Connecticut declares itself the “pizza state”, to the chagrin of New York and Chicago

When you think of pizza, you think of Italy. When you think of pizza in the United States, you think of New York, Chicago, Hawaii if you like pineapple… You know what doesn’t come to mind? Connecticut. But someone in the US Congress wants to change that.

The New York Times writes that Democratic Representative Rosa DeLauro, from Connecticut, declared on the house floor that the best pizza in the United States comes from her home state.

DeLauro stated on Congressional Record that pizzerias have made New Haven “one of the most respected and recognized pizza meccas and destinations in the country”.

New Haven, home of Yale University, is the third-largest city of Connecticut and is known for a thin-crusted, coal-fired Neapolitan pizza that locals call “apizza”.

Image: smoove857 / Unsplash

Celebrities such as Hillary Clinton and Conan O’Brien haven stated their love for the New Haven-style pizza.

DeLauro also insists on referring to Connecticut as “the pizza state” and unilaterally declaring New Haven as “the pizza capital of America”.

To add insult to the injury, over 100 pizza makers, experts, and fans from Connecticut joined DeLauro on the Capitol steps to celebrate their “victory”.

Unsurprisingly, this gesture didn’t sit well in other cities. A spokesperson from the New York City Hall defended the long tradition between the Big Apple and pizza in an e-mail quoted by local newspaper The Greenwich Time.

“More than a century of satisfied customers, the residents of the five boroughs, and nearly 62 million visitors to New York City each year have already settled what was never really a debate”, the NYC municipal employee responded. “New York City is the premiere destination for pizza”.

According to The New York Post, New York City mayor Eric Adams also weighed in to the matter, defending the Big Apple as the indisputable pizza king. He argued that New Haven’s claim was “a real cheesy opportunity” but they could always be number two.

Lisa Nucci, Choose Chicago’s Chief Marketing Officer, took a more inclusive approach in her e-mail response to The Greenwich Time.

“From our iconic deep dish to the beloved tavern style, and everything in between like Neapolitan, New York-style, and even Detroit-style, Chicago is a melting pot of pizza perfection”, declared Nucci.

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