Pizza, the only word that will never offend, hurt, or discriminate against someone. When you ask a child what their favorite food is, a majority will answer ‘pizza’! It is the world’s most popular food, and for good reason. There are so many different types of pizza and different ways of eating it. You can dine in with a fork and knife, you can fold like a hotdog, eat the crust first, or just eat from top to bottom. These delicious Italian delicacies are created in so many ways: Detroit style, Chicago deep dish, Sicilian, grandma, rectangular, and the best of them all…New York thin crust. Let’s take a look at all the varieties and think of the impact pizza has had on our society.

Pizza In Our World

Our society is fixated on social media and entertainment. Pizza has been prevalent in all types of media. Beloved characters such as the teenage mutant ninja turtles and SpongeBob SquarePants have had pizza be a main factor in their episodes. You can hardly watch 1 hour of television without seeing multiple pizza commercials – Dominoes, Papa Johns, and of course, ‘no one out-pizzas The Hut!” It is all around us.

Pizza is a highly profitable business. All it takes is some dough, mozzarella cheese, and some tomato sauce and you will have a great pizza. There can be so many different twists on pizza, too. Countries such as India use a naan bread and ketchup instead of regular dough and tomato sauce. Different cultures and societies have their impacts on how they eat their pizza; New York is a gleaming example. People in New York are always in a hurry, so the thin crust pizza is something you can eat on the go without any hassle or mess. New York pizza is often quick, easy, and cheap. Some slices go for only $1, keeping the whole neighborhood fed.

Perfect For Any Event

Pizza is a great way to feed a crowd. It’s a common staple not only at college student gatherings, but also kids’ birthday parties, baby showers, bachelor parties, the list goes on. Establishments such as Chuck E. Cheese use pizza to entice children to have their parties there. It is the perfect food for any gathering.

As Michael Scott from the famous sitcom “The Office” once said, “Pizza…the great equalizer.” Michael understood that pizza brings everyone together; it is a food that anyone can enjoy. He said this because he wanted to bring his workers together, the sales representatives, the warehouse workers, and even the pizza delivery guy. It’s a food that excites nearly everyone - nothing beats that combo of dough, cheese, and tomatoes.

The Global Fascination

It’s no surprise that each year, more than 5 BILLION pizzas are sold worldwide, with 3 BILLION coming out of the United States. The U.S has so many different versions which make them unique. There are no rules in eating pizza, you can follow Burger King's motto and “Have it your way”. The flexibility of pizza is what makes it so great and profitable. Eat it with barbecue sauce, ketchup, Wisconsin cheese, it does not matter.

No matter how you slice it, just remember to appreciate this global phenomenon, “the great equalizer.”

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