Naples chefs slam over-priced pizza

From the Times Online, August 31, 2008 - Italy’s restaurant trade was accused of ripping off tourists last week in a mass protest by catering workers on the streets of Naples. Delighted tourists in the Piazza Dante were handed free margherita pizza as members of the Neapolitan Pizza Chefs’ Association (APN) served up thousands of pizzas as a protest against the rising cost of Italy’s most famous export.

“Consumers beware,” warned the APN president, Sergio Miccu. “A margherita pizza shouldn’t cost more than £2.80,” adding that the average cost of producing the quintessential Neapolitan dish is just 96p.

“In some cities I’ve seen margherita pizzas being sold for £8,” said the regional agriculture chief Francesco Borelli. “Considering the low cost of the raw materials, that’s real financial speculation.”

Public dissent against overcharging is increasing across Italy. Two weeks ago, an English tourist called police to a bar in Tusa, in Sicily, after being charged £28.95 for three sandwiches; and a German couple who recklessly ordered a lobster lunch at an outdoor table in St Mark’s Square, Venice, paid the restaurant £400 for the experience.

Two-tier pricing is another rip-off, with forestieri - foreigners - frequently paying one rate and locals paying another. “In many cities there are two or more distinct price lists,” explained Marco Donzelli of Codacons. “Residents pay one price, which increases slightly for Italian tourists and is decidedly steep for foreigners.”

To visit the home of the pizza margherita, invented for Queen Margherita, click Brandi Pizzeria.

Italy Travel: Naples My Way

What do people think of when they think of Naples?

Is it Pizza and Spaghetti?  

I experienced Naples first hand and I can tell you there's a lot more to Naples than Pizza and Spaghetti.  This city has such an amazing culture with all the architecture, ruins, beaches, people and exquisite foods.  Just walking down a street in Naples, one can appreciate the antique roads with a story and a history left behind.  I enjoyed promenading down these narrow roads with a gelato in my hand and looking at the beautiful architecture and vistas, I also enjoyed the friendly natives (i Napoletani) out on their balconies or usually on their vespas driving by and greeting me in their musical language of Italian.  I have been on many beaches and yet I can't seem to find one that compares to the beaches of Naples.  

I had the opportunity to take a cruise of the Mediterranean Sea and I will never forget the different shades of blue and green waters that looked like a scene in Homer's Odyssey.   I'll never forget the way the sun hit the white cliffs with multi-colored houses overlapping each other accenting the clear blue waters like pristine images from a postcard.  I think that everyone should get an opportunity to visit Naples.  It is very easy to open a book and learn about a city but when you actually travel you get to live the lifestyle that people only hear about and learn in text books.  It is very important to see the world the way it is supposed to be seen.   

An easy way to travel from Napoli (Naples) to Sorrento and Pompeii is by Circumvesuviana. This local train works its way around the Bay of Naples:

Visit the Naples Channel on www.webvisionitaly.com

Julie F.