An Italian baker, Raffaele Esposito, is credited with creating a pizza In the late 1800s, for visiting royalty--the Italian monarch King Umberto and his consort Queen Margherita. Using colors from the Italian flag to represent Italy, the clever baker topped his flat bread with tomato for red, mozzarella cheese for white and basil for green--along with seasonings and olive oil. The King and Queen apparently loved the dish and the story of the baker's patriotism spread wide and far. Soon others began to copy it.

By the beginning of the 1900's, thanks to Italian immigrants (mostly to New York and Chicago), pizza made it's way to the inner cities in the United States. Cafes began offering the Italian favorite, catering to the large Italian population. In addition, American soldiers who enjoyed the dish while serving on the Italian Front during WWII, added to the dishes growing popularity by searching it out when they returned home.