Pineapple On Pizza Isn't Actually From Hawaii

Is there any pizza topping as vilified as poor, sweet pineapple? If you don't like anchovies on pizza, for instance, you are unlikely to go on a tirade about how those (stinky, oily) swimmers don't belong on pizza in a fundamental, ideological sense. And, yet, that's exactly what pineapple pizza haters are apt to do. We've seen many notable spins on so-called "Hawaiian pizza" in our time, including a vintage Chuck E. Cheese pie with almonds, but never before did we realize that, despite being named after the 50th state, Hawaiian pizza was actually Canadian.

Most commonly, credit for pineapple on pizza goes to Sotirios "Sam" Panopoulos. Ethically Greek, Panopoulos was inspired by authentic Italian pizza when he and his two brothers opened the Satellite Restaurant in Chatham, Ontario in 1962. Another cuisine that inspired Panopoulos was the Cantonese-South Pacific fusion that arose from the popular midcentury tiki trend. Chinese restaurants were starting to serve pupu platters, for instance, that took notes from Polynesian fare. When Panopoulos ate sweet and sour chicken for the first time, he was inspired to put pineapple (which was served with the chicken entrée) on the pizzas served in his restaurant. Anecdotally, he named it "Hawaiian pizza" after the brand of canned pineapple he used.

Was Panopoulos truly the first to put pineapple on pizza? History is undecided in that regard, unlike many facts you never knew about pizza, with some social media users having claimed to unearth menus from the '50s showing other pineapple pizzas — even Hawaiian pizzas! Evidence is sketchy at best, however, and there is little doubt that Panopoulos popularized pineapple pizza, so he gets the lion's share of credit.

Unlike beloved Canadian fast food chains that we long for across the border, there are definitely some fired-up consumers who wish that Sam Panopoulos's pineapple pizza had stayed locked up in Canada ... or, even better, stranded on a South Pacific desert isle in the fashion of the "Gilligan's Island" castaways. Have you ever encountered one of the (many) detractors of this divisive pizza? We bet that you'd know it if you had ... because they wouldn't hesitate to tell you about it!

Almost 10 years ago, survey aggregator site YouGov dove deep into Brits' feelings about pineapple, pizza, and pineapple on pizza. Although 84% of those surveyed stated that they liked pizza, and 82% of respondents said that they liked pineapple, only 53% said that they enjoyed pineapple on pizza. Although that counts as a (slim) majority, it's hard to overlook the fact that a full 47% of those surveyed disliked the very idea of Hawaiian pizza.

We've heard the arguments against pineapple on pizza, even if we don't agree with them. Pineapple is acidic, tomato sauce is acidic, and the combination of the two can be a bit much for some. Also, pineapple is "wet" in texture, and there are folks who dislike the sensation atop their cheese. Do either of these (pretty benign) gripes explain the absolute vitriol that the anti-pineapple crowd has for some canned fruit on pizza? In an interesting twist of fate, pineapple pizza has even made it to Italy, the home of "authentic" pizza pies, where anecdotal evidence suggests that some Italians really enjoy it. One thing is clear: the storied history of Hawaiian pizza is one with international roots and a lot of strong opinions!