In São Paulo, pizza became popular even before reaching northern Italy, according to USP research on Italian immigration.
Pizza, one of the greatest symbols of Italian cuisine in Brazil, became a tradition in São Paulo at the beginning of the 20th century. The surprising fact is that, at that time, the dish was still unknown in much of northern Italy, where many immigrants came from.
The observation is from the journalist Silvana Azevedo de Almeida, PhD from the School of Philosophy, Letters and Human Sciences (FFLCH) at USP. For ten years, she researched how Italian immigrants influenced São Paulo's cuisine and created the concept of "heritage cuisine"—a cuisine that preserves and transforms traditions over time.
“People from São Paulo ate pizza even before some of the Italians from the north, where the dish only became popular much later,” says the researcher, based on interviews and historical documents analyzed. during his thesis.
The Neapolitan origin of pizza
Pizza as we know it originated in Naples, southern Italy. Traditionally made with thin dough, tomato sauce, and a few ingredients, it was a food popular among the poorer classes.
Until the mid-20th century, pizza was little known in northern Italy, such as Lombardy, Piedmont, and Veneto—the regions from which thousands of immigrants departed for Brazil. It was only after World War II that the dish spread throughout the rest of the European country.
Arrival in Brazil
In São Paulo, the first pizza ovens appeared in the Brás neighborhood, one of the main strongholds of the Italian colony. Initially, it was a food restricted to community parties and neighborhood bakeries. But in the following decades, it began to be served in restaurants and cantinas.
The first pizzerias in São Paulo emerged between 1910 and 1920. Soon, the dish was adapted to local tastes, with new toppings, thicker crusts, and larger ovens. São Paulo pizza, made with abundant mozzarella, high crusts, and a variety of toppings, gained its own identity.
Today, São Paulo is home to around 5 pizzerias and consumes over 600 pizzas daily. The city is considered the second-largest pizza consumer in the world, behind only New York.
A reinvented dish
The researcher emphasizes that Brazilian pizza is a direct result of cultural adaptation. "Italians encountered different ingredients and a clientele with their own habits in Brazil. This required changes that didn't erase the dish's origins, but created a new tradition," she explains.
In Brazil, beef is consumed more frequently, seasonings are more intense, and cheese is used more generously. The wood-fired oven, inherited from the Neapolitan tradition, has been maintained, but the variety of flavors has grown—pepperoni, chicken with catupiry cheese, Portuguese cheese, and even sweets like chocolate and banana.
According to Silvana, pizza is a clear example of “heritage cuisine”: a cuisine that transforms without losing its function of preserving memories and identities.
Pizza as a cultural link
For Italian immigrants, opening a pizzeria was more than a commercial activity. It was a way to keep alive the traditions of their homeland and create a place of belonging in their new country.
Over time, pizza went from being merely a symbol of immigration to becoming part of São Paulo's identity. Today, it's present in every region of the city, from traditional neighborhoods to the outskirts, with versions catering to different tastes and price ranges.
The researcher concludes that Brazilian pizza, while distinct from the original, carries at its core the same community and affective spirit of the Neapolitan tradition. "It's a dish that has united cultures, crossed oceans, and reinvented itself without losing its essence."
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