Mangia Pizza!

Pizza in Italy is a little different in a few aspects than the pizza eaten by Americans in the United States. The main characteristics that differ between them include buying a slice of pizza, eating the pizza slices like a sandwich when you take it to go, and having no red marinara sauce or very little sauce on it.

When I bought my first slice of pizza in Rome a few days ago, I was in shock at how different the process was compared to America. First of all, most of the pizzerias are very small in the area and are just like counters to order your pizza then take it with you. There is very little seating in most of the pizzerias. When there is more seating, it is more like a restaurant where the prices are a little more expensive to pay for pizza and you won't be getting just a slice. Next, you choose the kind of pizza you want and tell them how big of a piece you want. They cut the piece of pizza with a pair of scissors and then they weigh it to determine how much it will cost.


Usually, the small/medium size will cost between 1.5-3 Euros, which really isn't that bad. This is especially because the slice of pizza is really long so when you ask for it "to go" they cut it in half and stack it like a sandwich for easier transport. <-- Just like in this picture.


Pizza is eaten on the go like this all over Rome. In the United States, when you get a slice of pizza to go it tends to be a triangular slice that is put into a triangular box. This is not the case in Rome and truthfully this way is probably more efficient and saves on a lot of specialty boxes. Also, it's easier to eat it when it's in sandwich form like this rather than trying to eat it as a regular slice or with a fork and knife.

All of the slices of pizza I have had have not contained any red marinara sauce. Now that doesn't mean that Italians don't put sauce on all their pizza, but there were a lot that did not have sauce on them. This could be because there are different ways of making pizza in Italy. There is Roman pizza and Napoletana pizza. There are various different sauce and topping combinations for each of this. There are a variety of different toppings like in America, but they are different. In Italy, toppings consist of prosciutto, eggplant, zucchini and a typical margherita pizza. Another reason for having no sauce on the pizza is the idea that they use fresh tomatoes on their pizza so there is no need for sauce. Also, depending on the topping combination, a red marinara sauce may not be ideal such as for the eggplant pizza that I had at Zucchero & Farina (shown in this picture). They used a mixture of olive oil and garlic along with a couple of different cheeses with the eggplant to create an amazingly delicious pizza without any red marinara sauce.

Overall, pizza in America is similar to that of Italy in some cases, but in most pizzerias in Italy there are many differences that can be seen immediately. These are not necessarily bad differences nor are they good differences, depending on your personal taste. It is just a different way of eating, ordering, and enjoying a great dish that most people take for granted in America.