BBQ. It usually consists of either BBQ'd pork, chicken, or beef topped with cheddar cheese and barbeque sauce replaces the standard tomato sauce.
  • On the Mississippi Gulf Coast and New Orleans, many people top their pizza with French or Catalina dressing, a practice that began at Hugo's Italian Restaurant, now defunct, in Biloxi.
  • In Northern Ireland pizza made with Soda Bread is becoming popular, similar to a pizza bagel substituting traditional Soda Bread for the usual pizza base. Those who consume too much cheese for example are at a greater risk of developing cardiovascular disease and are prone to heart attacks.

    Records

    • The largest pizza ever made was at the Norwood Pick 'n Pay Hypermarket in Johannesburg, South Africa. This feat was accomplished on December 8th 1990.
    • On 22 March 2001, Bernard Jordaan of Butler's Pizza, Cape Town, South Africa, delivered a pizza 11042 km (6861 miles) from Cape Town to Sydney, Australia, to set the world record for the longest pizza delivery. The record will appear in the 2006 version of the book of Guinness World Records.

    See also

    • Pizza farm
    • History of pizza

    Notes and references

Chronology

  • Key Dates:
  • 1960: Francis J. Spillman opens a pizza business near the Southern Methodist University campus.
  • 1961: Pizza Inn is incorporated.
  • 1963: Franchising of the company begins.
  • 1971: A bid to merge with Pizza Hut fails.
  • 1987: Pantera's Corp. acquires Pizza Inn.
  • 1989: The company is forced to declare bankruptcy.
  • 1990: Jeff Rogers is named president.
  • 1993: Pizza Inn returns to profitability.

Additional topics

Company HistoryRestaurants

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