What’s happening with Neapolitan Pizza?

Our Man on the Street columnist offers up a hot take on Neapolitan pizza. Scott Wiener is not condemning the style, but I suspect some of my friends who operate Neapolitan-focused pizzerias are going to think otherwise.

I remember the first Neapolitan pizza I personally ever had. I hated it. It was soupy. I just didn’t get it.

Jeremy White
Editor-in-Chief
Pizza Today
[email protected]

A dozen years later I would go on to tell anyone who asked me that Neapolitan was my personal favorite style of pizza. At the time, it was. I finally understood it, finally had some outstanding versions of it, and I was hooked.

Like many people, my tastes change over time. Today I’d tell you a quality Grandma pizza is the cat’s meow for me. There aren’t many styles I don’t like (looking at you, St. Louis — but Scott Sandler is going to take care of that in next month’s issue, so stay tuned) truthfully. So, having said that … yup, I still love a good Neapolitan.

Wiener does too. He even credits it for igniting “an explosion of quality pizza” in the United States when Neapolitan captured America’s collective pizza attention about 15 years ago. But he also argues the dish is too restrictive.

I know many will have strong reactions to this opinion, and I’m here for it. Disagree with Scott and want to send a strongly worded rebuttal? Agree and want to weigh in on the conversation? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Drop them to me at [email protected].

Best,

Jeremy white
Editor In Chief
[email protected]