Delco Proudly Lays Claim to the Invention of the Stromboli
Delaware County, specifically Essington Pizzeria, can proudly lay claim to the invention of the Stromboli, writes Joseph Gambardello for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Nazzareno (Nat) Romano was an Italian immigrant who opened Essington Pizzeria in 1944. He was trying to come up with new stuffed pizza dishes.
He stumbled on cotechino salami, cheese, and peppers stuffed into an Italian bread dough pocket, but the new dish lacked a name.
His son-in-law, Bill Schofield, came up with “Stromboli” after the movie of the same name and the extramarital affair that went with it. Star Ingrid Bergman shacked up with director Roberto Rossellini and became pregnant with a son. The resulting scandal in 1950 called for film boycotts and a denouncement on the floor of the U.S. Senate.
Romano’s son, Pete Romano Sr., was there at Essington Pizzeria in January 1950 when the Stromboli got its name.
“Ingrid Bergman and Roberto Rossellini are the reason,” he said.
The first Strombolis, by the way, sold for 45 cents. Airline crews staying near the pizzeria spread the Stromboli beyond Delco.
Essington is now Romano’s Pizzeria, and it sells 25,000 to 30,000 Strombolis a year.
Read more about the origin of the Stromboli in The Philadelphia Inquirer here.
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