Most of us who read Slice are interested in the glorious craft of pizza making, but the truth is it wouldn't exist if it wasn't a gigantic industry. The latest stats tag the American pizza industry's value at $39 billion. Any industry this large has multiple trade shows, but there's only one place where pizza professionals can see all the latest in pizza products / technology: The International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas. I just returned from it last week. More

There is common misconception that coal ovens are on the endangered species list in New York City. The truth is, there are more than than you'd think. Here's a quick rundown of five dormant coal-burning ovens in New York. More

Fried pizza is real and New York is currently experiencing its first real dose in the deep fryer. It's soft with a thin crisp on the outside, deceivingly light and airy, and unbelievably addictive, but what exactly is it and where does it come from? More

Have you ever noticed the creepy guy hanging out in Neapolitan pizzerias? No, not Adam Kuban. I'm talking about Pulcinella. He's always wearing a puffy white getup, matching white hat, and a black mask with a long, pointy nose. Maybe you haven't noticed him, but Pulcinella is usually within ten feet of most wood-fired ovens in the form of paintings and figurines. Who is this guy and why is he associated with pizza? We'll have to go back a few centuries to find out. More

There is no such thing as Italian pizza. We're seeing a LOT of Neapolitan representation these days, but if New York is any indication, I'd say it's time to brush up on your Julius Caesar and prepare for a visit from the Roman pizza army. More

It's very likely that other pizzerias used the name Ray before Ralph Cuomo (I found evidence of at least two), but none lasted long enough to be affiliated with the current situation. The pizzeria at 27 Prince Street truly is Patient Zero for the Ray's epidemic. Plenty has already been written about the confusing ownership of the various Ray's locations, so I'm going to give as quick a summary as possible by tracing the lineage through a collection of business licenses and phone books I have collected over the years. More

A cloud of mystery surrounds the San Marzano tomato, with plenty of myths and legends to make even the simplest of ingredients sound intriguing. Let's scrape away the hearsay and take a look at the facts behind pizza's most popular pomodoro. More

The once-necessary-then-obsolete-now-re-popularized coal oven has an interesting past that traces the story of pizza development in the Northeastern USA. Those who have experienced the goodness of a coal-fired oven may take for granted the resulting pizza's crisp yet chewy texture, but how did these chunks of black rock get into our ovens? More

Most Slice'rs probably agree that pizza is best served directly from the oven, but over 1 billion pizzas are delivered each year and every single one of them is transported to its destination in a simple cardboard box. The contemporary pizza box remains as anonymous as it is simple, as few of its users know anything about the cardboard coffin's humble origins. Let's dig a little deeper into the history of the pizza box to provide some context for an item most of us view as a necessary evil in the life of a pizza eater. More

The contemporary pizza consumer is pretty well-versed in the language of Neapolitan pizza. We know what a wood-fired brick oven looks like, we appreciate San Marzano tomatoes and we've tasted mozzarella di bufala. We even know where to go in Naples for the most historic pizzerias on the planet. But what about other pizza styles that bare Italian pedigrees? More