This fascinating and erudite history explores the origins of pizza in 18th-century Naples, the families who made and sold it, its key ingredients and techniques, and the growth of pizzerias along with the city. It points to pizza's global contemporary popularity and makes an important contribution to food history and Italian studies.

Carole Counihan, Millersville University, USA

In this delightful and well-researched book, Antonio Mattozzi traces the history of pizza and pizzerie, their origins in Naples and their particular developments there, first as street food and later in small eateries which developed out of bakers' shops. So much of what we know about pizza lies in myth and urban legend; using archival research, and with the city of Naples as his backdrop, Mattozzi is able to correct this. Inventing the Pizzeria makes a significant contribution to a range of fields, most especially food history, but also social and urban history.

David Gentilcore, University of Leicester, UK