Quietly, Pizza DIXIT turns ten.
This photo of me was taken in 2013. I had just moved to London. The blog would only come two years later, but here I am pictured in the pizzeria that shattered all my preconceptions about authentic Neapolitan pizza abroad (yes, I know you can’t see the pizza, but I assure you it’s a pizzeria).
The blog was born on an unspecified day in December 2015: I never remember which one, and every year I celebrate the birthday at random. This time, I liked the idea of doing it right on the edge of the new year, like a sort of rite of passage.
And in ten years, so much has happened. I’ve met countless other expatriate Neapolitans like myself, proud of their roots and their identity, which they expressed through that simple dish. I decided to do my part by helping them spread their message with the one thing I think I know I do well: writing.
From London, I launched myself into a constant search for other pizzerias in Europe, with a few brief forays beyond the continent. I lived and witnessed firsthand the global growth movement of Neapolitan pizza. I met a sea of talents, and I began to particularly appreciate that whole new generation of “foreign” pizzaioli – that is, non-Italians – who fell in love with our product and our culture and began to become its proudest ambassadors.
The pioneering spirit of those times was also reflected in contacts with other passionate bloggers. We were few, small, but each of us in our own way represented the voice of the pizza world around us. A microcosm of independent communicators.
In 2017, I was still in London when we celebrated the UNESCO recognition of the art of the Neapolitan pizzaiuolo. Pizza was moving out of niche culture to become a mass phenomenon. Meanwhile, I was already beginning to spot and tell the first signs of a somewhat underground movement that was slowly emerging: that of home pizza making. Then, in 2020, we all locked ourselves at home. And something unexpected happened: that movement exploded and became a worldwide phenomenon!
Today, everyone talks about pizza, food journalists spill rivers of ink over it, guides and rankings abound, not to mention YouTubers and influencers with millions of followers. Pizza, not just Neapolitan, has truly solidified its status as a world heritage: perhaps before we simply didn’t realize it, but now it’s a competition to see who can profess their love the loudest.
But what about me? Where am I now after ten years? I must say I don’t know, or perhaps I haven’t figured it out yet. I certainly don’t claim to be an authoritative journalist, nor am I part of that array of influencers who figured out long before me how to use social media to reach a wide audience. I wanted to celebrate this important anniversary with an Instagram reel, but I was too lazy to edit one, with the risk of possibly producing a cheesy, self-congratulatory monologue. So I opted for what I do best: writing it in a post, the monologue.
And perhaps that’s the only certainty I have today. No matter how much I never shy away from experimenting with new languages or platforms, I know for sure that writing always remains my preferred way of communicating: whether it’s here on the blog, on Facebook, in the newsletter, or in articles published in other magazines. The pen remains my best tool.
And I also know something else: I don’t know how long I’ll have the right energy to carry on this little communication project. But I know I want to find ever-new ways to talk about pizza, continue to seek unexplored corners, alternative points of view, and above all, build relationships with creative, passionate people who have something new to tell. Perhaps the day I run out of charge will be precisely the day this world no longer offers me any stimuli.
For now, I celebrate ten years of Pizza DIXIT. Which for me is not just a blog. It’s also the Facebook page, the contacts on Instagram, the podcast, the dozens of pieces I’ve scattered across other sites, books, and various magazines, and everything that is to come. But most of all, all the people who have crossed my path: from the person who introduced me to the pizzeria that sparked the idea, to the blog’s first commenters, to those who found it and reshared it on their own channels to give my voice a platform, to those who offered me collaboration opportunities, to everyone who sent me a message of appreciation or stopped me at a fair to say hello and get to know me. Those with whom I’ve shared chats, projects, and a slice of pizza.
I won’t name names, you all know who you are. Let’s celebrate together.
[this post was originally published on my Facebook page on December 31, 2025 – hence the references to the anniversary month – and republished here identically with some slight modifications to adapt it to the blog]
