The legend says that the first pizza was created in 1889 when the Italian king, Umberto I, ordered food from the local pizzeria “Brandi” to celebrate his visit to Naples.

Pizza makers Rafael Espozito and Maria Brandi, among other dishes, crafted a pizza resembling the colors of the Italian flag. They used tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, and basil leaves, dedicating it specifically to Queen Margherita. Their culinary masterpiece was enthusiastically received, and that pizza is now famously known as the Margherita pizza, considered the precursor to all pizzas and the standard for Neapolitan pizza.

Neapolitan pizza is regarded as royal not only because it was made in honor of the queen but also because crafting it requires exceptional skill and talent, with pizza maker training taking several years.

Despite the various types of pizza existing today—such as Roman, Detroit, New York Style, Sicilian, classic, or Californian pizzas—differing in dough type, ingredients, and baking methods, only Neapolitan pizza holds a protected geographical indication certificate (since 2009). The recipe and the art of pizza-making were recognized by UNESCO in 2017 as globally protected cultural heritage.

The tomatoes must be either San Marzano tomatoes or Pomodorino del Piennolo del Vesuvio, which grow on the volcanic plains to the south of Mount Vesuvius. The cheese must be mozzarella di bufala campana, a protected designation of origin cheese made with the milk from water buffalo raised in the marshlands of Campania and Lazio in a semi-wild state, or fior di latte, a cow’s milk mozzarella created according to the procedure for which it was registered as a Traditional Speciality Guaranteed. Pizza napoletana is a TSG product in the European Union and the United Kingdom, and the art of its making is included on UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage.