The Telegraph reports, “Historians in the West are not so sure, and the charming idea is probably little more than an urban legend, but to Chinese eyes, Italian food is a reworking of their classics, and its comfortable familiarity has made it hugely popular.”

 

“There has been a market for pizza in China ever since Pizza Hut arrived in 1990, swiftly followed by Domino’s in 1995 and Papa Johns in 2004. Today, there are 500 branches of Pizza Hut in China, compared with the 700 or so in the UK.”

“While the fast food giants have proliferated, Justin Kennedy, the owner of Pizza Express’ franchise in Hong Kong and Shanghai, has been mulling over whether, as China gets rich, its taste will become more refined. ‘We started Pizza Express in Hong Kong almost 10 years ago, and always had one eye on China. But we felt back then that Shanghai and Beijing were not quite ready, so we waited,’ he said.”