Pizza is an oven-baked, flat, round bread typically topped with a tomato sauce, cheese and various toppings. The modern pizza was originally invented in Naples, Italy, and the dish has since become popular in many parts of the world. An establishment that makes and sells pizzas is called a "pizzeria". Many varieties of pizza exist worldwide, along with several dish variants based upon pizza. Pizza is cooked in various types of ovens, and a diverse variety of ingredients and toppings are utilized. In 2009, upon Italy's request, Neapolitan pizza was safeguarded in the European Union as a Traditional Speciality Guaranteed dish. Pizza has been described as having both potential health benefits and detriments. Pizza is also available in frozen prepared varieties. Documentation and records exist for the world's largest pizza and the most expensive pizza.HistoryThe word pizza is Greek in origin . The ancient Greeks covered their bread with oils, herbs and cheese. In Byzantine Greek, the word was spelled πίτα, pita, or πίττα, pitta, meaning pie. The word has also spread to Romanian as pită, Turkish as pide, and Bulgarian, Bosnian, Croatian, Macedonian and Serbian as pita, Albanian as pite and Modern Hebrew pittÄh. The Romans developed placenta, a sheet of dough topped with cheese and honey and flavored with bay leaves.