Flying Wedge and the history of pizza

Pizza has long been North American street food—way before the food trucks came along.

The first time pizza was sold on the street was in 1905 on New York's Spring Street by an Italian immigrant. It was brought by the Italians to North American shores.

Pizza was invented in Gaeta, Italy, way back in 997 A.D. where it was sold as a flatbread with herbs, onions, and garlic.

In 16th-century Naples, pizza took on the modern form, as we know it, with tomato sauce and cheese.

The Margherita pizza was actually invented on June 11, 1889, in honour of Queen Margherita of Italy by a Neapolitan pizza maker.

He added tomato, mozarella, and fresh basil, which thrilled her because those were the colours of the Italian flag.

On the streets of Vancouver pizza is easy to find.

A more Italian style is sold at Goldie's on West Pender Street, which is quite tasty. But I actually prefer Flying Wedge.

It can be salty (especially the pepperoni) and oily, but it's got something about it. And that's the taste. It's spicy and satisfying and the basic pizza dough has far more flavour than your average slice.

I also happen to like garlic and there's always that little bit of extra garlic in a Flying Wedge pizza.

Flying Wedge began in Kitsilano in 1989, so yes, it's ancient and nothing new. It has no MSG. The cheeses are all 100 percent natural and the toppings are substantial. The company offers various flavours like the Tropical Pig, which is your basic Hawaiian. It's 290 calories a slice.

The Bacon Cheeseburger, which I like, also has 290 a slice while the Classic Pepperoni contains 340 calories a slice. They usually have a special called a 'Wedgie of the Day' and it's $3.50 a slice. I usually go for that.

From all the street pizzas, I somehow always go back to Flying Wedge. The company has a charitable side: a program where schoolchildren can spend the day at a Flying Wedge outlet and observe how pizza is being made. Which is kind of cute if you're seven or eight.

Pizza is high in fat and high in salt, as everybody knows. But it's something you can't really live without. And while there are pizza stands all over, maybe you should give Flying Wedge a shot and think of how far we've come with pizza since it was invented.