Birthplace of fast food

by Nicole Weston, Posted Apr 21st 2006 @ 2:54PM

Gadling has a great post about discovering the birthplace of the pizza. Many consider Italy in general to be the originator of the popular dish, even though others will argue that the only pizzas worth eating come from New York. The pizza, apparently, was invented in Naples, Italy, the city that is, according to the Times reporter, the birthplace of fast food. The locals eat fried, nut-studded donuts and cream-filled sfogliatelle for breakfast and have been seen to nosh on pizza while riding on the back of a moped, cruising the motorway at high speeds.

What's the difference between this kind of on-the-go eating and the more traditionally American definition of fast food? American fast food is food made quickly. Whether or not it is eater quickly is entirely up to the eater, though the food is usually presented in a way that makes it easy to consume while doing other things. The traditional Italian fast food may be simple and may be eaten quickly, but it does not have to be made quickly. The country is known for its slow food movement, after all, and Naples is certainly not left out. The bakers are kneading dough and lovingly shaping it in pizzerias because it is their passion to make the food, however long it takes, not just to make something fast, edible and get it out the door.

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Filed Under: Newspapers, On the Blogs, Food Quest
Tags: birthplace, culture, donuts, eating, fast food, food, Food Quest, gadling, italy, naples, origin of pizza, pizza, sfogliatelle, tradition

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

4-21-2006 @5:25PM Dean Spizzirri said... I certainly think that the simple and fresh pizza's in Naples give a run to New York style pizza (although I do think that NY has the best pizza in the US- sorry Chicago). I have spent the equivalent of ten days in Naples and every single day had Pizza Margherita or the version with prosciutto. Simple but outstanding.
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4-21-2006 @5:42PM Dean Spizzirri said... I certainly think that the simple and fresh pizza's in Naples give a run to New York style pizza (although I do think that NY has the best pizza in the US- sorry Chicago). I have spent the equivalent of ten days in Naples and every single day had Pizza Margherita or the version with prosciutto. Simple but outstanding.
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4-22-2006 @12:07AM Raspberry Sour said... I have to say, I find this whole "Naples is the birth of fast food" argument a little hard to swallow. Has no one at the Times ever been outside of North America/Europe. Every country, every market stall, has its own version of fast food (or, more aptly, food on the go). Sorry to be a curmudgeon, but what a short-sighted view of culinary history.
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